Chamber and committees

Connectivity between the Port of Aberdeen and the freeport in Cromarty will be vital for the north-east economy, so will the First Minister grow a backbone, stand up to the Greens and fully dual the A96, as promised?

I have no time. Sorry.

Scotland deserves a Government that is able to deliver economic growth, financial stability and hope for the future. Instead, we have a Green-SNP coalition that stifles growth and has lost the confidence of business and the population of Scotland. Its record on economic management of this country is woeful, and it is time for it to listen to the business community, the middle-income taxpayers, the experts in this area and even Kenny Gibson, who are asking it to stop increasing taxes, widen the tax base and truly create a wellbeing economy for everyone.

The dog may have a new head, but it is the same tail wagging it. Economic growth in Scotland is hindered by this coalition of chaos, with many of those on the front bench who had business experience having been sacked and the Greens continuing to hold sway over policy and pull the strings.

What is most concerning is that it is Scottish business and the Scottish public who will suffer the most. Our economy is lagging significantly behind the UK economy. Despite the nonsense that the First Minister said last week, Scotland’s GDP grew at a lower rate than that of the rest of the UK during Nicola Sturgeon’s reign. That is an absolute disgrace and highlights the severe mismanagement of the Scottish economy by this devolved Government.

According to the Scottish Fiscal Commission, Scotland’s finances are unsustainable. It stated:

“the Scottish Government will face significant challenges in funding the future provision of devolved public services in Scotland.”

The Scottish Fiscal Commission continued its gloomy outlook by stating that

“our economic projections show Scottish GDP growing by an average of 1.2% each year for the next 50 years,”

which is lower than similar projections for the UK.

Social security spend is increasing massively. Health spending is going from 35 per cent of devolved spending to 50 per cent. Policies such as universal basic income are simply fiscally unsustainable, and the Fraser of Allander Institute found that business confidence in Scotland was low.

All of those points demonstrate the SNP’s profound financial mismanagement of Scotland’s finances and economic growth. That is hardly surprising when we consider that the SNP cannot even manage its own party finances.

Taxing the middle-income earners of this country—our teachers, nurses and public sector workers—will not have the effect that the Government believes that it will have. It will drive middle income earners away from Scotland. The Scottish Fiscal Commission expects the Scottish population to fall by 8 per cent, while the UK population will increase by 5 per cent.

The SNP needs to work out why that is. Is it because it has cultured a deeply divided country, or is it because Scotland pays more tax than the rest of the UK? This devolved Government is driving earners away, and that needs to be reversed.

The Scottish Conservatives absolutely support the drive towards a wellbeing economy, but that starts by building up business, increasing wages and reducing household costs. The SNP Government has lost the confidence of businesses, is taking more from people’s pay packets, and seems hellbent on shutting off our energy supplies in the North Sea.

We want to see this devolved Government work with the UK Government to establish projects that will grow our economy for the benefit of us all, whether that is investment into freeports, levelling up or investment zones. We want to see this devolved Government take responsibility for the years of failure and work towards a Scotland that works for everyone instead of conjuring up grievance and blaming Westminster at every opportunity.

“Covid Recovery Strategy: For a fairer future” states:

“The pandemic has highlighted the importance of our parks and libraries particularly for those on low incomes.”

Will the minister join me in condemning the SNP administration at Aberdeen City Council for closing six libraries, which will hit people on lower incomes hardest?

Your submission contains some good examples in that respect—you have mentioned the Forth crossing, and another example is Social Security Scotland—but what has been on my mind recently is the proposal for the national care service, in which we are being asked to approve the allocation of quite a lot of money without there seeming to be a business case. Have you in Audit Scotland seen a business case for the national care service, or is that something that has been lacking?

You talk in your submission about evaluation being carried out post hoc—I think that that was the term that was used.

So, reducing our waiting lists and getting more people to participate will boost the economy in both ways.

I guess that that would not be explained by people retiring early—unless we were retiring really early.

I want to pick up on a point that Daniel Johnson made earlier about business cases. In your submission, you say:

“Business cases were performed to the minimum standard or missing entirely.”

That links to what Liz Smith said about evaluation. If there is no business case at the start, how can we do an evaluation or a post-implementation review? Why would business cases be missing?

It would make it better for the committee and for the Government to justify the decisions that it has made.