:00:00. > :00:00.No tax cut for high earners in Scotland.
:00:00. > :00:26.Are we set to become the highest taxed part of the UK?
:00:27. > :00:33.The SNP, Labour and Lib Dems all say they wouldn't implement
:00:34. > :00:35.the Chancellor's tax cut for higher earners here.
:00:36. > :00:42.What more can they do to balance their budgets?
:00:43. > :00:45.And just how should we greet a foreign leader with a dubious
:00:46. > :00:58.A tax cut for those on the highest incomes is "the wrong choice",
:00:59. > :01:08.Nicola Sturgeon told MSPs earlier today she wouldn't implement
:01:09. > :01:09.the Chancellor's plans to raise the threshold for
:01:10. > :01:13.Scottish Labour and the Lib Dems are also against George Osborne's
:01:14. > :01:17.But the Scottish Conservatives leader warned that a higher rate
:01:18. > :01:26.of tax in Scotland might depress the economy.
:01:27. > :01:34.When our schools are facing cuts and thousands of people are losing their
:01:35. > :01:37.jobs, a tax cut for high earners cannot be the priority. When the
:01:38. > :01:41.powers are devolved next year, Scottish Labour would raise it --
:01:42. > :01:47.reversed this tax cut for the top 15%. Canny First Minister confirm
:01:48. > :01:51.whether the SNP would do the same? First Minister. We will set out
:01:52. > :01:55.there are detailed income tax proposals next week. These will be
:01:56. > :01:59.proposals that will be based on our judgment for what is correct for
:02:00. > :02:06.Scotland now and then the long-term. But let me be absolutely clear
:02:07. > :02:09.today. A large tax cut for 10% actually of the population, those on
:02:10. > :02:14.the highest incomes, at a time when support for the disabled is being
:02:15. > :02:19.cut and at a time when our public services are under pressure, it is
:02:20. > :02:23.in my view, the wrong choice. What is detailed analysis has she
:02:24. > :02:26.published on how we use these new tax powers to strengthen Scotland's
:02:27. > :02:31.economy? As I have said to Kezia Dugdale, we
:02:32. > :02:36.will set out our proposals on income tax early next week, that is in a
:02:37. > :02:39.few days' time, and yet, it seems to me from what Ruth Davidson is
:02:40. > :02:43.telling us, she does not propose to use them at all, she will simply
:02:44. > :02:49.mimic George or spawn, that is the wrong choice for Scotland.
:02:50. > :02:53.I am clear, I want a sign at the border, I do not want to see a sign
:02:54. > :02:57.that says higher taxes year, that is the wrong choice for Scotland and I
:02:58. > :03:01.cannot be only one who things that. Jack Perry, the former chief
:03:02. > :03:05.executive of Scottish enterprise but there's this morning, a father tax
:03:06. > :03:09.grab will only begin our tax base and depress the economy. That will
:03:10. > :03:12.do nothing to help support schools, hospitals and an ageing population.
:03:13. > :03:13.-- further. With me now is the SNP's
:03:14. > :03:16.George Adam and in Edinburgh is the Scottish Conservatives'
:03:17. > :03:24.Alex Johnstone. Good evening to both of you. George
:03:25. > :03:27.Adam, if the SNP forms the next government, will we have that sign
:03:28. > :03:31.at the border? We have to look at what the First
:03:32. > :03:35.Minister said today that it was the wrong decision to make for the West
:03:36. > :03:41.Munster government to do. When you are talking about disabled people,
:03:42. > :03:44.?130 billion have been cut in disability benefits, that is 40,000
:03:45. > :03:50.people in Scotland who are disabled who might not even get personal
:03:51. > :03:54.independent payments. -- Westminster. But it will mean
:03:55. > :03:57.that Scotland is the highest taxed part in the UK, are you comfortable
:03:58. > :04:01.with that? The first Mr Cors mention that the
:04:02. > :04:04.Scottish Government offer free 's prescriptions and feature Ishant
:04:05. > :04:10.fees. There is a lot that Scotland has that they do not have them said.
:04:11. > :04:14.-- as the first Mr Lijun. It is about what we want to do and what
:04:15. > :04:17.nation we want to be, I agree with the First Minister, it is about
:04:18. > :04:21.making sure that in these that good times we are in a position to look
:04:22. > :04:24.after our own. Alex Johnstone, this is about
:04:25. > :04:27.priorities. Why do you think the wealthiest 15% of the population
:04:28. > :04:30.deserve a tax cut? Firstly, I do not believe that
:04:31. > :04:34.people in Scotland should be taxed more highly than the rest of the UK.
