:00:21. > :00:25.Hello. Welcome to Politics Scotland. Coming up, the last minute wheeling
:00:25. > :00:30.and dealing over the Budget. Who has won the intense competition for
:00:30. > :00:39.more cash? I am inside Holyrood to bring you
:00:39. > :00:46.the late latest. Expect the Budget any minute now.
:00:46. > :00:52.The Government's spending plans are expected to go through Parliament.
:00:52. > :00:55.John Swinney insist he is keen to build a consensus around this
:00:55. > :01:05.Budget. With me throughout the programme
:01:05. > :01:06.
:01:06. > :01:08.tonne, the economist John McLaren and Brian Taylor is in hooly road.
:01:08. > :01:11.-- Holyrood. What do you think the finance
:01:11. > :01:14.secretary is trying to do with the Budget? There is a couple of things
:01:14. > :01:19.he is trying to do if the rumours are correct that have been in the
:01:19. > :01:23.media. He is trying to soften the blow to those who got a harsh deal
:01:23. > :01:30.in September in the Spending Review so that is areas like further
:01:30. > :01:33.education, social housing and which received large cuts. He is trying
:01:33. > :01:37.to give the impression perhaps through giving more money to
:01:37. > :01:42.capital that this will be a Budget for growth, but really the size of
:01:42. > :01:45.the extra money he has got as a result of what happened in the UK
:01:45. > :01:51.Autumn Statement means there won't be a lot of extra money around. It
:01:51. > :01:55.will be who gets the crumbs on the table which have come through
:01:55. > :01:57.recently. Brian, what do you expect to hear
:01:57. > :02:05.in terms of the last minute negotiations going on with the
:02:05. > :02:08.opposition parties? As John billed, more money for colleges and for
:02:08. > :02:14.student support and to colleges, but let's be be clear, it is more
:02:14. > :02:19.money, but it is more money to mitigate the cuts that were in the
:02:19. > :02:26.September 2021 statement. I think more money for housing to stimulate
:02:26. > :02:31.the economy again, it is mitigating cuts. I think also a demand on
:02:31. > :02:35.sustainable transport, cycle ways and walkways. These were issues
:02:35. > :02:40.discussed with the opposition parties. Despite the issues being
:02:40. > :02:43.discussed, despite a phone round this morning from Mr Swinney's
:02:43. > :02:47.office to tempt the opposition parties on board, I don't think buy
:02:47. > :02:53.of them are buying. I don't think any will vote for the Budget when
:02:53. > :03:00.it comes to it tonight. Will that matter? Mr Swinney, Alex Salmond
:03:00. > :03:06.have a majority here in the chamber up the stairs. But it matters in
:03:06. > :03:12.terms of projection, John Swinney was hoping to get one or more
:03:12. > :03:17.opposition on board. It projects an idea, "We are all in this
:03:17. > :03:22.together." Not a phrase Mr Swinney will use directly. It conveys the
:03:22. > :03:27.sense that is not just an SNP Budget, but it is Holyrood's Budget
:03:27. > :03:30.in difficult circumstances. Is there broad agreement that the
:03:30. > :03:34.emphasis on fiscal stimulus is the right way to go compared with what
:03:34. > :03:37.is happening in Westminster? That is contested. I think you would
:03:37. > :03:42.hear the Conservatives and in particular the Liberal Democrats,
:03:42. > :03:45.of course, who are opposition parties here, but are the coalition
:03:45. > :03:50.Government at Westminster. They would contend that the approach
:03:50. > :03:53.being taken by the UK Government is reasonable and has a reasonable
:03:53. > :03:59.balance between austerity and growth. Mr Swinney desents from
:03:59. > :04:03.that and -- descents and he says he is trying to shape the Budget
:04:03. > :04:08.within the tight constraints, but those are exceptionally tight
:04:08. > :04:12.constraints indeed. We are talking about 10% real terms cut over the
:04:12. > :04:16.years up to 2015. Within that, it is juggling frankly by comparison
:04:16. > :04:19.with the extent of the constraint required.
:04:19. > :04:23.Brian, we understand the finance secretary will be speaking in under
:04:23. > :04:28.a minute so they will cross to the chamber then. Until then, how much
:04:28. > :04:31.room for manoeuvre does he have realistically if he wants to have a
:04:31. > :04:35.distinctive fiscal policy in Scotland? He has got very well
:04:35. > :04:40.movement. I am sorry, but we will come to
:04:40. > :04:46.that. I understand the finance secretary is on his feet in the
:04:46. > :04:51.chamber. Let's cross to the chamber Well, further further ado, he is
:04:51. > :05:00.talking about the challenges of the economic climate. We will cross now
:05:00. > :05:05.And taking direct action to tackle unemployment in particular
:05:05. > :05:12.unemployment amongst young people. I am committed to building
:05:12. > :05:16.consensus for the measures in this Budget. I have listened to the
:05:16. > :05:19.representations made by others since September. I remind the
:05:19. > :05:22.chamber in taking forward our approach, we must deal with a
:05:22. > :05:27.landscape that has seen the United Kingdom Government make cuts in
:05:27. > :05:30.Scotland's Budget, including the removal of the �6.7 billion in real
:05:30. > :05:40.terms from the capital Budget over the four years of this Spending
:05:40. > :05:43.
:05:43. > :05:52.Review period. What Is the cash terms cut between
:05:52. > :05:56.11 11/12 and 13/13? We are including �6.7 billion in real
:05:56. > :06:01.terms from our capital Budget in four years and the importance of
:06:01. > :06:04.that point is putting into context the decisions the United Kingdom
:06:04. > :06:10.Government made in November which have an effect on our Budget
:06:10. > :06:20.statement. We have lost �6.7 billion in real terms and the UK
:06:20. > :06:23.
