Tag: finance

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UK unemployment 40% higher, youth unemployment 40% higher than in Scotland, BBC Scotland ‘disappear’ the good news again

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Please Support Talking-up Scotland at: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/support-talking-up-scotlandClick on the above. BBC Breakfast this morning with an extended piece on unemployment not being mirrored by BBC Scotland. The unemployment rate in Scotland at the end of 2025, was 3.7%, down from 3.8% in 2024.  In crude terms 5.1 is 1.4 greater than 3.7 but as a percentage, to take account of the millions of people being referred to, unemployment in England is 37.8% higher. There are about 1.8m unemployed in the UK so if the rate was the same in the UK as it is in Scotland, hundreds of thousands of those would be … Continue reading UK unemployment 40% higher, youth unemployment 40% higher than in Scotland, BBC Scotland ‘disappear’ the good news again

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Starmer’s China whisky deal will benefit Scotland by SFA!

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Support Talking-up Scotland to keep rebutting the lies almost every day of the year, at https://t.co/xFcIcegHTy From BBC Scotland, 30 January 2026: A cut in tariffs on Scottish whisky exports to China will come into force on Monday, the prime minister has told the BBC. As a result of a new deal agreed during Sir Keir Starmer’s trip to China, import taxes on whisky will be cut from 10% to 5% – a deal the UK government said would be worth £250m to the UK’s economy over the next five years. Scotch whisky is a key export for Britain’s drinks … Continue reading Starmer’s China whisky deal will benefit Scotland by SFA!

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Dear voter, sick of the other parties and tempted by Reform UK? Don’t be daft. Don’t do it. They’re not your friends. Unless you are already rich, this report proves that they will only make your life and your family’s lives worse

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From the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) yesterday: Reform UK have announced plans for cuts to income tax in Scotland if they were to win the Scottish Parliament elections in May. They say they would start by realigning Scotland’s tax rates and bands with those in the rest of the UK and then cut all rates by 1 percentage point. They would aim to further cut rates so that by the end of the upcoming parliamentary term in 2031, rates would be 3 percentage points below those in the rest of the UK. Reform UK have costed the first two … Continue reading Dear voter, sick of the other parties and tempted by Reform UK? Don’t be daft. Don’t do it. They’re not your friends. Unless you are already rich, this report proves that they will only make your life and your family’s lives worse

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How a London-based think-tank is more trustworthy than a Glasgow one with a bias against the SNP

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By stewartb It’s been interesting to compare and contrast how two economic think tanks chose to comment upon the Scottish Government’s recent budget statement and Spending Review. Let’s take the Glasgow-based Fraser of Allander Institute (FAI) on the Budget first: FAI (January 13) ‘A Budget where the silences were loudest.’ The up front framing made a good start! And on what the Cabinet Secretary did say, it’s tough to find anything remotely positive in the commentary. The FAI offers this further characterisation of the Budget: ‘Another case of delaying adjustment into the future’. Such a remark emphasises where the FAI ‘s own … Continue reading How a London-based think-tank is more trustworthy than a Glasgow one with a bias against the SNP

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Scottish think-tank – ‘Value judgements’ over analysis-based conclusions.

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By stewartb: As a regular reader of the output of the Fraser of Allander Institute (FAI), I’m becoming increasingly disappointed in how it’s opting to express and emphasise what are ‘value judgements’ over analysis-based conclusions. Does it intend to become a quasi-political organisation? On January 15 this headline appeared above an FAI article: ‘Budget – day 3 reaction – Council tax & the Spending Review. Incoherent reforms to council tax: could have been worse, but not good enough.’ Within the piece we read (with my emphasis): ‘Scotland will follow the UK Government’s example and introduce higher taxes on higher value properties. Whereas … Continue reading Scottish think-tank – ‘Value judgements’ over analysis-based conclusions.

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This Ayr SNP MSP candidate makes ex-Labour minister look tired and visionless but most of all ignorant of the reasons why ‘visionary’ budgets are simply denied us

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Above right, Siobhian Brown SNP candidate for the Ayr constituency, out leafleting, responds to the accusations from Scottish Labour that the SNP, after 19 years, is ‘tired & visionless.’ Full video at: https://www.facebook.com/share/r/17tX9kcQs6/ I feel sure they know how much the devolution settlements firmly denies the Scottish Government the ability to be visionary and their attack, for that reason, is visionless. If Scotland was independent what could the Scottish Government’s budget feature that it cannot at the moment If Scotland were independent, its government’s budget could include a range of powers, policies, and fiscal tools that are currently unavailable or … Continue reading This Ayr SNP MSP candidate makes ex-Labour minister look tired and visionless but most of all ignorant of the reasons why ‘visionary’ budgets are simply denied us

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If you’re one of the highest-earning 25% ‘pulled’ into higher tax bands you’re not ‘middle-class’, by definition

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The Herald today on behalf of the people, based on opinion polls, already predisposed to vote Labour, in the hope of cutting their taxes and the benefits of others (classic Labour these days), has: Middle-class Scots pulled into higher tax bands by Budget freeze There’s a long history of people in the UK calling themselves ‘middle-class’ when their economic circumstances are far from the middle in any objective sense. Just because sociologists recognise your cultural preferences to be ‘middle class’ doesn’t mean that entitles you to only pay income tax at the same level of people in the middle income … Continue reading If you’re one of the highest-earning 25% ‘pulled’ into higher tax bands you’re not ‘middle-class’, by definition

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12 000 babies to benefit from increase to £40 per week in SNP child benefit already praised widely across UK and Europe

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From Scottish Budget 2026 to 2027, published today: We will uprate the SCP in line with inflation to £28.20 per week per child. We will also begin the necessary work in 2026‑27 to introduce a new SCP Premium for under ones in 2027‑28. This will result in a total payment of £40 per week in respect of every child in the household under one. The additional payment is estimated to benefit the families of around 12,000 children. https://www.gov.scot/publications/scottish-budget-2026-2027/pages/2/ This has been reported widely but in no case, to my knowledge, has it been linked to these numbers. Also, important context into which to set … Continue reading 12 000 babies to benefit from increase to £40 per week in SNP child benefit already praised widely across UK and Europe

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Senior BBC staff most upset by threat to their council tax bills and less fussy about the others

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There are around 3 million taxpayers in Scotland. 55% of them (1.65m) will pay less income tax than in the rest of the UK but BBC Scotland chose to highlight the ‘Mansion Tax’ which will affect 11 330 – Anas Sarwar and few of their senior staff. Here’s a better report, from the AI assisted Policy Mogul: Changes to the basic and intermediate rate income tax thresholds will protect lower-income households in 2026-27, Finance Secretary Shona Robison has announced. The Finance Secretary also confirmed there would be no changes to rates or the number of tax bands in the coming … Continue reading Senior BBC staff most upset by threat to their council tax bills and less fussy about the others

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Scottish Government provides better support for business

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introduced in England by the UK Government. BBC Scotland today, with a story to suggest something is worse in Scotland than in England. There’s a debate in the Scottish Parliament tomorrow on business rates which they’ve managed to find someone to stand in a shopping street and try to present as a crisis that only exists in Scotland. The facts? Based on an AI search of 87 sources, Scotland’s system is often seen as more coordinated and interventionist. Summary Table Aspect Scotland England Better for SMEs? Rates Relief (Core Small Biz) Very generous (combined RV up to £35k+, 100% bands) … Continue reading Scottish Government provides better support for business