Craig Hoy
Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party · Scotland
“Given the fragility of bus services across Dumfriesshire, will the minister commit the cabinet secretary, who is overseas, to a meeting with me, so that I can reinforce the case for a station at Beattock, which is now increasingly vital?”
“Jenny Gilruth: Perhaps it was a bit too much to expect some positivity about these announcements from Mr Hoy. However, I hope that he recognises that the Government has significantly adapted our position on support for businesses in relation to some of the outputs that I have set out today.”
“If kicking the can down the road was a competitive sport, this Government would win gold every single time. Many Scottish businesses now continue to face some of the highest rates liabilities in the UK, and many have seen eye-watering increases as a result of the most recent revaluation.”
“I extend to Mr Hoy the same invitation that I extended to Mr Greer. If Mr Hoy wants to come forward with some more ambitious proposals ahead of the budget, my door is open— Craig Hoy: I am seeing you tomorrow. Jenny Gilruth: We will be meeting tomorrow—I look forward to that engagement.”
“I thank the minister for her invitation for us all to work together. I will meet the Deputy First Minister next week to that end. If the new, fiscally prudent, small-state Scottish Government can commit to reducing tax and cutting the benefits bill, we will have a fruitful relationship.”
“Let us hope that that sentiment remains as we progress through the months. We need to look more broadly at where Scotland has been and where it is going. Scotland is a country that has made reducing child poverty an absolute priority—that is one of its moonshots. With our 6 per cent lower figure, we are leading the UK.”
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“The south of Scotland region, which I represent, is certainly beautiful, but it is important that we maintain it to ensure that it stays that way. It is only through such engagement that we can create understanding and provide young people with the right information, so that they can go on to support not just our local ecology but our beautiful green spaces, which take work to maintain. Keep Scotland Beautiful and the Eco-Schools programme continue to do amazing work on the ground, and it is imperative that the Government matches their efforts through its policies and funding. Christine Grahame: I just wanted to let members know that I have now googled the question about blankets, as I perhaps should have done before the debate.”
“Given the amount of crisps that I eat, I suspect that I could probably stitch several together. Keep Scotland Beautiful is involved in a number of initiatives across the south of Scotland, including in prisons. For example, His Majesty’s prison Dumfries has a wellbeing garden, which the charity has rated as outstanding. The garden was established so that prisoners, particularly those who suffer from mental health or addiction issues, could come into outdoor space. That is exactly the type of innovative and transformative project that we would like to see right across the country, not only in our schools but in other organisations and institutions. It is vital that we recognise not just the contribution of the Eco-Schools programme but the work of Keep Scotland Beautiful.”
“Likewise, it is important that we collectively support the work of the Eco-Schools programme and Keep Scotland Beautiful, because it is important that such initiatives and projects go into our schools. I was interested to learn that, as Christine Grahame has mentioned, 19.5 million children across 74 countries are engaged in the programme and to find out that Lockerbie academy was one of the first schools in the south of Scotland to secure eco-school status, which it did in 2014. Such initiatives are important in promoting training and mobilising young people and volunteers not only to learn more about the ecology of Scotland but to engage in projects such as litter picks and looking after local green spaces. Like Christine Grahame, I will be off after this meeting to find out how one makes blankets out of crisp packets.”
“With regard to the motion before us, I had the real pleasure of attending St Andrew’s several years ago, and I was impressed with the school and the children, one of whom, four-year-old Jude Davie, won my Christmas card competition that year. I visit a lot of schools, as does everyone in the chamber. When I am not visiting them, I enjoy their visits to Parliament, and, indeed, enjoy joshing with Christine Grahame when schools from our areas visit. When I visited the nursery at St Andrew’s, I found it to be a happy and creative school, and I am thrilled to be part of today’s debate and to learn more about its engagement with the Eco-Schools programme. It is important that everybody remembers that Scotland is a beautiful place and that we need to do more to preserve and defend its ecology.”