:04:35. > :04:38.Why do you think the wealthiest deserve a tax cut?
:04:39. > :04:44.Firstly you have to look at the fact that higher rate of tax has been
:04:45. > :04:47.creeping down the wage deals over the years. When it was introduced
:04:48. > :04:51.that was one out of 20 people that pay debt, now it is one out of every
:04:52. > :04:55.six. People are trying to raise families on a single income who are
:04:56. > :05:05.up against that limit and paying a higher rate of tax. But also,
:05:06. > :05:07.remember, if you look at those people at the very top end, the high
:05:08. > :05:10.earners, we are talking about people like consultant surgeons who we are
:05:11. > :05:13.short of an hour hospitals, top research is that they want to come
:05:14. > :05:16.and work in our universities. That type of people will look at the
:05:17. > :05:21.prospects of working in Scotland and possibly decide it could be better
:05:22. > :05:24.to work elsewhere. That is why competition is so important and why
:05:25. > :05:33.we must make sure that we do not enter into a tax arrangement that
:05:34. > :05:36.discourages people from coming here. We need these people. George Adam,
:05:37. > :05:39.we might seeing brain drain, people choosing to be Scotland are not come
:05:40. > :05:43.here in the first place. It is about the values and what we
:05:44. > :05:48.do here. I cannot believe that with the current cuts that have been made
:05:49. > :05:50.to the Scottish Government's budget by the Westminster government, that
:05:51. > :05:55.Alex Johnstone can sit there and tell us it is a good thing going
:05:56. > :05:59.forward. You only have to look, the only Tory Chancellor to do something
:06:00. > :06:03.similar to this was Nigel Lawson in 1989 during the height of
:06:04. > :06:07.Thatcherism. They are currently worse than Margaret Thatcher and
:06:08. > :06:13.that is what we have no from this Tory government.
:06:14. > :06:17.Alex Johnstone, do you support the Chancellor's ?1.3 billion cut to
:06:18. > :06:19.disability payments question mark it is essential that we match
:06:20. > :06:25.expenditure to the money that we can raise within the economy.
:06:26. > :06:29.So you support those cuts? There is a lot going in this current
:06:30. > :06:36.budget that has not come to light. In Scotland, we will benefit by ?650
:06:37. > :06:40.million out of this. The North Sea oil and gas industry have had
:06:41. > :06:45.massive changes to the industry that will help to tide it over.
:06:46. > :06:48.Your own colleague and the Conservatives, Andrew Percy, he has
:06:49. > :06:51.said that this hits the wrong people and sent up the wrong message about
:06:52. > :06:55.the priorities of the government, is he wrong?
:06:56. > :06:58.The message in Scotland is that the UK Government has had the right
:06:59. > :07:02.priorities and we need to remember that if we get this wrong, the
:07:03. > :07:08.economy will go into decline and everyone will suffer.
:07:09. > :07:11.How can it be the correct priorities when 40,000 people in Scotland on
:07:12. > :07:15.personal Independence Payments will go through a process that will just
:07:16. > :07:20.make them a number and they will have their independence cut by this
:07:21. > :07:23.Westminster government, that is not fair or the right way forward.
:07:24. > :07:30.That is why we have taken the opportunity to fit devolve certain
:07:31. > :07:33.welfare powers to ensure that Scotland can decide how it
:07:34. > :07:35.prioritises its expenditure and not simply blame Westminster for that
:07:36. > :07:40.issue. Looking at the proposals as they
:07:41. > :07:44.stand, George Adam, economist David Bell has told us that higher earners
:07:45. > :07:49.in Scotland will also have to pay 12% national insurance and older
:07:50. > :07:53.earnings reach George or spawn's new starting level for the Hiya rate. So
:07:54. > :07:57.they will not just benefit from this tax cut, they will have to pay more.
:07:58. > :08:02.And you confident that will be popular?
:08:03. > :08:05.-- Hiya rate. I think that the ongoing Scottish Government support
:08:06. > :08:08.that we have got out there are in place at the moment is important.
