Meeting of the Parliament 14 December 2017
We will scrutinise the tax announcement, because the devil is often in the detail. However, it seems that what the cabinet secretary has announced is a modest increase in taxation, which is an approach that we argued for at the election and one that he opposed at the election.
The budget does not do enough to meet the long-term needs of the economy. It does not include the transformational investment in education that we argued for. We are far behind—many years behind—England on the attainment funds, and the small increase that the cabinet secretary has announced will not close that gap.
Colleges have got only half the money that they asked for just to stand still. That will not reverse the cuts to college places, which have been reduced by 150,000 over the past few years, or fund the training of the mature students and women who desperately need extra support.
If Mr Mackay thinks that a paltry £17 million will solve the problems in our mental health services, he needs to think again.
The settlement for local government is harsh. It passes on the buck for cuts to councils. The pay increase is welcome, but can the finance secretary explain who will pay for it? Will councils and colleges be given extra funds to pay for it?
I think that the budget pays lip service to many of the challenges that this country faces. Does the cabinet secretary not accept that?