“I am pleased to support and speak to the motion and to commend St Andrew’s RC primary school in Gorebridge for its engagement in the Eco-Schools programme. I also take this opportunity to commend Keep Scotland Beautiful for its work across the south of Scotland. From East Lothian to the Borders and into Dumfries and Galloway, Keep Scotland Beautiful has helped communities, businesses and councils to clean up our towns and villages and protect vital green spaces. Last year, the medium town trophy was won by blooming Haddington, and the large village trophy was won by Earlston in bloom in the Scottish Borders.”
“We will support entrepreneurship by creating a £2.9 million proof of concept fund. We will invest £150 million to support private investment in supply chain clusters for offshore wind. All of that will lead to more thriving businesses and more high-quality employment for people living in Scotland. With those actions and more, we will deliver the greatest possible impacts for Scotland—tangible benefits that people will feel in their daily lives. I look forward to this afternoon’s debate. The Deputy Presiding Officer: I call Rachael Hamilton to open on behalf of the Scottish Conservatives. 15:37”
“That will be independent and is entirely in line with what has been requested by the hospitality sector. In the minute that I have left, I note that we will also introduce a heat in buildings bill to set targets. We will work with the UK Government to reform the consenting process through the Planning and Infrastructure Bill. Subject to the approval of the Housing (Scotland) Bill, we will begin work to improve outcomes for those who are at risk of homelessness and strengthen tenants’ rights. We will see to it that more people can see their general practitioner and receive care in the community. We will invest up to £200 million in the Scottish attainment challenge programme. We will establish invest Scotland—which I am particularly pleased about—to showcase Scottish investment opportunities to global investors.”
“Does the Government intend to undertake a reform of business rates, particularly for retail, hospitality and leisure? Kate Forbes: I thank the member for the opportunity to clarify that. This Government introduced reforms to non-domestic rates a number of years ago, based on an independent review. We are aware of what the UK Government is planning to introduce, which we believe will be self-financing. That has consequences for Scotland, because the business base is different here. There are simply larger businesses in England to self-finance. In recognition of the on-going concerns raised by the licensed hospitality sector on the valuation methodology applied to non-domestic rate properties, we have announced today that we will commission an independent review to report by the end of next year and consider any recommendations.”
“We will continue with the Scottish child payment, which, this year, is expected to support around 330,000 children. We will introduce a universal pension-age winter heating payment from this winter, so that all pensioners are supported to heat their homes through the coldest months. We will also support the delivery of more than 8,000 affordable homes for social rent, mid- market rent and low-cost home ownership. That will ease the housing crisis and provide people with significant relief from the largest of their greatest monthly expenses. Craig Hoy: I saw a reference to business rates in the programme for government. England is looking at creating a fairer business rates system that is particularly fairer for high streets. Like me, the cabinet secretary will understand that Scottish businesses are calling out for similar measures here.”
“The programme for government sets out the concrete actions that will make our communities healthier, fairer, greener and more prosperous and will make Scotland a better place to live, work, create and invest. As the minister with responsibility for delivery and outcomes, my focus is on ensuring that the Government’s work is aligned with creating the greatest possible benefit for the people of Scotland. All the commitments in the programme for government do that. They are the actions that will make the biggest difference to improving people’s lives. In the coming year, we will develop the systems needed to effectively scrap the impact of the two- child cap. That will limit the impact of a cruel UK Government policy on families in Scotland and support them through the on-going cost of living crisis.”
“There are also conflicts across the world, an increasing number of adverse weather events that have been brought on by climate change and the turmoil of tariffs, global trade wars and faltering economies. It is certain that we will see the effects of all that here, at home. Craig Hoy: Will the minister take an intervention? Kate Forbes: I will make a bit more progress and, if I have time, I will bring in other members. The strain on the public purse and public services will continue. The strain on people’s finances, the stress and the uncertainty cannot be wished away. However, the Government is ready and resilient and it will ensure that Scotland is ready and resilient, too. To that end, we are refocusing and redoubling our efforts.”