:08:09. > :08:12.The likes of the free tuition, issues that the first Mr brought up
:08:13. > :08:15.today. These are all valued by the people in Scotland and I believe
:08:16. > :08:19.that the people in Scotland know the difficult times that we are living
:08:20. > :08:30.in and actually believe that there comes a time when we have to work
:08:31. > :08:32.together to ensure that we support those in a society that need our
:08:33. > :08:35.help. This is a case of once again,
:08:36. > :08:37.Westminster being on the wrong side of the argument. Alex Johnstone, how
:08:38. > :08:40.will you sell this on the doorsteps when people in your party are
:08:41. > :08:44.criticising George Osborne over cuts to disability at the same time as
:08:45. > :08:48.cutting taxes for the wealthiest? It will be easy to sell this to
:08:49. > :08:52.people who do not believe that we should pay more tax in Scotland than
:08:53. > :08:57.in the rest of the United Kingdom. It is important to remember that
:08:58. > :09:01.with taxation, it is always a consensual element to the pain of
:09:02. > :09:05.tax. That means that if we do not have the agreement of people, then
:09:06. > :09:10.they will look for ways to avoid paying tax on the way that they
:09:11. > :09:13.should. And if you raise tax levels in Scotland, what you will find is
:09:14. > :09:17.that more people will choose to change the tax arrangement so that
:09:18. > :09:21.BP corporation tax instead. Would you like to see the Scottish
:09:22. > :09:27.Parliament using its powers to top up these disability payments?
:09:28. > :09:29.I am very interested to see the proposals that are brought forward.
:09:30. > :09:36.I think we will have opportunities to top these up.
:09:37. > :09:39.Is that a yes? It is a conditional yes based on the fact that it must
:09:40. > :09:42.be financed by growth in the Scottish economy and not by
:09:43. > :09:46.increasing taxation in a way that will actually reverse growth in the
:09:47. > :09:51.Scottish economy. George, what can they expect next
:09:52. > :09:53.week when the SNP sets out that tax plans, more bad news for higher
:09:54. > :09:58.earners? More of what the Scottish Government
:09:59. > :10:02.and the First Minister said today, the tax cut, they have mentioned it
:10:03. > :10:06.has the wrong time and place for us to do that and it affects the wrong
:10:07. > :10:11.people. We have to look at the fact that I am the national patron for
:10:12. > :10:14.the Scottish disability Forum and they will be the people that will
:10:15. > :10:19.suffer under this Tory government and the other people they will to.
:10:20. > :10:29.George Adams and Alex Johnstone, thank you. -- George Adam.
:10:30. > :10:31.According to the public spending watchdog, Scottish councils face
:10:32. > :10:34.So far, despite a real terms fall in income,
:10:35. > :10:36.they've managed to balance the books by implementing cuts,
:10:37. > :10:39.but Audit Scotland has now warned that this won't be enough
:10:40. > :10:41.So are crumbling services and increasing privatisation
:10:42. > :10:53.There was a time when services like the public library run by your local
:10:54. > :10:58.council were offered a standard. These days, that kind of thing is
:10:59. > :11:03.almost seen as more of a luxury as cash-strapped local authorities face
:11:04. > :11:06.having to cut what they do, often sparking protests. Today came a
:11:07. > :11:12.stark warning from the public spending watchdog about more funding
:11:13. > :11:15.cuts to councils. Whether you are a local council in charge of running
:11:16. > :11:20.services in a big city like Edinburgh or perhaps a more rural
:11:21. > :11:23.part of Scotland, the financial challenges are exactly the same.
:11:24. > :11:29.This report results of those challenges. It has said that in the
:11:30. > :11:33.financial edge 2016 to 2017, the amount of revenue funding provided
:11:34. > :11:39.to local councils by the Scottish Government has been cut by 5%. If
:11:40. > :11:45.you go back to the year 2010 to 2011, the report has said that the
:11:46. > :11:50.total cut now months to 11%. And that could be a big problem because
:11:51. > :11:53.councils get almost 60% of their funding from the Scottish
:11:54. > :11:57.Government. There has been a part of reduction
:11:58. > :12:00.in funding for Local Government Minister opt-in for the last six or
:12:01. > :12:04.seven years and the year ahead is a further step in that direction. What
:12:05. > :12:08.we have seen over the longer period is the councils have coped well with
:12:09. > :12:12.those changes. But given the expectation that more of that will
:12:13. > :12:16.come any future and perhaps in bigger doses, on an angle basis, we
:12:17. > :12:19.think we have to take a different approach to how the design and
:12:20. > :12:22.deliver services the public. They cannot carry on doing what they are
:12:23. > :12:28.doing as well as they have done it, it is just not sustainable.
