John Swinney has been warned that struggling Scottish workers and businesses will go under unless their bills are cut in tomorrow’s (Tuesday) budget.
The Scottish Conservatives are demanding that the SNP government reduce income tax for struggling families and cut Scotland’s “out-of-control benefits bill”.
The key asks from Holyrood’s largest opposition party include:
- a rise in the thresholds at which people start paying income tax – and the Higher Rate of income tax – in line with inflation
- a cut to 19% in the rate of income tax paid up to the Higher Rate
- a pause in the Non-Domestic Rates revaluation, which has seen rises of up to 400 per cent for some businesses
- full rates relief for hospitality properties valued up to £100,000
- extending the Small Business Bonus Scheme’s 100 per cent relief to properties worth up to £20,000
- a £50m emergency fund for colleges and an increase in annual funding to begin to reverse the 20 per cent real-terms cut under the SNP
The Scottish Conservatives say their proposals are essential to give households and businesses a break and to ensure employers have the skilled workers needed to get the economy moving.
Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay said: “Scottish households and businesses are struggling after years of rising bills under the SNP government.
“It is absolutely critical that John Swinney starts listening and gives people a much-needed break.
“SNP stealth taxes have dragged hundreds of thousands of middle-earning Scots into higher tax bands, at the same time as their household bills have soared.
“And many businesses across the country are on the brink. The SNP must ditch their catastrophic business rates revaluation and provide the relief they’ve denied hospitality firms for years.
“An end to the SNP’s war on the college sector is essential, to give our young people hope and employers the skilled workers needed to grow our economy.
“These common-sense Conservative plans can be delivered if the SNP rein in Scotland’s unaffordable and out-of-control benefits bill.”