Ireland’s expected package of tax cuts and cost of living support is being held up by the SNP as an example of what it says could be possible in Scotland as pressure builds ahead of the forthcoming UK Budget.
The Irish Government is due to unveil its Budget today, with measures expected to include income tax reductions, continued fuel support, help with home energy costs and a €10 weekly increase in pensions.
Fuel measures introduced by the Irish Government are also expected to continue through the winter, while changes to income tax and other household supports have been widely anticipated ahead of the Budget.
The SNP is contrasting those measures with its expectations for the UK Budget, arguing that households in Scotland face continued pressure from energy, food and transport costs.
Ireland’s position is also being used by the party to support its wider political argument that an independent Scotland within the European Union would have greater control over taxation, spending and economic policy.
SNP Westminster leader Dave Doogan said:
“People’s expectation of another brutal Westminster budget has become the new normal of Brexit Britain, but the endless economic doom loop of the United Kingdom is not normal for our nearest neighbours.
“Today the contrast between these islands couldn’t be clearer.
“Ireland, an independent country in the European Union continues to prosper and progress while Brexit Britain prepares for yet another brutal budget under Andy Burnham.
“That contrast comes at a massive cost for Scotland.
“While Ireland helps its citizens through the cost-of-living crisis and invests in its future, Westminster and the UK Labour Government are lining up more tax rises and public spending cuts. Scotland is poorer because we are stuck in Brexit Britain.
“Ireland has cut fuel duty for drivers, is cutting costs on home heating, is cutting costs for workers and for businesses, meanwhile Andy Burnham brags about taking £4 a month off energy bills when they are set to be £1000 more than the Labour Party promised come January.
“Westminster isn’t helping with the cost-of-living crisis, its damaging decisions are making things worse.
“Andy Burnham should take inspiration from Ireland and actually put money in people’s pockets at the UK budget.
“Instead, it looks like Labour’s focus will be on the endless job of filling financial black holes in the UK Treasury.
“Scotland’s path to prosperity is by being back home in the European Union, that comes through the fresh start of independence.”
Ireland entered the latest Budget process with considerably more room for tax reductions and additional spending than many European governments, although its headline public finances have also benefited heavily from corporation tax receipts and previous analysis has warned about relying too heavily on those revenues.
The comparison with Scotland is therefore fundamentally a political one, but with household finances again dominating debate ahead of the UK Budget, the SNP is making Ireland’s choices part of its argument over what greater economic powers could mean.