:12:29. > :12:31.So, how our savings being made? The reduction in hours for
:12:32. > :12:35.particular facilities including things like libraries and swimming
:12:36. > :12:40.centres and sports centres, closing on Sundays, we have seen some
:12:41. > :12:47.councils try and reduce the school week. Perth and can scan I was last
:12:48. > :12:51.week they were going to alter the measurement they made of potholes in
:12:52. > :12:54.order to determine whether they can actually repair them. They will
:12:55. > :12:59.increase the kind of required benchmark measurement from 400
:13:00. > :13:02.nanometres to 600 millimetres for the repair them. Those are the kind
:13:03. > :13:05.of things that are going on at the moment.
:13:06. > :13:09.# Kinloss. Aside from measuring potholes, or
:13:10. > :13:12.other more argued with vital services at risk? Aberdeen City
:13:13. > :13:15.Council's Labour leader has said that it will boot at school and
:13:16. > :13:21.social work budgets whilst maintaining services.
:13:22. > :13:25.It is not long ago that Aberdeen had cuts of ?127 million in the city.
:13:26. > :13:30.People cannot withstand that again. We have these they had to look at in
:13:31. > :13:34.which we can make sure that we are financially as sound as we can be,
:13:35. > :13:38.but we need national government to come in and make sure that we have
:13:39. > :13:43.the flexibility to make decisions ourselves, which will help protect
:13:44. > :13:46.front line services in the future. But one of the issues with Audit
:13:47. > :13:50.Scotland's figures as the national government does not accept them.
:13:51. > :13:54.I think this Audit Scotland report has used some unconventional
:13:55. > :13:58.accounting, different from the approach of the Scottish Government
:13:59. > :14:00.took out leading figures and it is different to the Scottish
:14:01. > :14:04.Parliament's information Centre's approach. There are challenges
:14:05. > :14:08.facing local governor, both in the past and in the years to come, but
:14:09. > :14:11.they have to do with it to be that the entire public sector has dealt
:14:12. > :14:15.with at the very sound budget management and making some difficult
:14:16. > :14:17.choices in the face of Westminster austerity.
:14:18. > :14:21.Audit Scotland has said that councils must deal with the problem
:14:22. > :14:26.by delivering services in a different way, like outsourcing and
:14:27. > :14:29.collaborating with others. Amid predictions of more funding cuts,
:14:30. > :14:32.local authorities may not have many other options. Andrew Black
:14:33. > :14:35.reporting. Tens of thousands of college
:14:36. > :14:37.students had lectures cancelled today after teaching staff went
:14:38. > :14:39.on strike across Scotland Unions say the action has
:14:40. > :14:43.been a long time coming, with its members also unhappy
:14:44. > :14:45.with college budgets Colleges had appealed
:14:46. > :14:48.for the strike to be called off. I spoke to our education
:14:49. > :15:07.correspondent, Jamie McIvor. What is this the spirit all about?
:15:08. > :15:15.It is a pay dispute, but there are several different dimensions to it.
:15:16. > :15:17.One is the 1% pay rise which the EIS further education lecturers
:15:18. > :15:20.Association is unhappy with. The second is the issue of the disparity
:15:21. > :15:29.between different colleges. For 20 years or so there was no national
:15:30. > :15:32.pay marketing in colleges sold large differences emerged in the rates of
:15:33. > :15:38.pay at different allergies. According to the EIS, there are
:15:39. > :15:47.differences of ?12,000 a year in what people are yearning for doing
:15:48. > :15:51.very similar jobs. It is worth pointing out that in Glasgow the
:15:52. > :15:57.dispute is over a slightly different issue, that colleges have not
:15:58. > :16:02.rejoined the national pay bargaining, so lecturers are
:16:03. > :16:05.striking to persuade colleges to do just that. How are negotiations
:16:06. > :16:11.going? Is unlikely there will be a settlement soon? This dispute has
:16:12. > :16:16.its origins 14 or 15 months ago, so it has been building for quite some
:16:17. > :16:21.time. To give one example, it has been on the cards since before
:16:22. > :16:25.Christmas that industrial action was at least a serious possibility.