:06:23. > :06:32.Government has replaced about �137 million in 2011 /12 and �154 for
:06:32. > :06:38.the period 2014/15, they are small in comparison to the cuts we face
:06:38. > :06:41.this year and in the years ahead. I will confirm today how I intend to
:06:41. > :06:45.provide additionals resources in the Government's Budget. I am
:06:45. > :06:49.pleased to announce substantialal additional funding across our
:06:49. > :06:54.investment programme including in the key areas of housing, digital
:06:54. > :06:56.infrastructure and transport. The Spending Review sets out plans for
:06:56. > :07:00.completing 30,000 affordable homes in the life of the Parliament
:07:00. > :07:04.through a mix of conventional capital investment and other
:07:04. > :07:08.funding models. We are on track to meet our target, but I confirm
:07:08. > :07:13.today that in total we will provide additional support to the housing
:07:14. > :07:19.sector, valued at �97 million over four years. Most of this will go
:07:19. > :07:23.into our programme for subsidising new supply, increasing the number
:07:23. > :07:32.of homes we can deliver and ensuring we meet needs across the
:07:32. > :07:36.country. This support... Does that mean you will meet the target to
:07:36. > :07:41.deliver 6,000 rented homes this year? The Government has set out
:07:41. > :07:44.plans to complete 30,000 affordable homes and that will be delivered by
:07:44. > :07:48.additional support made up additional �10 million of funding
:07:48. > :07:52.that we have confirmed in this financial year which will
:07:52. > :08:00.accelerate expenditure on council house building and an additional
:08:00. > :08:09.�45 million for the aforrable housing budget over the period
:08:09. > :08:15.2012/13 to 2013/14 and �42 million to fund loans and equity investment,
:08:15. > :08:25.including the expansion of shared equity schemes and the housing loan
:08:25. > :08:30.
:08:30. > :08:35.fund. The stra tee jibg -- tra -- tra stee yibg priorities. The
:08:35. > :08:39.availability of broadband connectivity is critical to
:08:39. > :08:43.Scotland's future. I confirm additional support worth �78
:08:43. > :08:49.million over three -- �68 million over three years which will support
:08:49. > :08:57.our commitment to delivering future-proof infrastructure that
:08:57. > :09:03.will deliver digital connectity across Scotland by 2020. We aim to
:09:03. > :09:07.have have broadband to 95% of premises by 2015.
:09:07. > :09:11.Whilst our broadband targets apply to all of Scotland, the greatest
:09:11. > :09:15.impact will be felt in those areas with significant rural populations
:09:16. > :09:22.as investment will focus on places where it is uneconomic for the
:09:22. > :09:30.market to deliver without sub sidity. A strong partnership
:09:30. > :09:36.approach is essential. I have agreed additional funding for
:09:36. > :09:40.digital funding which will be used to support the rollout of rural
:09:40. > :09:45.broadband. A third key driver of growth is the
:09:45. > :09:50.quality of our road network. I confirm today additional funding of
:09:50. > :09:55.�72 million over three years for a number roads projects, improving
:09:55. > :10:04.the relict and the safety -- reliability and the safety of the
:10:04. > :10:10.network. These include the A 37 and design works for dualling off the
:10:10. > :10:15.I also confirm today additional funding for sustainable and active
:10:15. > :10:19.travel worth �13 million over three years. This will focus on cycling
:10:19. > :10:26.and walking infrastructure and the contribution it can make in
:10:26. > :10:31.supporting model shift. I am grateful to the Cabinet
:10:31. > :10:36.Secretary. He talks about the additional �73 million on road
:10:36. > :10:42.projects and the diditional -- additional money on travel. The
:10:42. > :10:47.SNP's manifesto commitment was to increase the travel travel budget
:10:47. > :10:52.spent on sustainable and active travel. Given the cuts are deeper
:10:52. > :10:58.and the increases greater on the roads budget, how is that
:10:58. > :11:01.commitment coming along? You will see an increase in sustainable
:11:01. > :11:07.travel of �13 million over three years and what we will find out
:11:07. > :11:13.from ministers in the course of this week, is further details on
:11:13. > :11:17.the allocations made through the third year of the Few ture --
:11:17. > :11:22.Future Transport Fund which will be directed towards supporting model
:11:22. > :11:26.shift into the bargain. The infrastructure investment plan
:11:26. > :11:32.highlights the importance of maintaining our social
:11:32. > :11:36.infrastructure in Scotland. I confirm today that �60 million in
:11:36. > :11:39.capital spending will be applied to increase capital allocations to NHS
:11:39. > :11:44.boards to help meet this demand. The benefits of this investment
:11:44. > :11:48.will be felt by staff and patients and it will also create additional
:11:48. > :11:58.opportunities for small and medium sized enterprises across Scotland
:11:58. > :12:03.
:12:03. > :12:06.in the field of health maintenance and health infrastructure.
:12:06. > :12:15.Recognising the vital role that local authorities play in
:12:15. > :12:19.capital funding of �20 million for the Scottish Prison Service
:12:19. > :12:23.targeted towards the needs of Scotland's female prison population.
