John Swinney should be honest about the impact of his cuts

Ahead of John Swinney giving evidence to the Economy, Energy and Tourism Committee on the Scottish budget, Labour have called for him to be honest about the impact of SNP cuts.

The SNP plan to cut £500 million from local government in the budget. Cosla estimate this would result in 15,000 job losses.  Labour said the cuts to local services such as schools are short-sighted, and would hinder Scotland’s ability to give our young people the skills we need for the jobs of the future.

Scottish Labour also revealed that the SNP plan to cut the fuel poverty budget by 13%, a cut which has since been confirmed by the independent experts at the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.  Despite this, the SNP Government denied any such cut is happening.

Scottish Labour Public Services spokesperson Jackie Baillie said:

“In Scotland we have the chance to reject austerity and present the real change which people across Scotland are crying out for. Instead the SNP Government plan to accept Tory austerity.

Today John Swinney should be honest about the impact his cuts will have on public services, like schools and social care.

It’s not credible for the First Minister to claim education is her top priority whilst simultaneously slashing local education budgets. This will have a devastating impact on our future economy if our young people are not equipped with the right skills.

We should be cutting the gap between the richest and the rest, not the budget for our schools.”

On the SNP’s denial about plans to cut the fuel poverty budget Jackie Baillie said:

“The last Labour led Scottish Government set an ambitious target to eradicate fuel poverty by 2016.

Now the SNP plan to cut the budget for fuel poverty measures by £15 million. What’s worse is they are trying to deny it. That’s a shocking level of arrogance from a government who think they can just pull the wool over people’s eyes.

After nearly a decade in power and a majority in parliament there are no excuses for the SNP Government. John Swinney should be honest that he’s planning to cut the fuel poverty budget, and then spell out what that means for vulnerable people across Scotland.

Everybody in Scotland deserves a safe and warm home, and no one should have to choose between heating and eating. The SNP need to face up to the reality of their cuts.”

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7 thoughts on “John Swinney should be honest about the impact of his cuts

  1. Any cuts made at local level will be made by local authorities so cuts to school budgets are determined by the local authority of the area the school is in. Labour of course know this but continue with their pathetic unwarranted SNP BAD theme because frankly the have no way of employing a credible Labour Good theme.

    Once again there are no central Government cuts being imposed on local authorities there is only a council tax freeze which comes with a central Government compensatory package for any shortfall which results in the freeze. local councils as John Swinney pointed out have a massive 1.8 billion in cash reserves.

    Its seems to me that Labour councils in particular are not using available funding simply to give their party an agenda to attempt smears and political attacks on the Scottish Government. They are deliberately allowing people to suffer in order to gain some kind of campaigning agenda.

    I think Labour were caught out over their refusal to pay up the 1500 compensatory flooding funding allocated by the Scottish Government. We can now apply the same corrupt practice to every Labour council who refuses to fund Schools and ensures teacher numbers remain inadequate.

    A systematic deliberate sabotage of Scottish Government efforts for party political gain coupled with full cooperation from an equally corrupt State run media circus.

    That’s the UK of GB for you. That’s our Union benefit.

    1. Well said Sir!

      especially

      “local councils as John Swinney pointed out have a massive 1.8 billion in cash reserves.”

      “They are deliberately allowing people to suffer in order to gain some kind of campaigning agenda.”
      particularly over education…Local Labour groups are effectively sabotaging the future of children by cutting into education and not maintaining staffing numbers as they promised to do since 2008 under the COSLA agreement.

      but mostly with this part

      with their pathetic unwarranted SNP BAD theme because frankly the have no way of employing a credible Labour Good theme.

      repeatedly Labour have been found out undertaking action which impacts ordinary people lives in what only can be understood as direct sabotage of the Scottish Government’s plans, rather than act responsibly and execute their office with the care of their constituents at heart

  2. “Now the SNP plan to cut the budget for fuel poverty measures by £15 million. What’s worse is they are trying to deny it.”

    I would dearly love to see the evidence of this plan. Can we? Sometime today?

  3. “Everybody in Scotland deserves a safe and warm home, and no one should have to choose between heating and eating. The SNP need to face up to the reality of their cuts.”

    Love this piece of in your face hypocrisy considering it was the Scottish Government who proposed cutting heating bills while Labour proposed freezing heating bills for 2 years.

    But of course the reason why people have to choose between heating and eating is because of privatisation.
    The private consortium of utility companies while raking in billions in sheer profit have been allowed to increase their bills far higher than inflation.

    Its Privatisation which allows the cost of living in the UK to far exceed the means to live within the UK.
    Its a very right wing Neo Conservative ideology which benefits nobody but corporate political party donors and backers. The kind who now donate and back the Neo Conservative run Labour party.

    “Privatisation” The measure Labour supports and the Scottish Government opposes.

  4. “Labour said the cuts to local services such as schools are short-sighted, and would hinder Scotland’s ability to give our young people the skills we need for the jobs of the future.”

    except Labour groups are cutting frontline education services, causing strike action in one local authority despite sitting on a reserve of many millions.

    “It’s not credible for the First Minister to claim education is her top priority whilst simultaneously slashing local education budgets.”

    This is an outright misrepresentation…..Since the ringfencing of education budgets given to local councils was removed in 2008 at Labour controlled COSLA’s demand, Local councils have complete control over how much is slashed from education budgets…if local Labour groups don’t like it then they do not have to do it

    “13%, a cut which has since been confirmed by the independent experts at the Scottish Parliament Information Centre. “ except the only people saying this are Labour sources

    couterpointed by

    “the Scottish Government announced a 35 per cent funding increase for fuel poverty and energy efficiency programmes. That involves an extra £5 million being put into the energy assistance package,” quoted from the actual debate in parliament.

    “Now the SNP plan to cut the budget for fuel poverty measures by £15 million. What’s worse is they are trying to deny it..

    Ipse Dixit…they only sources for this are Labour sources and Labour friendly media…there is no verifiable independent confirmation and as above the actual debate shows the SNPs position is the exact opposite,

    counterpointed by the deliberate withholding of the £1500 allocated for flood alleviation by a Labour controlled council ….

    Labour are in this mess for exactly the reasons highlighted and Labour never seem to learn that what they say can bee easily checked for verification…or not in the case of some of their more outrageous statements

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