:16:26. > :16:30.There was an unofficial indicative ballot before Christmas which showed
:16:31. > :16:33.strong support for the idea of strike action, and three months
:16:34. > :16:38.later here we are with the strike finally taking place. More talks are
:16:39. > :16:42.expected to take place tomorrow afternoon between the EIS and
:16:43. > :16:52.colleges Scotland which represents the colleges as employers. Obviously
:16:53. > :16:55.it has caused a great deal of destruction, lots of students have
:16:56. > :16:59.missed lectures. Do you think we will see a lot more walk-outs in the
:17:00. > :17:03.coming weeks? Certainly if there is no progress there will be many more
:17:04. > :17:07.strikes. Many dates have already been set. The plan is for two more
:17:08. > :17:12.strikes next week, and if the dispute is not solved by the end of
:17:13. > :17:16.April, it really gets serious. Three days of industrial action every week
:17:17. > :17:26.through the end of April, May and June. That is the period covering
:17:27. > :17:28.the Scottish election as well. So that is certainly the threat that is
:17:29. > :17:31.lying there if the dispute is not solved. I get the impression that
:17:32. > :17:33.lecturers don't really want to be taking that the mode of industrial
:17:34. > :17:38.action, especially through exam season. On the other hand, they know
:17:39. > :17:42.they can strike while the irony is hard. This is a time when there will
:17:43. > :17:45.be a lot of pressure to settle the dispute. The last thing the Scottish
:17:46. > :17:49.Government would want is an industrial dispute like this running
:17:50. > :17:51.through the election campaign. Thank you very much.
:17:52. > :17:52.The president of Ghana visited Holyrood today
:17:53. > :17:54.amid concerns over his country's record on human rights.
:17:55. > :17:56.The Scottish government says the First Minister
:17:57. > :17:58.Nicola Sturgeon discussed the rights of gay Ghanians
:17:59. > :18:05.Homosexual behaviour is illegal in Ghana.
:18:06. > :18:07.Amnesty Scotland says the lesbian and gay community faces
:18:08. > :18:12.Scotland Programme Director for Amnesty International,
:18:13. > :18:14.Naomi McAuliffe, joins me now from Edinburgh.
:18:15. > :18:28.What are your concerns about human rights in Ghana? We have documented
:18:29. > :18:32.a lot of human rights abuses in Ghana, from the use of torture and
:18:33. > :18:37.ill-treatment, widespread violence against women, including hundreds of
:18:38. > :18:40.women being accused of witchcraft and banished to camps around the
:18:41. > :18:43.country. Although there have been assurances from the Government that
:18:44. > :18:49.these camps will because, we know women are still being held there.
:18:50. > :18:55.Last year there was a brutal repression of a peaceful march, the
:18:56. > :18:58.use of tear gas and batons. Also the criminalisation of gay sexual
:18:59. > :19:05.conduct between men and physical violence being perpetrated against
:19:06. > :19:08.LGBT people within Ghana. So presumably you are happy that the
:19:09. > :19:12.First Minister specifically raise that issue with the president today?
:19:13. > :19:17.Yes, that is very positive. Obviously we would like to know more
:19:18. > :19:20.about what was said, if any assurances or commitments have been
:19:21. > :19:24.given. We would like to follow it up on the ground to see if there has
:19:25. > :19:27.been a positive impact on there. Also we know this will be an ongoing
:19:28. > :19:32.relationship between Ghana and Scotland. There may be deals with
:19:33. > :19:36.the oil and gas industry, with academic training links. So this is
:19:37. > :19:40.not just about one conversation. It is about how we can continue to look
:19:41. > :19:43.for human rights progress in Ghana with all the relations we have with
:19:44. > :19:48.them. Do you think that it is important that a constructive
:19:49. > :19:54.conversation is maintained? Patrick Hardy and some other MSP has decided
:19:55. > :19:57.to stay away today. Do you think boycotts are affected? I totally
:19:58. > :20:04.understand why politicians of decide not to meet with those who are from
:20:05. > :20:09.repressive regimes. We respect that decisions. We tell politicians who
:20:10. > :20:12.do meet with these dignitaries to raise those kind of concerns. It is
:20:13. > :20:16.about making the decision as to whether you can make a positive
:20:17. > :20:20.impact and if not whether it is necessary to walk away from those
:20:21. > :20:22.kind of relationships. But in every single circumstance, that kind of
:20:23. > :20:25.assessment has to be made. Thank you.
:20:26. > :20:29.Here with me to talk about that and some of the day's other news
:20:30. > :20:30.are Andrea Mullaney and Magnus Gardham.