:12:23. > :12:30.Few can have missed the positive impacts at the National Museum of
:12:30. > :12:39.Scotland and the national portrait gallery. I confirm additional �5
:12:39. > :12:46.million over three years for the culture portfolio. Finally I
:12:46. > :12:51.announce an Asset Management fund to be administered by the Scottish
:12:51. > :12:55.Futures Trust. Together these announcements
:12:55. > :13:00.represent additional capital investment of around �380 million
:13:00. > :13:04.over three years, supporting infrastructure, development and
:13:04. > :13:09.jobs the length and breadth of Scotland. I will focus the
:13:10. > :13:13.remainder of my comments today on revenue spending and two issues of
:13:13. > :13:16.importance, our approach to business rates, including the
:13:16. > :13:22.public health supplement and employability. We are committed to
:13:22. > :13:27.matching the rates poundage in England. I said we would match the
:13:27. > :13:32.poundage in England and confirm today that the business supplement
:13:32. > :13:36.rate will match the English rate of 0.8 pence. I would like to confirm
:13:36. > :13:41.the details of the public health supplement which will come into
:13:41. > :13:45.force in April 2012, for only the largest retail prornts that sell --
:13:45. > :13:51.property that sell alcohol and tobacco. Increased preventive
:13:51. > :13:56.spending is key to our public frs public services. I believe
:13:56. > :14:03.Parliament is agreed. I think it is reasonable to boost preventive
:14:03. > :14:06.spending with additional resource where we can. We propose the
:14:06. > :14:14.introduction of the public health supplement. It is important to put
:14:14. > :14:18.this measure in its wider context. 240 retail premise, 0.1% of
:14:18. > :14:23.business premise will pay more, with 63% of retail premise, well
:14:23. > :14:27.over 30 shops paying 0% or reduced business rates as part of the most
:14:28. > :14:30.generous relief package in the United Kingdom. Since we published
:14:30. > :14:34.our proposals I have held constructive discussions with
:14:34. > :14:37.retailers. I have reflected on the points they have raised and within
:14:37. > :14:41.the constraints of delivering a balanced Budget, I confirm today
:14:41. > :14:44.that I will reduce the amount paid by individual retailers and limit
:14:44. > :14:48.the length of time that the supplement will apply to the next
:14:48. > :14:52.three years. This will have the overall effect,
:14:52. > :14:57.the estimated income generated by the public health supplement will
:14:57. > :15:02.reduce by �15 million, to �95 million over the flee year period
:15:03. > :15:05.to -- three year period to 2015, this reduction will be off set in
:15:05. > :15:11.full by the income generated through our matching of the English
:15:11. > :15:13.large business supplement. Turning To employability. The
:15:13. > :15:16.Spending Review contains measures that supported people into
:15:16. > :15:26.employment, including through the skills and training opportunities
:15:26. > :15:27.
:15:27. > :15:32.we provide and through higher and We are already working with the
:15:32. > :15:37.sector to make necessary reforms, including through the new �15
:15:37. > :15:40.million college transfer fund. We allocated an additional �5 million
:15:40. > :15:45.last week to support employability and shivers through the college
:15:45. > :15:49.sector. In recent weeks we have announced a �20 million of new
:15:49. > :15:55.investment in the college sector. We are continuing the education
:15:55. > :16:02.maintenance alliance, -- allowance unlike the UK Government. We have
:16:02. > :16:08.increased funding for student support by 25% since 2006/7. A
:16:08. > :16:13.record which outweighs anything provided by our predecessors and
:16:13. > :16:16.was protected in the Spending Review. However, I wish to send an
:16:17. > :16:21.additional message of support to Scotland's students today. The
:16:21. > :16:27.Government is leading an ambitious programme of reform but I recognise
:16:27. > :16:34.that reform takes time and that the economic climate -- continues to
:16:34. > :16:39.cause economic challenges. I have listened carefully to their case
:16:39. > :16:42.put to me by Scotland's student community. I can confirm today that
:16:43. > :16:48.on top of the �20 million additional funding already
:16:48. > :16:55.announced for the sector, we will repeat for 2012/13 the top of
:16:55. > :17:04.funding for student support provided in 2011/12th, totalling an
:17:04. > :17:09.additional �11.4 million. And we will provide an additional �8
:17:09. > :17:15.million and 2012/13 to the funding council to help colleges play their
:17:15. > :17:18.part in delivering our opportunities for all commitments.
:17:18. > :17:27.That is �40 million of additional investment which should leave no
:17:27. > :17:33.one in a shadow of doubt about the strength of this administration's
:17:33. > :17:37.commitments to an hour the students. That includes the announcements
:17:37. > :17:42.what I wish to make today. In deploying the additional resources
:17:42. > :17:46.to make, I must take account of the risks posed by the current economic
:17:46. > :17:51.climate and some of the dangerous policies being advanced by the UK
:17:51. > :17:57.Government, not least on welfare reform. I will therefore hold in
:17:57. > :18:01.reserve some revenue, around �20 million in 2012/13 and will a
:18:01. > :18:10.picture becomes clearer. As I have confirmed today, the Scottish
:18:10. > :18:16.Government has delivered a budget for growth. Capital Investment
:18:16. > :18:22.essential to our approach, we are expanding our infrastructure
:18:22. > :18:27.programme and. We are switching capital spending through a range of
:18:27. > :18:31.innovator financial mechanisms. We are acting to build economic
:18:31. > :18:36.confidence, we are working to attract investment, we are tackling
:18:36. > :18:39.unemployment, particularly youth unemployment through their
:18:39. > :18:44.opportunities are all initiative. Modern apprenticeships and
:18:44. > :18:50.maintaining college places. We are making a shift away from the size
:18:50. > :18:54.of spending. In announcing additional funding today, we have
:18:54. > :18:58.listened to views across the chamber and beyond and we have
:18:58. > :19:05.acted decisively and response in the interests of our economy, our
:19:05. > :19:15.public services and the people of And my name. Let's pick up on some
:19:15. > :19:21.of the issues. The economist John McLaren joins us. The Finance
:19:22. > :19:28.Minister putting down their his plan. He mentioned colleges and
:19:28. > :19:36.finally this �20 million holding back for the 2012/13. How much can
:19:36. > :19:40.he do on welfare? More so of the welfare money comes from down south.
:19:40. > :19:44.You could say things like the education maintenance allowance is
:19:44. > :19:51.a form of welfare, he is keeping me going. He could expand it. There
:19:51. > :19:59.are small areas like that. �20 million is not an awful lot of
:19:59. > :20:03.money. He could be keeping it has itself into something happens.