“The Government has prioritised the areas of economic impact that will have the greatest potential for creating jobs and attracting inward investment. I referenced some of the Scottish Enterprise results from last year, from which we see that the agency is directly involved in creating jobs and ensuring that we attract inward investment. Those outcomes, which include the fact that we are the highest-performing area outside London and the south-east, demonstrate that we are investing in the right areas. This programme for government has been brought forward because of a number of challenges that we are grappling with. The first is the lingering effects of Brexit, 14 years of austerity and inflation.”
“Will the minister take an intervention? Kate Forbes: I will take a number of interventions, starting with Liz Smith’s. Liz Smith: Two budgets ago, the real-terms cut in the economy budget was 8.3 per cent, at a time when the forecasters said that the overall budget had gone up by 2.2 per cent. Business complained at the time that that was doing nothing to advance the skills agenda that we desperately need in Scotland for new jobs and new industries. Will the Deputy First Minister comment on that? Kate Forbes: I am incredibly proud of the work that our enterprise agencies and the Scottish National Investment Bank have done over the past two years. We do not pretend that financial budgets are anything but challenging right across the UK.”
“I remind Mr Hoy that, when 2024 started, we had the completely useless and incompetent Conservative Government in office, and it was delivering lower growth than we are delivering in Scotland. Mr Hoy will have to change his script, because this Government is delivering for the people of Scotland on the economy, on jobs, on investment and on securing new economic opportunities, and we are going to build on that record in the years to come.”
“Despite John Swinney saying that his plans will boost exports and attract investment, will business not see through his flimsy rhetoric of an “innovation nation” and see instead a high-tax, low-growth Scotland, burdened by years of SNP overregulation and narrow-minded nationalist dogma? The First Minister: Let us take some of that apart. On our growth record, gross domestic product per person in Scotland has grown by 10.3 per cent since this Government came to office, compared with 6.1 per cent in the United Kingdom. That demonstrates that we have been able to preside over a stronger economic performance in Scotland. If that is not enough for Mr Hoy, we could bring things closer to home. In 2024, Scotland’s economy grew by 1.2 per cent. Mr Hoy might not think that that is enough, but that is more than it grew in the United Kingdom.”
“SNP MSPs have been nodding slavishly behind the First Minister, but beyond the Holyrood bubble, people and businesses will be scratching their heads in disbelief at today’s programme for government. The Government has failed to deliver growth, has imposed the highest taxes in the UK and has run down public services while failing against its own child poverty and net zero targets. I agree with Nicola Sturgeon that the SNP’s previous attempts to get the NHS off its knees were “awful”, but her scathing criticism surely applies to today’s blueprint as well. I ask John Swinney this: has it not come to something when the principal call from business is for him to do no more harm?”
“I call Mark Ruskell to open on behalf of the Scottish Greens. 15:40”
“I move amendment S6M-17362.1, to leave out from first “calls” to end and insert: “highlights the Scottish Government’s dropping of the target of a 20% reduction in car use by 2030 and the recent Audit Scotland report, which states that the Scottish Ministers had 'no costed delivery plan or measurable milestones' to achieve this target; recognises that, while car ownership has increased, many households, including a greater proportion of those on lower incomes, do not have access to a car; further recognises that a failure to reduce transport emissions will have a detrimental effect on the climate and on people’s health; acknowledges that a reduction in car use is only realistic and inclusive if there is a viable alternative option, and calls on the Scottish Government to scrap peak rail fares as a first step to making public transport more affordable and accessible to all.” The Deputy Presiding Officer: We are a bit pressed for time this afternoon.”
“As a member of the cross-party group on music, I point out that the implementation of the LEZ scheme in Glasgow has been difficult for the night-time economy there. The Deputy Presiding Officer: Ms Baker will need to conclude and move her amendment. Claire Baker: I will just say something about electric cars. We need to do more to increase the attraction of electric cars. The Deputy Presiding Officer: Thank you. I ask Ms Baker to move her amendment. Claire Baker: We need to do more to make sure that we have a transport strategy that works for all our communities.”