:20:31. > :20:42.Just sticking with that story, Liam Smith from Aberdeen Chambers of
:20:43. > :20:47.commerce was a little more welcoming to the Guinean president. The
:20:48. > :20:51.president is coming here because he recognises the skills and expertise
:20:52. > :20:55.and technical knowledge that the businesses that operate in the North
:20:56. > :20:59.Sea can bring to that market. Andrea, what do you think is the
:21:00. > :21:04.best way to deal with somebody who has a human rights record you don't
:21:05. > :21:08.approve of what you want to do business with them? I think it is a
:21:09. > :21:11.tricky balance to strike. Clearly there has been some progress made in
:21:12. > :21:17.Ghana in recent years. But there is such a long way to go. It is really
:21:18. > :21:21.a matter of conscience, and I understand why the Greens decided
:21:22. > :21:24.not to meet with them today, and why the meet and greet with opposition
:21:25. > :21:29.leaders was cancelled. But if we are going to engage with them, I agree
:21:30. > :21:37.that it has to be something that is raised at every opportunity, not
:21:38. > :21:41.just... Sometimes I worry that when somebody says, as Nicola Sturgeon
:21:42. > :21:46.did today, I am going to raise the issue, is it just a question of
:21:47. > :21:52.mentioning it once and getting the response of, well, we are doing our
:21:53. > :21:57.best, and then just dropping it? It can't just be that. We have made a
:21:58. > :22:01.lot of progress in Scotland over these issues, particularly to do
:22:02. > :22:06.with LGBT rates. It is not enough to say, we are OK here, so everyone
:22:07. > :22:10.else can fend for themselves. But it is a tricky balance. If you invite
:22:11. > :22:16.someone to the parliament there is a level of decorum there, and I think
:22:17. > :22:20.you have to do engage with them properly, not just shut them out
:22:21. > :22:26.completely. What do you think, Magnus, about how the First Minister
:22:27. > :22:30.has dealt with this today? I think the most important thing is that the
:22:31. > :22:32.First Minister did address this. I agree with the point Amnesty
:22:33. > :22:37.International is making that this is the best way to effect change. Dan
:22:38. > :22:42.is a country we should be doing buzzers with. It is a Commonwealth
:22:43. > :22:47.country, stable country. -- Ghana is a country we should be doing
:22:48. > :22:51.business with. We have lots of interesting comment. I think it did
:22:52. > :23:01.no harm at all that there were some pointed stairs, some notable
:23:02. > :23:05.absences. I think that probably underlines the message that we
:23:06. > :23:09.believe the First Minister was getting across. It sends a signal
:23:10. > :23:16.that there are issues that we are uncomfortable with, that we
:23:17. > :23:20.disapprove of. Well, the president is getting an honorary doctorate
:23:21. > :23:24.from the University of Aberdeen tomorrow. They are saying they took
:23:25. > :23:28.into account his work on child poverty, the role he has played in
:23:29. > :23:33.the fight against Ebola. Is that fair enough, do good thing, or are
:23:34. > :23:38.you uncomfortable with that? I think stating these people who, let's face
:23:39. > :23:46.it, are at the very least not stopping some of these excesses if
:23:47. > :23:51.not contributing to them is a step too far. I wonder about honorary
:23:52. > :23:55.doctorates. Robert Mugabe was given an honorary doctorate, which people
:23:56. > :24:00.had to backpedal and withdrawal. It is very dicey to set somebody up,
:24:01. > :24:06.especially when the are still in office, because you never know what
:24:07. > :24:09.they will do next. I often wonder if perhaps honorary doctorate should be
:24:10. > :24:16.reserved for people who have retired. Yes, we have seen a lot of
:24:17. > :24:21.regrets in that regard in recent years. Do you think sometimes we can
:24:22. > :24:24.preach a bit too much about these kind of things? Different countries
:24:25. > :24:28.develop at different rates. Who are we to say exactly what is right and
:24:29. > :24:33.wrong? I think that is a great question. I think we need to be very
:24:34. > :24:38.sensitive about this. Yeah, we can recognise there are deep cultural
:24:39. > :24:43.taboos in some countries against on the sexuality which will make the
:24:44. > :24:47.rate of progress difficult for leaders there to achieve. But I
:24:48. > :24:55.think we should see these as challenges to overcome. Rather