:20:03. > :20:10.Again underlining distinctive policies in Scotland. Before we
:20:10. > :20:18.cross back to the chamber, how significant to think the news on
:20:18. > :20:25.the colleges is? Colleges have accepted the discrepancy between
:20:25. > :20:30.what happened earlier. Whether that is going to be continually paid up,
:20:30. > :20:38.or whether that is for the next year, that will be an important
:20:38. > :20:43.issue. We will look at this and Ken Macintosh has just told the
:20:43. > :20:47.chamber in terms of the SNP's budget, he hears the words but he
:20:47. > :20:57.doesn't see the actions with the net. Let's cross now and your body
:20:57. > :21:01.
:21:01. > :21:06.There are at a lack of control over the economic levers of power.
:21:06. > :21:15.Surely, the SNP can do better than this? Where are the job-creation
:21:15. > :21:18.schemes, where are the prevention is to protect job creation. I am
:21:18. > :21:22.sympathetic to the challenges facing the Minister and I am not
:21:22. > :21:27.trying to lay all the blame at his doorstep. The Scottish, UK and
:21:28. > :21:32.world economies are not doing well. Toffs are cut. We do not agree with
:21:32. > :21:38.the austerity approach of the Conservatives and Westminster. But
:21:38. > :21:42.of course, and it has a big but, the SNP's lack of control all the
:21:42. > :21:47.levers of power was not the argument the SNP deployed last year
:21:47. > :21:51.when the plan was such a success. Back then when our economy was
:21:51. > :21:55.doing marginally better than the rest of the UK, this was the cause
:21:55. > :21:59.of prudent decisions taken by the Finance Minister using the powers
:21:59. > :22:04.he had an within the budget coming from Westminster. This year when
:22:04. > :22:08.things are not going so well, or whether normal powers of a normal
:22:08. > :22:18.separate state will do. That is not the argument of a can-do Government
:22:18. > :22:20.
:22:20. > :22:25.of a party seizing the day, the extent of stamping its economic
:22:25. > :22:30.expertise and the country. A Government having to take the
:22:30. > :22:38.credit when things go well and City cap low profile when times are
:22:38. > :22:45.We are three minutes into his age and we have not heard a positive
:22:45. > :22:50.suggestion as to how more jobs could be created. We have heard
:22:50. > :22:54.some. You will hear more sharply. What are the main concerns of the
:22:54. > :22:59.people of Scotland? Jobs and the rising cost of living would be my
:22:59. > :23:05.suggestion. Two weeks ago we debated the budget on the backdrop
:23:05. > :23:09.of growing unemployment and we have further bad news. A number of
:23:09. > :23:14.records -- a record number of Scottish firms going bust last year.
:23:14. > :23:21.I suggested in a stage when debate that there is a problem in his
:23:21. > :23:26.budget on two levels. It failed to address all the problems. It does
:23:26. > :23:36.not too worried sets out to do. The Ministers suggests his focus is on
:23:36. > :23:37.
:23:37. > :23:42.the economy and jobs. But his budget which sets to... It does not
:23:42. > :23:46.sound like a budget designed to get young people into work or the
:23:46. > :23:56.construction industry moving. One housing, the SME promised 6,000
:23:56. > :23:59.homes for social rent. -- the SNP. Not only was the -- not only are
:24:00. > :24:04.they missing the opportunity to breathe new life in a struggling
:24:04. > :24:08.part of industry. On services for carers, for vulnerable youngsters
:24:08. > :24:13.and schools, all are facing more than double the cut in spending.
:24:13. > :24:17.The Scottish Government is inviting on the rest of our public services.
:24:17. > :24:20.It is our colleges, the very sector that does most were preparing
:24:20. > :24:24.people to work and improving their skills and qualifications which is
:24:24. > :24:28.hardest head. I am pleased that Mr Swinney has listened to Labour and
:24:28. > :24:33.all the other opposition parties, to the 80,000 students who have
:24:33. > :24:40.written and demanding he thinks again. But it is not enough. To cut
:24:40. > :24:44.the budget by �40 million the share, rising to 70 million NFU years and
:24:44. > :24:49.expect around a pub was. He did get a round of applause from the cycle
:24:49. > :24:59.pants from the back benches who should be ashamed of those cells. -
:24:59. > :25:09.
:25:10. > :25:13.Order! Order! Some people recognise true -- Truth. To a plot that hat,
:25:13. > :25:21.disguised by smoke and mirrors is something you should be ashamed of
:25:21. > :25:24.yourselves for. At a time when we are losing our jobs, the last thing
:25:24. > :25:28.this Government should be doing is cutting training places for young
:25:28. > :25:33.people. They are losing their jobs not just because of the cuts in
:25:33. > :25:37.Westminster but because of the SNP failing to put the measures in
:25:37. > :25:42.place to stop a happening. I wonder if the member regrets that he voted
:25:42. > :25:48.against the SNP budget would tend to have used 25,000 modern
:25:48. > :25:54.apprenticeships? The only reason the SNP pits things like that into
:25:54. > :26:02.the budget is because of the Labour pressure. The only reason. And we
:26:02. > :26:05.all know this. And not only that we voted against the budget because
:26:05. > :26:10.despite improving with apprenticeships, you have a budget
:26:10. > :26:15.we got rid of 4,000 teaching jobs and 2000 nursing jobs. Of course
:26:15. > :26:21.are not going to fall for a budget like that. Now what the Government
:26:21. > :26:26.should have done is to intervene more robustly, to ensure our taxes
:26:26. > :26:31.do more to create and maintain employment. But instead of a Future
:26:31. > :26:35.Jobs Fund they have a committee jobs scheme - and not done the
:26:35. > :26:39.right direction but not a runaway success. Local authorities like
:26:39. > :26:43.Glasgow who have been trying to use the pension funds to secure and
:26:43. > :26:47.create jobs, have been left isolated when they should be
:26:47. > :26:51.encouraged. We can be doing so much more to use our procurement
:26:51. > :26:56.policies as a way of securing employment, entered using a living
:26:56. > :27:00.wage. Just this week that Jimmy Reid Foundation published a report
:27:00. > :27:04.highlighting the millions of pounds and thousands of jobs leaving
:27:04. > :27:14.Scotland as big public sector contracts go to foreign firms. Mike
:27:14. > :27:15.
