Meeting of the Parliament 23 February 2016
Let me tell members one thing that I will never do: describe our national Parliament as a “sub-state legislature”. That probably sums up one of the many differences between me and Ruth Davidson.
Ruth Davidson talks about the Scottish and UK Governments working together. I am glad that we have got to the point of a deal in principle today, but let me say this: it has been much harder work than it should have been to avoid the Treasury trying to cash grab from the Scottish Government to the tune of £7 billion. Perhaps the biggest tribute of all to the Deputy First Minister is the fact that, as a result of what I have just announced to Parliament, he is probably the person who has had more success than anybody else in seeing off a cash grab from Her Majesty’s Treasury.
I look forward to bringing forward proposals in a manifesto that I will put to the people of Scotland in just a couple of months’ time. Ruth Davidson must do likewise. She likes to parade herself as a tax cutter, notwithstanding the fact that she wants to reintroduce prescription charges and charge a graduate tax on our students. The responsibility that she faces is that, if she wants to go around saying that she will cut taxes, she must tell us from where in our public services that money will come.