“That is why Scottish Labour has pledged to remove peak fares for good as the first step in delivering a fairer pricing structure, which would mean that more people could afford to use public transport and that it would be competitively priced compared to driving, particularly when a family is travelling. The reality is that price increases are pushing people into cars. We need to foster an environment where the car is not the default. We need to not just make it feasible to choose an alternative method; we need to make that a positive choice. That means not adding significant costs, in terms of money or time. Part of that is about addressing the crumbling road network that is a result of the long-term underfunding of local authorities. The issue of potholes has already been covered.”
“Claire Baker: I agree with what the Government’s amendment says about deregulation and the impact that that has had. However, the SNP Government has done little to reverse that. Legislation was introduced, but we have seen no activity because of a lack of funding in local authority areas to progress that agenda, which is something that I think that we agree on. We need to look at how to ensure more local involvement in delivering bus services for those areas so that alternatives to the car are being provided. However, when the car is the only option, we need to work to reduce reliance on it. Concessionary travel schemes encourage the use of public transport, particularly buses, for certain groups. However, to persuade more people out of cars, public transport has to be reliable, affordable and accessible.”
“Public transport links are lacking and, without private car transport, some people would be cut off. Part of that is a failure to invest in regional solutions, and some bus networks have been dismantled as local authority funding has been hollowed out. We need to look at how to ensure more local involvement in delivering bus services for those areas. Jim Fairlie: Will the member give way? Claire Baker: I am quite pressed for time, but I will do so if the minister can be very brief. Jim Fairlie: On the member’s point about certain areas not having bus services, is that not more to do with the fact that it is a deregulated market? In addition, irrespective of how much public money we put in, we have no control at all over timetables or fares.”
“Is the member aware that many bus companies are facing extreme financial pressures as a result of the Labour UK Government’s imposition of increased employer national insurance contributions? That is resulting in increased fares, a reduction in services and disinvestment in the bus fleet. What does she say to the Labour Government about the impact of that, which will undoubtedly affect bus services in Scotland? Claire Baker: The member will probably agree that the decline in bus services in Scotland happened long before Labour came into government. For years under the SNP, we have seen a reduction in the bus routes that are available to communities and more people do not have access to a bus. I do not accept the argument that has been put forward. We recognise that people are often too reliant on cars to get to where they need to be.”
“Ivan McKee: Wow—I do not know where to start with that question. The Tories want us to cut tax and have less money available to spend, but they are also complaining because health spending is projected to increase. We have kept pace with increases in health spending by providing health boards and local authorities with record funding, so that they, in turn, can fund IJBs. We have done all that while continuing to balance our budget. There are, of course, longer-term challenges, which we are addressing through our fiscal sustainability delivery plan and our public service reform activity. The Government will continue to provide record funding for health and social care while balancing our budget.”
“IJBs in Scotland clearly face a cash crisis. Yesterday, in evidence to the Finance and Public Administration Committee, the Scottish Fiscal Commission warned of a health and social care budget time bomb, given Scotland’s demographics. It warned that an ageing population means that a higher number of people are eligible for care under the current criteria, that those people require more care and that more public spending is therefore needed. Similarly, the SFC’s “Fiscal Sustainability Report” warns: “The growth in health spending shown in our projections is likely to be unsustainable.” Taken alongside a record projected increase in welfare spending, that shows that the Government’s whole budget appears to be unsustainable. What is the Government’s solution to the sustainability challenge that it faces?”
“To ask the Scottish Government, regarding the implementation of its green industrial strategy, what discussions it has had with the United Kingdom Government regarding the introduction of extended producer responsibility. (S6O-04582)”
“It wants “more competitive tax policies and business working with the Scottish Government to co-create policy that protects Scotland’s competitiveness and avoids short-changing our long-term growth ambitions, especially in green jobs and offshore wind.” It is now quite clear that the Government’s interventions in industry, whether in Ferguson Marine or in BiFab, have all but extinguished any confidence that is left that the Government understands the principles and drivers of business. It is a sorry state of affairs, and one that will be reversed only by a healthy dose of commonsense Conservatism, through a pro- growth and pro-business economic and industrial strategy. 16:53”
“That is not just my view, but the view of Michelle Ferguson, the director of the Confederation of British Industry Scotland, who warned: “Scotland is underperforming in areas crucial to our long- term prosperity, such as business investment and businesses desperately lack access to the people and skills that they need to succeed.” I will close on this. The CBI’s call is clear.”