:27:15. > :27:24.and Met man has been campaigning on We will be talking to Ken Macintosh
:27:24. > :27:28.and MSPs from other parties later on in the programme. Right now,
:27:28. > :27:31.down to matters in Westminster where NHS reports and England
:27:31. > :27:34.dominated Prime Minister's questions. Taxes on North Sea oil
:27:34. > :27:41.and events and said there were among the issues raised this
:27:41. > :27:47.On the day the Prime Minister completed his NHS listening
:27:47. > :27:57.exercises said this, some of the people who work in the NHS were
:27:57. > :27:58.
:27:58. > :28:04.sceptical of her changes. Today we are taking people with us. And it
:28:04. > :28:09.is in that spirit of unity that we want to continue. Why does he think
:28:09. > :28:13.he has failed? 50 Foundation Trust have written to the newspapers in
:28:13. > :28:17.support of our reforms and objecting to what Labour are
:28:17. > :28:23.proposing. And the signature at the top of the less, which she may not
:28:23. > :28:28.have noticed, is one and Campbell, the former Labour MP for Cambridge.
:28:28. > :28:33.She, running her local Foundation Trust, supports the reforms. That
:28:33. > :28:37.is what happens. Labour MPs leave the size and they start
:28:38. > :28:41.implementing coalition pulsing. Just before the Olympics, Abu
:28:42. > :28:46.Qatada up by dangerous man will be roaming the streets of London with
:28:46. > :28:49.his mobile phone and internet access, thanks to the Prime
:28:49. > :28:54.Minister abolishing Control Orders and heist murder arrest provisions.
:28:54. > :28:57.How can the Prime Minister just by putting the public's right to life
:28:57. > :29:07.at risk in order to get over to the Liberal dormer craps on their
:29:07. > :29:11.demands to abolish the order? It is disgusting! There situation with
:29:11. > :29:15.Abu Qatada is unacceptable. As I said in Strasbourg, it is not
:29:15. > :29:19.acceptable that we end up with a situation, we have someone in your
:29:19. > :29:23.country that threatens to do you harm, that you cannot try, you
:29:23. > :29:27.cannot detain and you cannot do poor. That is why the Government
:29:27. > :29:32.will do all it can working with a Jordanian friends and allies to
:29:32. > :29:39.make sure that he can be deported. Again, instead of San'a pink about
:29:39. > :29:46.this, we should unite to help sort this out. -- sniping. Treasury tax
:29:46. > :29:51.raised in North Sea oil and gas are putting jobs at risk. Can I ask the
:29:51. > :29:56.Prime Minister not to be complacent about North East jobs but to
:29:56. > :30:00.incentive eyes of Sure development end tax relief on platform
:30:00. > :30:05.decommissioning in the budget and to meet with me and others about
:30:05. > :30:10.the jobs situation in the north- east. I think she raises an
:30:10. > :30:14.important point. I suffer myself and Aberdeen how vital this
:30:14. > :30:19.industry as. And indeed, how much investment is taking place in the
:30:19. > :30:23.North Sea. Let me remind her that the reason we put up a tax on North
:30:23. > :30:32.Sea was to cut petrol duty for families up and down the country.
:30:32. > :30:35.But we will make sure... I don't know why members are falling all
:30:35. > :30:39.over themselves. We will make sure there is a good tax regime for the
:30:39. > :30:45.North Sea, was whether that is servicing jobs in England or indeed
:30:45. > :30:54.in Scotland. What confidence can we have that unilateral intervention
:30:54. > :31:00.with Russia or put an end to the We can have little confidence in
:31:00. > :31:03.that. Russia and China set themselves against world opinion.
:31:03. > :31:08.The Foreign Secretary was right to push for that resolution. What we
:31:08. > :31:11.now need to see and Britain will be playing a big part in this, is real
:31:12. > :31:14.engagement with the opposition groups inside and outside Syria.
:31:14. > :31:18.Bringing together the strongest possible international alliance
:31:18. > :31:22.through a contact group so we can co-ordinate our efforts with
:31:22. > :31:26.respect of getting rid of this dreadful regime and making sure
:31:26. > :31:29.through the EU and other bodies that we continue with the sanctions
:31:29. > :31:33.and pressure, the bloodshed in sir ra is appalling -- Syria is
:31:33. > :31:36.appalling. The Russians have to look at their consciences and
:31:37. > :31:41.realise what they have done, but the rest of the world will keep on
:31:41. > :31:45.fighting as hard as we can to give the Syrian people a chance to
:31:45. > :31:50.choose their own future. Standing by on Westminster Green is David
:31:50. > :31:53.Porter. A lot of attention on health reforms. It is causing the
:31:53. > :31:58.Government problems? It is causing them huge problems and they are
:31:58. > :32:03.having to take a lot of time to sort this one out. It is the Health
:32:03. > :32:09.and Social Care Bill which 90% of it affects England only. It has
:32:09. > :32:15.come under under criticism from the med kal profession, -- medical
:32:15. > :32:18.profession, the doctors and the nurses. It is giving GPs more say
:32:18. > :32:24.on how healthcare is delivered. They will get their own budgets.
