Help Sitemap Home Skip Navigation Contact Us Disability Statement

 
 
Saturday, 19th July 2008 Change Date

Premium Article !

Your account has been frozen. For your available options click the below button.

Options

Premium Article !

To read this article in full you must have registered and have a Premium Content Subscription with the Edinburgh Evening News site.

Subscribe

Registered Article !

To read this article in full you must be registered with the site.

Sign In
Register

Scots Labour leader calls for more financial powers at Holyrood



Click on thumbnail to view image
Click on thumbnail to view image
Click on thumbnail to view image
Click on thumbnail to view image
Click on thumbnail to view image

SCOTTISH Labour leader Wendy Alexander has called for more financial powers to be handed to Holyrood.
She acknowledged tensions between Scotland and England, but said "housekeeping bills" should not be allowed to destroy the Union. Speaking on BBC's Question Time, broadcast from Glasgow last night, she said Scotland should "take more financial respon
sibility for our own affairs".

Ms Alexander appeared alongside SNP deputy leader Nicola Sturgeon, Scottish Tory leader Annabel Goldie and former Presiding Officer Sir David Steel. The panel was asked why Scottish MPs should vote on English issues.

Ms Alexander said: "There are tensions between Scotland and England. There are issues to be resolved." She accepted there was "resentment" in England over funding received by Scotland.

But she said: "There is a desire in Scotland to walk taller rather than to walk out. And part of walking taller is that we should take more financial responsibility for our own affairs in Scotland."

Ms Goldie attacked commentators who claimed that Scotland got an unfair share of UK funding and pointed out Northern Ireland and London received a higher amount per head.

Ms Sturgeon said: "I welcome Wendy Alexander's conversion to financial independence and Annabel Goldie's staunch defence against the argument that somehow Scotland is subsidised."



The full article contains 216 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
Page 1 of 1

  • Last Updated: 23 November 2007 10:04 AM
  • Source: Edinburgh Evening News
  • Location: Edinburgh
  • Related Topics: Scottish Labour Party
 
1

Alternative (High Octane) Fuel Head,

Edinburgh 23/11/2007 12:31:37

What she really means is that if labour ever get into power again, she will be able to levy more taxes.

2

Linda,

23/11/2007 12:45:44

How about starting with North Sea Oil revenues?

3

Auld Twa,

Edinburgh 23/11/2007 13:09:41

What exactly is Wendy proposing ? Any ideas ?

4

Busymale,

23/11/2007 13:32:40

The answer to all of this is of course independence.

I just don't understand Unionist politicians calling for more power as it will - like the public sector - keep growing until the Union becomes irrelevant, and undermined by those who set themselves up as guardians to protect it.

Roll on independence!

5

Matt M,

Edinburgh 23/11/2007 14:56:41

The devolution settlement should not be set in stone and indeed has been amended on things like the railways but that's quite different from saying that the UK should split into seperate states as the Nationalists want. "Independence" sounds far less sexy when you put it like that though with support for it at its lowest point for over a decade it's unlikely anyway.

6

Paddi,

23/11/2007 15:22:01

#3 She/Labour want to be seen by Scots voters as being "sympathetic" to Scotland, raising revenue and running it's own exchequer, but and here's the big difference, staying firmly within the union.

Interesting that labour are now stealing some of the Nats clothes in order to look more pro Scottish.

7

Merouane,

Edinburgh 23/11/2007 16:05:42

#5. I think independence sounds more sexy than a 'partially fiscally autonomous region'! By the way, do you have any evidence to support your claim that support for independence is at it's lowest for a decade?

#6. Yes, that's exactly what she's after. The question is, will she work with the other parties to acquire these powers for Holyrood or will she look for excuses in the hope that nothing ever comes of it?

8

Queen D,

Glasgow 23/11/2007 16:50:46

Damascus anyone?

9

Wendy Alexbanter MSP,

on a toilet seat, worlds end pub. 23/11/2007 17:56:17

Better still, i will advocate full independence for Scotland as devolution is second rate.

10

Neil C.,

Aberdeenshire 23/11/2007 19:37:55

#9 you clearly know nothing about the world oil market. The price will never drop significantly again as there is just too much demand from China and India and not enough supply to meet it. Get used to these oil prices as they are only going up from here.

11

Grant,

Scotland 23/11/2007 19:46:19

The fact is most folk in Scotland don't really support the Union with any degree of enthusiasm, indeed there is evidence to suggest that support for the Union - indeed the current union is lower than 10%

#5 Independence is a very sexy concept indeed. Independence is about taking full responsibility for your country's affairs without being dependent on anyone. Scottish Unionists wish to be dependent - not just on England or her finances, but to ride on her coat tails and I don't see that as a very edifying prospectus.

#9 In a unitary state full fiscal autonomy is equivalent to independence anyway.

Scotland has two choices (a) vote for independence (b) be given independence by England. Either or would suit me fine.

12

Colin John Macrae,

west lothian 23/11/2007 20:04:51

Wendy not only want's to sell off Scottish Water she now want's the Barnett formula to be reviewed, less money for Scotland, I thought she was a Scottish labour MP. not looking for support in middle England maybe she is looking to her future ?????

My personnel date for Wendy is just after the turn of the year somwhere around 17 th. Jan.2008 before she is back stabbed. !!!!!!!

13

Rodrigo,

Ashfield 23/11/2007 22:57:48

How embarrassing - a Scotland Independent of the British Commonwealth holding the Commonwealth Games?? Thats about as joined up as an Alex toupee when grey hair sets in. The follicle fall-out would echo round the Trossachs and back to Glasgow. then its just a small matter of moving the Executive west and the teams that play football East. Is that a fair swap now? Just trying to be Sensible...

14

Queen D,

Glasgow 24/11/2007 09:06:04

Who says we will be independent from the Commonwealth?
Have you noticed that Canada,Australia,New Zealand and several African countries are independent?

15

mr angry,

ayrshire 24/11/2007 09:43:22

The problem with fiscal autonomy without independance is that we will still be lumbered with whacking great bills to apy for Londons wars , trident , etc. So no better off.
Need sto be independence and then we can spend our money on what we want.

16

Logon no.6 and counting.,

24/11/2007 13:19:30

14

Stop telling yer lies again oil price is determined by supply and demand like everything else and not by OPEC. OPEC countries still rely heavily on Western techology and manpower to extract the oil and control production who do you think actually controls OPEC the Arabs?
get real!

17

Logon no.6 and counting.,

24/11/2007 13:21:08

12

Has anybody conducted a poll since this last Labour fiasco with the lost database?

18

Logon no.6 and counting.,

24/11/2007 13:23:14

9

How did the UK handle it? maybe it sustained itself with the massive income generated by the South East and London? a massive income enough to sustain the rest of us through the 70s 80s and most of the 90s is that how you see it?


 

Comment on this Story

 

In order to post comments you must Register or Sign In

 
 
RSS Feed of this article's comments
Delivery formats: RSS, Atom, Javascript & Email
 
  

 
 


Sister Newspapers:
Press Complaints Commission

This website and its associated newspaper adheres to the Press Complaints Commission’s Code of Practice. If you have a complaint about editorial content which relates to inaccuracy or intrusion, then contact the Editor by clicking here.

If you remain dissatisfied with the response provided then you can contact the PCC by clicking here.