“It looks as though the money is being pocketed by the SNP, leaving businesses to pay for apprenticeships and skills development twice. If the Government is serious about wanting to support Scotland’s industry, it should heed those entirely reasonable calls and ensure that apprenticeship levy funds are actually being used for apprenticeships. If the Government is planning on reforming the system, it must make sure that that is a central aspect of any new approach to apprenticeship funding. To return to the main thrust of my party’s amendment and our argument, the Government does not understand how to deliver growth—green or otherwise.”
“Unfortunately, however, the SNP Government has a very poor track record on ensuring that those funds go towards benefiting our industry through apprenticeships. Instead of the levy being used as it should be—namely, to deliver apprenticeships—it appears to be disappearing into Government coffers. Earlier this month, the trade body Select called for all revenue from the apprenticeship levy to be ring fenced and for further incentives to be introduced for employers to invest in accredited training, because that will drive growth. The question that I now have for ministers—perhaps the minister can amplify this in summing up—is, where are the proceeds of the Barnett consequentials for the apprenticeship levy going?”
“At the recent retail round table that I attended, another important issue arose, as it does in all my outreach with businesses, including in industrial and manufacturing forums, which was that preserving and strengthening skills in the workforce is one of the most important ways in which a Government can support industry. With a more well-educated, highly skilled workforce, our industry can be more resilient to potentially damaging international shocks, and it can take on more opportunities for growth. Apprenticeships are a vital part of developing workforce skills. On paper, that is why Scottish businesses pay an apprenticeship levy: to help to renew workforce skills and benefit everyone, including themselves.”
“Turning to some areas of the macroeconomy that have not been touched on today, it is no wonder that, since Labour’s budget, the IMF has slashed UK growth forecasts for this year and the next. Inflation is set to rise and GDP per capita will barely budge this year. Borrowing—and, more importantly, the cost of borrowing—will soar under Labour. It was—as I think that Daniel Johnson may now accept—a bizarre form of economic masochism for Labour to talk down the economy. Labour did wilful damage to our economy and our investment prospects, and it will reap the results of that now and into the future, whether that is in our light or heavy industries, in retail or in areas such as banking and finance. The budget and the spring statement have slashed business confidence— that is clear.”
“I see that since his move to the Liberal Democrats, he has retained the beard—I am just not sure, as of yet, whether he has acquired the sandals. I could not see that from my vantage point. In Scotland, it is time for ministers to act robustly and comprehensively to reduce the burden of regulation and red tape. That includes in the planning system, where delays are due in part to the pressures that are faced in council planning departments. Business says that that is choking off investment around Scotland. I accept that there are areas where the UK Government must do more or where the past UK Government should have done more—in particular, as was mentioned, on delivering grid connections. Delays to those are holding back industrial development and investment.”
“Murdo Fraser was also right when he warned of the pressure on input costs, whether labour costs or energy costs. I welcome his comprehensive knocking down of Labour’s claim that we pay more for electricity because of our reliance on gas. That was yet more false testimony from Labour’s Cabinet, which now has a reputation for broken promises, particularly in relation to the energy sphere, where Scotland was promised low energy bills as a result of the creation of GB Energy. I also welcome the sage and characteristically correct statements from Fergus Ewing. I share his concern—it is a very real concern—about the fact that, as an oil-producing nation, we now have no oil-refining capacity. I congratulate Jamie Greene on his first speech from the Lib Dem benches, and I welcome a lot of what he said.”