:32:25. > :32:29.They will be able able to choose the treatment for patients. That's
:32:29. > :32:33.the aim of it. The Government says it will make healthcare more
:32:33. > :32:38.responsive, but it seems they are on a collision course with the
:32:38. > :32:46.medical professions. If we cast our minds back, they went through this
:32:46. > :32:49.process once before, and they had a moratorium to consider people's
:32:50. > :32:55.objections. It is going through the House of Lords, where it is get ago
:32:55. > :32:59.torrid time. Andrew Lansley has come in for a lot of criticism.
:32:59. > :33:03.David Cameron forced to defend the proposals and to defend his Health
:33:03. > :33:07.Secretary. It was interesting, wasn't it, that Ed Miliband decided
:33:07. > :33:10.to use all of the six questions he got on this topic. It is something
:33:10. > :33:14.that Labour feel they are strong on. It is something the coalition
:33:14. > :33:17.Government know that is they have got weaknesses on, but we are now
:33:17. > :33:21.in a situation where David Cameron has decided that he is going to
:33:21. > :33:26.tough this one out. It is taking time and effort from him and his
:33:26. > :33:29.Government to sell this and so far to the doctors and the nurses and
:33:29. > :33:35.the medical profession, they are having a really tough time in
:33:35. > :33:39.selling these changes. A lot more anger about that court
:33:39. > :33:42.ruling on the Muslim cleric, Abu Qatada and the court decision about
:33:42. > :33:46.his right to stay here because evidence against him could have
:33:46. > :33:50.been gathered by torture. Where can that go, do you think? It is
:33:50. > :33:54.interesting. That is going down the diplomatic path and they are
:33:54. > :33:58.considering legal options as well. It was raised at Prime Minister's
:33:58. > :34:03.Questions and David Cameron left everyone in no doubt that he wants
:34:03. > :34:08.to see Abu Qatada deported from the country. He is sending a Foreign
:34:08. > :34:11.Office minister to Jordan in the next week or so to speak to the
:34:11. > :34:15.Jordanian authorities. He is going to have a conversation with the
:34:15. > :34:19.king of Jordan later on and what he will be doing is seeking to get
:34:19. > :34:22.some assurances from Jordan that if Abu Qatada is return to the country
:34:22. > :34:25.they have an arrest warrant for him, they bant to charge him on
:34:25. > :34:29.terrorism charges there, that any evidence that might be gathered
:34:30. > :34:35.when he is in custody in Jordan will not be gathered through the
:34:35. > :34:38.processes of torture. So- calledtained evidence. The --
:34:38. > :34:43.tainted evidence. The UK Government would like to see him out of the
:34:43. > :34:48.country as soon as possible. An immigration court ruled he can be
:34:48. > :34:54.given bail with restriction. He will only be allowed out two hours
:34:54. > :34:57.a day. He will not have access to the internet or a mobile phone. But
:34:57. > :35:03.those restrictions maybe less. There is huge anger at Westminster
:35:03. > :35:06.particularly on the the Conservative backbenches. That is
:35:06. > :35:13.why ministers are doing so much behind the scenes to try and get to
:35:13. > :35:18.a situation where they can get some assurances out of the of the
:35:18. > :35:24.Jordanian authorities, even if they get the assurances they will have
:35:24. > :35:27.to say to a judge judge, "We have these assurances. It is OK to
:35:27. > :35:31.deport him." There is anger here at Westminster at the the way the
:35:31. > :35:36.situation has panned out and there is nothing the Government can do
:35:36. > :35:41.about it. But on a different subject about
:35:41. > :35:45.what the Government can do, Stephen Hester, the RBS, boss han han --
:35:45. > :35:50.has been very public in talking about his bonus and that he did
:35:50. > :35:53.consider resigning when he saw the level of public anger, but that
:35:53. > :35:57.wouldn't have been the appropriate thing, that would have been the
:35:57. > :36:04.easy way out. What is going on with with Stephen Hester making these
:36:04. > :36:08.statements in public? Where have we got to with the bangers bonuses?
:36:08. > :36:12.spoke to our colleagues on the Radio 4 Today programme. He didn't
:36:12. > :36:16.try to defend bankers and say they are worth the money they are being
:36:16. > :36:19.paid. He didn't shy away from the questions he was asked. He said
:36:19. > :36:24.bankers are very well paid. He said from his own situation he had taken
:36:24. > :36:28.over a bank which he used the phrase "was a ticking timebomb and
:36:28. > :36:32.he was doing his best to sort it out." He said he understood the
:36:32. > :36:38.anger and he had considered resigning when the whole row blew
:36:38. > :36:41.up, but he decide not to take his bonus. We have had the RBS bonus
:36:41. > :36:45.story, we have had the Network Rail bonus story within the last week.
:36:45. > :36:50.We are getting into the point where some of the major banks are
:36:50. > :36:54.starting to report their profits and their bonuses. For that reason,
:36:54. > :37:02.I don't think this story will go away. In the next week or so, we
:37:02. > :37:06.will find out what Sir Bob Diamond, the boss of Barclays, a bank which
:37:06. > :37:13.has taken no Government money, there are rumours that he could
:37:13. > :37:16.take up to �6.5 million, for that reason and we will be getting their
:37:16. > :37:19.bonus figures, this story won't go away just yet.
:37:19. > :37:24.Thank you. Coming up:
:37:24. > :37:28.Last month's storms left thousands without electricity. The Scottish
:37:28. > :37:34.Affairs committee will be asking energy bosses if they can be doing
:37:34. > :37:39.more to prevent power cuts in island communities.
:37:39. > :37:45.Hayley Miller spoke to Stephen Hester where he spoke about his
:37:45. > :37:50.bonus and where the bank is now. Back to the Budget. Back to John.
