Tuesday June 25th 2024
Christine Grahame MSP writes her monthly column for Midlothian View
At long last we have a kernel of truth amid all the promises during this election. The question which needed to be answered was this. How can you protect public services such as the NHS indeed make promises to increase staffing and not put up taxes?
Well the Independent Fiscal Studies ( the IFS) has given us the answer. You can’t.
So it’s obvious, some public services are cut, certain taxes are increased (or your tax free personal allowance before tax is reduced or other taxes such as capital gains tax, inheritance tax are increased) or a bit of both.
This against the background of humungous borrowing by the UK government. Continuing with this wee lesson in arithmetic the National Debt is currently( what the UK borrows to stay afloat) £2.7 billion ( most recent figure I could find) or put it another way, if we say 100% represents what we as a nation earn then the debt if 101%. Meaning the books simply don’t balance. Add to that we have to pay interest on the borrowing which is £4 billion.
So my question Mr Sunak or Sir Keir Starmer is this: where are the money trees?
If no trees where is the money coming from for those promises? Add to that neither mentions the “B “ word, Brexit to you and me.
Brexit according to Research by the Centre for European Reform suggests the UK economy is 2.5% smaller than it would have been if Remain had won the referendum. Public finances fell by £26 billion a year. This amounts to £500 million a week and is growing.
Now I know by now you are thinking “stop I have a headache” and “she would say that wouldn’t she” but it’s not me saying it. These are independent sources which you can check for yourself. Please do. Because at the final count on Thursday 4th July, we should hold whoever wins to account, either in government or at constituency but preferably, before you cast your vote.
Tweet Share on Facebook
