From the Scottish Government on 18 December but ignored by the media:
A new income tax band will raise additional revenue to deliver high quality public services and support the social contract with Scotland’s people, Deputy First Minister and Finance Secretary Shona Robison has announced.
The Advanced rate band will apply a 45% tax rate on annual income between £75,000 and £125,140. Other changes include an additional 1p being added to the Top rate of tax and the Starter and Basic rate bands increasing in line with inflation. There are no changes to the Starter, Basic, Intermediate and Higher tax rates. The Higher rate threshold will be maintained at £43,662.
The Scottish Fiscal Commission estimates that overall Income Tax will raise £18.8 billion in 2024-25.
The Commission also estimates that next year the Scottish Government will raise around £1.5 billion more in income tax revenue than if it had followed the Income Tax policy of the UK Government, as a result of changes to rates and bands it has brought in since 2017-18.
Income tax to raise £18.8 billion – gov.scot (www.gov.scot)
I missed this at the time and, of course, BBC Scotland, the Herald and other were never going to alert me to it.
They were far more interested in this yah boo idea:
New Scottish income tax band might only raise £60m
and:
Inflation and pay deals leave Scottish ministers facing £1.5bn budget black hole
A more accurate headline would have been:
New Scottish income tax will pay for the junior doctors 14.5% pay rise to stop the ‘loss of half in next two years’ or pay for 60 000 to get care at home….
Talking-up Scotland 'Albatraz' 
Of course the media were interested only in the worst case scenario and duly delivered it with a contemptuous jeer.
Their big story was their fantasy exodus of high earners.
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The media of course make up any scenario that suits their disgraceful SNP bad agenda, and they lie, and then they lie some more.
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Westminster is spending half of Scotland budget. Claims it is £106Billion. Westminster spends. £52Billion of it. Westminster decides and borrows. Scotland gets the debt repayments. Pays debt repayment on the Westminster borrowed loans.
Westminster UK raises £731Billion in taxes and revenues + other taxes. Council tax etc. Spends £1090Billion. Westminster spent £270Billion on Covid funding over two years. Much of it wasted. Wasted £Billions on Hickley Point, Brexit, illegal wars, redundant weaponry., Trident, illegal wars etc. Wasted £Billions of taxpayers monies on useless projects of no value, in the South. Scotland has to pay for it.
Claims Scotland spends. £54Billion or £87Billion or £106Billion. Which one is it? When Westminster decides what Scottish funds are spent (wasted) on. £Billions lost to Westminster poor policies and mismanagement. No decided in Scotland, that could have been better spent.
70% of Scottish legislation decided by Westminster. Not enough powers for to control its own revenues and spending. £Billions wasted by Westmibster.
No taxation without representation. . Scottish block Grant £41Billion.
Westminster election coming. May? Vote for Independence. Independence supporting Parties. Use it or lose it. Democracy,
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My understand has always been that whatever extra the SG raises through taxation, the block grant is reduced by an equivalent amount. Can anyone confirm that I’m either right or wrong?
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This was published on 13th September 2023.
It is a long read!
(I have downloaded it for future reference)
https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm5803/cmselect/cmscotaf/625/report.html
“Promoting Scotland Internationally
This is a House of Commons Committee report, with recommendations to government. The Government has two months to respond.”
In Section 7, “UK and Scottish government cooperation” I was reminded of a recommendation in Labour’s “Commission on the UK’s Future” to amend the reserved power of ‘Foreign Affairs’ to permit the Scottish government to join international organisations and have international agreements in relation to devolved matters.
It says –
“Whilst recognising that foreign affairs and international trade are reserved to the UK Government, the Scottish Government have international interests in devolved policy areas.”
Bear in mind, under the Scotland Act 2016, those ‘devolved policy areas’ can be increased by future UK government’s simply by agreement!
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O/T I’m sure many readers of TuS will recall over the past ten years occasions when Union-supporting ‘journalists’ claimed that Scotland has a ’basket case’ economy comparable to or worse than that of Greece. It always was daft comparing Scotland with this or any independent nation-state but I suspect the use of Greece as the Unionists’ go-to comparator will be no more.
It seems that by using the agency available to ’normal’ democratic independent countries, places like Greece can achieve very substantial, (arguably) positive economic change in a time period equivalent to just one or at most two five year terms of a Westminster parliament!
The Economist (magazine) has recently placed Greece at the top of its list of 35 richer countries with the most improved economic performance in 2023. According to The Economist’s analysis based on five economic and financial indicators (inflation, “inflation breadth”, GDP, jobs and stock market performance), Greece has the best economic marks among 35 mainly rich countries this year. Greece is top of this international ranking for the second year running.
See https://greekcitytimes.com/2023/12/21/mitsotakis-the-economist-year/
On December 18, 2023, the online ‘Greek Reporter’ provided additional information taken from The Economist’s commentary:
‘The magazine says that Greece scores some surprising results in terms of the five indicators, based on which the overall score for each country is derived. But what stands out is the increase in the market value of the Greek market by 43.8 percent.
And adds: “.. for glorious equity returns, look thousands of miles west— to Greece. There the real value of the stock market has increased by over 40 percent. Investors have looked afresh at Greek companies as the government implements a series of pro-market reforms.”
And the article also notes: ‘Greece approved its 2024 budget on Sunday, forecasting a rise in economic growth to 2.9% from 2.4% this year as a result of robust tourist revenues and EU funds helping investment.’
Now personally, I’m not sure I’d buy into all the reforms being implemented by the present centre right government in Greece. But the point remains: substantial change is feasible and in relatively short order, including economic change that arguably would be envied by the very same economically-conservative Unionists who oppose Scotland having what Greece has – indeed what all OECD democracies have – the agency of a ’normal’ nation-state!
(The Economist published ‘The Economist’s country of the year for 2023’ on 20 December 2023. It explains that the magazine started naming countries of the year in 2013 – ‘we have sought to recognise something different: the place that has improved the most’.)
I haven’t paid a subscription to The Economist so can’t give you the UK’s ranking. However, other sources reveal that the UK does not figure in the top 15 out of 35: Ireland is 11th, Denmark 12th and Estonia 15th.
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For namorrodor (from exile). I think you’re basically right, but the adjustment happens in a future year. This link may be a starting point for you.
https://www.gov.scot/publications/income-tax-outturn-reconciliation-2019-20—joint-statement-with-hm-treasury/
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To Prof John, from exile – Happy New Year to you and yours, and grateful thanks for the brilliant work on this site.
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