:37:50. > :37:54.When we look through some of the key points again, John, if you look
:37:54. > :38:03.at infrastructure, housing and roads, more cash for both. Why do
:38:03. > :38:08.you think that priority? I think housing again was was - got
:38:08. > :38:13.a large cut in terms of the review in September, but I think overall
:38:13. > :38:17.there is this shift of trying to move money from the current budget
:38:17. > :38:25.into the capital budget because the capital budget has been cut by so
:38:25. > :38:34.much that they are trying to off set that as much as possible, plus
:38:34. > :38:44.the things that came from the Autumn Statement were on the
:38:44. > :38:45.
:38:45. > :38:53.expenditure side. Day-to-day spending? There was �500
:38:53. > :38:57.million on the capital side. There have been some transferred before,
:38:57. > :39:02.but only that earlier bit is sort of like Scottish Government's
:39:02. > :39:07.decisions to move it from one to the other. It is trying to see it
:39:07. > :39:14.as a string of Plan B, they are describing this as a Budget for
:39:14. > :39:19.growth, boosting capital and through employability, but like the
:39:20. > :39:23.Autumn Statement Budget, it isn't, governments like to call them them
:39:23. > :39:30.budgets for growth, but what is not really what is happening. It is a
:39:30. > :39:33.slight moving around of a small amount of money. Of the UK Budget
:39:33. > :39:39.it won have an impact -- won't have an impact on growth.
:39:39. > :39:44.You don't think? It is under a half of a percent of the Scottish Budget.
:39:44. > :39:51.In terms of what they are trying to do with roads and infrastructure
:39:51. > :39:54.and housing, it has a political coherence to it. Where you say, "If
:39:54. > :40:01.we invest on this, it provides the things we can build our economy and
:40:01. > :40:07.B, it provides work.". It is what a political connotation. It doesn't
:40:07. > :40:15.really have in the short to medium term it doesn't have an economic
:40:15. > :40:20.backing. You are taking a way a-- away a a job and moving into the
:40:20. > :40:24.capital side. That capital may go to a foreign company. Much of it
:40:24. > :40:29.may go overseas. It doesn't have a boost to the economy because as we
:40:29. > :40:34.said before, what is the room for manoeuvre? Very well room for
:40:34. > :40:36.manoeuvre if you can't borrow. The most they could try and do is
:40:36. > :40:41.instead of freezing council tax, you could increase council tax,
:40:41. > :40:45.that would give you more money. That would give the Government more
:40:45. > :40:49.money, but individuals less less money. There is a shifting around,
:40:49. > :40:54.but that shifting around in the short run tends to have almost no
:40:54. > :40:58.impact net in terms of what the - what will happen to the economy. It
:40:58. > :41:07.might be better for the economy in the long Long Run, it might improve
:41:07. > :41:15.the infra strur in-- infra struck sture. -- infrastructure.
:41:15. > :41:21.The preventive spend which will have to kick in. Let's go back to
:41:21. > :41:27.the Lobby. There is extra funding then for the
:41:27. > :41:33.colleges which is hat Lib Dems were exercised about? Absolutely. We
:41:33. > :41:39.have been saying that trying to square the Government's commitment
:41:39. > :41:44.to tackling youth unemployment to prioritising the needs of the
:41:44. > :41:50.college sector was impossible to square with the savage cuts we had
:41:50. > :41:54.seen to the college Budget. What we have seen today is the finance
:41:54. > :41:59.secretary making good some of the ground there. I think the detail of
:41:59. > :42:02.how this will be applied on the ground is still unclear, but
:42:02. > :42:08.nevertheless we would welcome the fact that the finance secretary has
:42:08. > :42:12.responded to the overwhelming voice of calls to additional funding to
:42:12. > :42:17.the college sector from students, staff, and indeed, from ourselves.
:42:17. > :42:22.I think it is a little disappointing that the Education
:42:22. > :42:25.Secretary himself felt that the cuts proposed where a full, fair
:42:25. > :42:29.and final settlement and he can take little credit from the moves
:42:29. > :42:35.made by the finance secretary today. Has he done enough to get the Lib
:42:35. > :42:40.Dem support? We will have to see. Willie Rennie is due to speak later.
:42:40. > :42:43.The detail of this is going to be essential. So there is a number of
:42:43. > :42:46.questions he will be posing to the finance secretary, but it will be
:42:46. > :42:54.churlish not to acknowledge that progress has been made in relation
:42:54. > :42:58.to college funding. One other key areas was funding for affordable
:42:59. > :43:03.housing and some moves have been made in that direction as well. We
:43:03. > :43:05.will have to see what emerges through this debate, but progress
:43:05. > :43:09.has been made. What did you make of the cut to the
:43:09. > :43:13.supermarket tax? It is an interesting one. I think it is an
:43:14. > :43:18.issue on which the Government felt vulnerable, not least because of
:43:18. > :43:25.the complete absence of any consultation prior to the proposal
:43:25. > :43:28.being launched by the finance secretary last year. That has hurt
:43:28. > :43:33.their credibility with the business community and this is an exercise
:43:33. > :43:37.and John Swinney is trying to regain some of that ground. Whether
:43:38. > :43:44.it is enough remains to be seen. Given the SNP's calls for the UK to
:43:44. > :43:48.consult on tax proposals ahead of the introduction, their approach
:43:48. > :43:51.undermines that credibility. What has been the most significant
:43:51. > :43:55.part of the Budget for you today for the Lib Dems?
:43:55. > :43:58.Well, from my prospective as the education spokesman, I have been
:43:58. > :44:04.like a stuck record in relation to the college budget over the last
:44:04. > :44:09.few months. So I'm delighted to see progress has been made in as a
:44:09. > :44:14.reward for the astonishing campaign run by NUS Scotland and the
:44:14. > :44:16.colleges themselves. That for me, I think, is the movement I would
:44:16. > :44:22.probably welcome more than any other.