:24:56. > :25:00.than... Human rights is not some quaint local tradition that is there
:25:01. > :25:03.to be nurtured and cherished, but equally, getting back to your
:25:04. > :25:07.question, it is something that we should do from a position of
:25:08. > :25:12.humility. We should remember and recognise our own struggle as a
:25:13. > :25:15.society to become more inclusive ourselves. And if we need a
:25:16. > :25:23.reminder, you need only with back sitcoms from the 1970s. I think
:25:24. > :25:27.provided we approach it in that way, we are not preaching. Let's move on
:25:28. > :25:34.to the debate on tax which is really hotting up. It is set to become the
:25:35. > :25:40.issue of the Hollywood election. -- Holyrood election. Only the Scottish
:25:41. > :25:48.Conservatives are supporting the Chancellor's plan to raise the tax
:25:49. > :25:54.threshold. I think people forget how few people actually earn that out of
:25:55. > :25:58.money. It is less than 10%. Yes, George Osborne was talking about
:25:59. > :26:04.middle earners, but it is not really earners. No, you are very much in a
:26:05. > :26:09.luxurious privileged position earning that much money. People in
:26:10. > :26:13.that position have a responsibility to do their share, and they have
:26:14. > :26:17.been let off the hook for a number of years. This is a very small
:26:18. > :26:22.increase for a very small amount of people. It is not actually an ink
:26:23. > :26:29.use, it is not a cot, let's put it like that. If we want the symbolic
:26:30. > :26:34.services, everyone to maintain our public services from falling apart
:26:35. > :26:40.which some of them are on the verge of doing, we need to pay tax. -- if
:26:41. > :26:47.we want to maintain our public services. Magnus, do you think we
:26:48. > :26:53.are seeing the direction of travel? Do you think we should should expect
:26:54. > :26:58.high earners to hit a bit more when the SNP unveiled their plans next
:26:59. > :27:03.week? Yes, it is still up in the air the extent to which they will unveil
:27:04. > :27:08.their lands. I am slightly sceptical that John Swinney will want to set
:27:09. > :27:13.out tax thresholds down to the pounds the last year before he has
:27:14. > :27:16.do deliver his budget. But I think we will get the direction of travel
:27:17. > :27:20.and I think that is the direction we will be going on. Will it be
:27:21. > :27:24.radically different from what is happening at Westminster? I am not
:27:25. > :27:29.so sure. We are yet to find out whether people in Scotland and
:27:30. > :27:32.people in England are ready to embrace wildly different tax
:27:33. > :27:37.regimes. I'm not so sure that they are. There are a lot of people
:27:38. > :27:41.waiting and perhaps hoping that this election will tell us that, and your
:27:42. > :27:47.right to say that tax is going to be the issue that is debated at the
:27:48. > :27:54.heart of this election, but I'm not so sure... I think there are unusual
:27:55. > :27:58.circus fancies -- circumstances. I think a lot of people will be making
:27:59. > :28:03.their minds up, frankly, based on the fact that they like and trust
:28:04. > :28:07.the Turgeon. So I think Nicola Sturgeon's mobile phone and the
:28:08. > :28:15.number of selfie she takes might be as important as tax. Do you think we
:28:16. > :28:23.will see people actually leaving Scotland, high earners, who have the
:28:24. > :28:28.choice to leave? It is ?400. But maybe the thin edge of the wedge,
:28:29. > :28:37.the idea that this is a sign of more attacks to come? It is not as if
:28:38. > :28:40.there is nothing to gain from it. If we get better public services
:28:41. > :28:44.hopefully people recognise we have to pay for those. If you want to see
:28:45. > :28:48.a better NHS, better transport and those things. That is all we have
:28:49. > :28:50.got time for, I'm afraid. That's it for tonight
:28:51. > :28:52.and for this week. Andrew's back with you on Monday,
:28:53. > :28:56.so join him then, usual time. You and I,
:28:57. > :29:05.we're going to change this country. You run, and hopefully win,
:29:06. > :29:10.elected office not just for the sake of
:29:11. > :29:12.being something, I knew that seven presidents had
:29:13. > :29:18.tried, seven presidents had failed. He said, "I am
:29:19. > :29:21.President of the United States, A BBC Two exclusive with
:29:22. > :29:51.the president and his team... When you've had enough of the speed
:29:52. > :29:57.and the pace... ..we'll connect you to
:29:58. > :30:00.a happier place.