“Those increased costs will not simply be absorbed by businesses; they will be felt by consumers, they will be felt by businesses further along the supply chain and they will be felt by workers in their pay packets. Wage growth is likely to be held back because of Labour’s tax on jobs. There will be an impact on investment across all industries. I also welcome the contribution of Alexander Stewart, who pointed to the other storm clouds that are hanging over commerce and industry, including Labour’s employment reforms, which will put a further burden on businesses when many are already struggling. He was right to point out that Labour’s own impact assessments suggest that those reforms could cost UK businesses an extra £4.5 billion—something which, he correctly noted, will impact Scottish industry.”
“I welcome the contribution of my colleague Pam Gosal, who made it clear that businesses across Scotland are grappling with the effects of the national insurance increases that have been imposed by the UK Labour Government. At a round-table discussion with retailers that I attended recently, the devastating effect of the national insurance increases became blisteringly obvious. Those increases are hitting all sectors across the Scottish economy, but, as Ms Gosal made clear, the Scottish Retail Consortium has said that “Scotland’s retailers will face a £190 million increase in their tax bill”, which will inevitably lead to a rise in the costs of operating a retail business.”
“In pursuing net zero with such aggression, the SNP is hampering Scotland’s economy and industrial base, most notably our precious oil and gas sectors. On Grangemouth, for example, the SNP’s response was too slow, and it was lacking in ambition and agility. In some areas, the SNP is going too fast, and in other areas, it is going too slow—for example, in relation to the development of a coherent industrial strategy. Both Governments must now do more to save Grangemouth and to give the workforce a future, whether in alternative energy technologies or something else. I therefore urge both Governments to drive project willow forward as timeously as possible.”
“This has been a full debate. It is increasingly clear that business confidence in Scotland and in the UK has slumped in recent months. As this debate has illustrated, we now have two Governments that, by their actions—or sometimes by their inaction—are failing Scottish businesses, including SMEs, the retail sector and light and heavy industry. On the substance of the motion and our amendment, I share Murdo Fraser’s cautious welcoming of the intervention in support of British Steel. I also share in the lament that we have had across the chamber for the loss of oil refining at Grangemouth, which surely undermines our national resilience and which is in part a result of the SNP’s contradictory energy and economic policies.”
“I move amendment S6M-17352.4, to leave out from “the Grangemouth” to end and insert: “Grangemouth as it transitions to supporting Scotland’s journey to a low-carbon economy, protecting the jobs of the highly-skilled workers at the site, and demonstrating how Scotland’s industrial sites can implement the recommendations of the Climate Change Committee, in the understanding that a just transition requires substantial public funding and support that private, profit-driven owners of energy infrastructure cannot be trusted to provide.” 15:19”
“Cutting public services further is a self-defeating strategy. Growth in the face of global economic slowdown is a mirage. Those resources will have to be found by taxing the very wealthy and the polluting corporations and reducing the tax breaks and subsidies for fossil fuel extraction and use. I encourage the UK Government to investigate those measures urgently, because it is going to need them.”
“The Scottish and UK Governments need to work together proactively and strategically to plan the transition and not simply deal with disasters after they happen. The changing climate is not the only external shock that is coming our way. Having Donald Trump in the White House means that more shocks are coming. It is likely that his on- again, off-again tariff policies will lead to recession and damage the global economy. It is possible that American support for Ukraine may be withdrawn, leaving Europe and the UK to have to support Ukraine ourselves, with the consequential costs. Those shocks will require additional Government intervention, which will require additional Government resources. The UK Government, with its full suite of powers, will have to think carefully about how to raise those resources.”
“I accept that we are on the path towards a just transition, but does the member not realise that that transition also has to be realistic? Would it not be better to use the products of the North Sea here, in this country, rather than importing from other countries? That makes no sense. Lorna Slater: Once again, the member seems to misunderstand the nature of the international market for oil and gas. The oil in the North Sea oilfields is being extracted not by public companies that can decide to sell the oil beneficially to the UK or to Scotland, but by international corporations that will sell it to the highest bidder. That may or may not be the UK, but in no way does that protect the UK’s energy needs. It simply does not do that.”
“For boys such as Michael, time is muscle, so will the First Minister urgently agree to meet parents, including Nicola Rankin, to learn more about how the drug could be life-changing for those boys?”
“My constituent Michael Rankin is 12 and suffers from the degenerative condition Duchenne muscular dystrophy. He can still walk with an aid at home, but his mother does not know for how long that will continue. The First Minister will be aware of the efforts of Scottish parents who are seeking access to the drug Givinostat, which is used to treat the condition by holding back the progression of irreversible muscle damage. The drug has now been approved by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and can be accessed through the national health service through the early access programme. It is now being prescribed in some NHS trusts in England and Wales, but the Scottish Medicines Consortium is yet to assess its use here. In the meantime, sadly, health boards are not prescribing the drug.”
“They cannot simply hope that the money will turn up or that the taxpayer will, ultimately, foot the bill. The Scottish Government needs to get a grip on long-term trends in welfare. The Labour Government has made that more urgent, but the Scottish Government cannot in any way say that it is on a sustainable path. It needs to act now. 16:15”
“Keir Starmer is treating pensioners, business owners, workers and farmers as fools, but the SNP Government is not levelling with them, either. It cannot simply blame others, because, by 2030, its benefits deficit will be £2 billion. Willie Rennie, who is not in the chamber at the moment, was right to point out structural challenges that the Government is failing to address because of its approach to benefits. Those challenges relate to labour market trends, Scotland’s demographics and economic inactivity, which the SNP Government is still not taking seriously enough. We all want to live in a society that looks after vulnerable people. That can be achieved alongside and with welfare reform. I say to ministers that realism must prevail in all the budgetary decisions that the Parliament takes.”
“We can compare that with the situation under the previous Conservative Government, when inflation was falling, interest rates were on a downward trajectory and Scotland was receiving a record block grant from Westminster. Now, we are seeing the Labour Government—[Interruption.] Michael Marra can laugh about the benign position that Labour was left with that has been ruined by Rachel Reeves, but his Government is now taking decisions that will cut £900 million from the Scottish budget into the future. However, the SNP cannot simply wring its hands and blame others in respect of the predicament in which it finds itself. The SNP Government’s addiction to increasing welfare spend means that public services will now suffer more than they were going to suffer already.”
“Borrowing, and the cost of borrowing, is soaring under Labour. Labour will say that that is a consequence of tariffs, when we all know that it was Rachel Reeves who talked down the UK economy prior to that first budget, and who fundamentally undermined the UK economy with the budget and then with the spring statement. Those effects—the effects of Labour in Government—will be felt in Scotland. According to the IMF, struggling families—that is, those in work and those on benefits—will be paying the price of a Labour Government in the form of higher prices in the shops and lower wage growth this year and into the future. As the IMF warns, that issue is being faced primarily by the UK and the US, which are the principal outliers in that respect.”
“We are reintroducing universality. If he wants me to do more, perhaps he can expand on how much he would like to add to the black hole of expenditure that he has identified. Craig Hoy: As the Government has said in its defence, time and again, it is about priorities and choices. The problem with this Government is that it has the wrong priorities and has made the wrong choices. Ultimately, the best means by which we can reduce the benefits bill across the whole UK, but in particular in Scotland, is by delivering growth. The SNP Government has failed to do that and, now, the Labour Party is undermining it, too. Only yesterday, we found out that the International Monetary Fund has downgraded UK growth forecasts for this year and next. Inflation is set to rise, and GDP per capita will barely grow this year.”
“That will hamper people getting back into jobs and make it more difficult for the Labour Government to achieve its objective of getting people off benefits and back into work. Appallingly, one of Labour’s first acts in coming to office was to take winter fuel payments away from pensioners, which—I remind the cabinet secretary—the SNP has still only partially restored, despite what it claims. The Labour Party has created a budget black hole of immense proportions, but that does not let the SNP off the hook, either. I will come to the black hole that the SNP has created. Shirley-Anne Somerville: As Craig Hoy wishes to discuss the “black hole”, as he puts it, will he, as part of that analysis, talk about the additional money that I think that he wants me to spend on pensioner fuel payments, which he just complained about?”