:44:22. > :44:26.Thank you very much indeed. The debate is continuing in the
:44:26. > :44:29.chamber. We are joined by, in fact in a
:44:29. > :44:35.short minute, we will be. They are not there yet. It is loose and
:44:35. > :44:39.still happening. John, if we look at what Liam
:44:39. > :44:43.McArthur was saying. The colleges have cash and you were saying there
:44:43. > :44:47.is a limited amount of money going into a small amount of projects,
:44:47. > :44:51.when we look at the philosophy of saying preventive spend is really
:44:51. > :44:54.important. We will transfer from revenue into capital. Before we
:44:54. > :44:57.went to the interview, you were saying that will work possibly in
:44:57. > :45:02.the long-term, but not in the short-term. But with preventive
:45:02. > :45:12.spend, what you could argue is politically, that is a mature thing
:45:12. > :45:19.
:45:19. > :45:23.to do. Not to look for the next If it was going into preventative
:45:23. > :45:29.spend, it would be more preventative health and early years
:45:29. > :45:35.education. In the Autumn Statement the UK Government freed up some
:45:35. > :45:39.money to put into its early years intervention and education and back
:45:39. > :45:43.came through greater pay restraint at UK level. I did not hear any
:45:43. > :45:46.mention their that Scotland was going to match that. There was no
:45:46. > :45:52.extra money for Scotland but the money came from extra pay restraint
:45:52. > :46:01.that goes on for another two years. That would be an indication, maybe
:46:01. > :46:04.it will come later, of more money going into there. I think even then
:46:04. > :46:08.early-years preventative education is still, if you look at education
:46:08. > :46:12.as a whole, you have early years, schools, higher education further
:46:12. > :46:16.education. The budget is still favouring schools and higher
:46:16. > :46:20.education. Further education is not getting such a good deal and early
:46:21. > :46:25.years getting some more money but a very small sum of money relative to
:46:25. > :46:30.what others get. That is what you're choices are in terms of
:46:30. > :46:37.austerity -- austerity, but whether they are the right changes, they
:46:37. > :46:41.are not geared towards preventative. We can cross now to the Gordon
:46:41. > :46:47.lobby and Ken Macintosh. Thank you for coming out and talking to us.
:46:47. > :46:51.Do you think the right choices have been made today? No, I don't. The
:46:51. > :46:56.Finance Secretary talks about a budget for jobs and growth, but
:46:56. > :47:04.even after today's last minute changes, he has invested in the
:47:04. > :47:10.right areas. Colleges are getting a �40 million Cup next year and a �74
:47:10. > :47:14.million cut. Housing is get up large cut. These are not the
:47:14. > :47:19.decisions of a Government looking to employ young people are to get
:47:19. > :47:24.the construction industry moving again. But we have heard
:47:24. > :47:30.considerable sums for investment in roads, in infrastructure and Rob
:47:30. > :47:35.and colleges. Accepting that money was taken out so some of this is
:47:35. > :47:40.just money going back in, is there not a bit grudging not acknowledge
:47:40. > :47:44.that there has been a turnaround on the colleges? The yes, we do except
:47:44. > :47:49.that if you start from the premise that you have removed �70 million
:47:49. > :47:54.from a budget, then giving back �19 million is an improvement. I did
:47:54. > :48:01.say that. The Finance Secretary has at least listen to the voices of
:48:01. > :48:04.opposition. But this is no way to conduct a budget. To speak to us a
:48:04. > :48:09.week before and then to tell us what his decisions are or an hour
:48:09. > :48:13.before the budget, that is a not -- that is not a negotiation horror
:48:13. > :48:18.budget designed to work with political parties. That is game-
:48:18. > :48:22.playing. It is not the approach the SNP should be taking. The Labour
:48:22. > :48:27.Party stands ready to work with the SNP. We do not wish to be grudging.
:48:27. > :48:34.We do not wish to criticise their decisions. We wish to work with
:48:34. > :48:37.some. We still stand ready to do that now. In layman's terms, is a
:48:37. > :48:42.fundamental difference of your attitude to fiscal stimulus on how
:48:42. > :48:45.to get jobs back into the economy, how to get the economy going, what
:48:45. > :48:49.is the fundamental difference between how you would do it and how
:48:49. > :48:54.the SNP propose to do it? We were poor employment at the heart of our
:48:54. > :48:59.policy. We are accused procurement is secure jobs. We would have job
:48:59. > :49:04.creation schemes as well. What we have got from the SNP is two
:49:04. > :49:07.examples today, the enterprise zones and the Tesco tax. The public
:49:07. > :49:12.health levy. Neither of them have been assessed for their impact on
:49:12. > :49:16.jobs. We had finance questions last week when he admitted that. I do
:49:16. > :49:22.not understand how we can have 100,000 young people out of work
:49:22. > :49:26.and a crisis facing our country and that two new policies the
:49:26. > :49:32.Government is introducing have not been assessed for their impact on
:49:32. > :49:36.employment and the market. Have you written off the 25,000
:49:36. > :49:41.apprenticeships they have put in place? Absolutely not. The early
:49:41. > :49:45.reason we have them is because Labour campaigned and compound and
:49:45. > :49:53.campaigned on apprenticeships over many years. It was a concession
:49:53. > :50:03.that a previous budget. Thank you For joining us. Now, a change of
:50:03. > :50:20.
:50:20. > :50:25.We had a loss in large parts of Scotland at the start of the year.
:50:25. > :50:32.We will start with Scottish Power. Can you tell us what was the reason
:50:32. > :50:41.why we lost the power? I know there was a storm, but why was you're now
:50:41. > :50:51.works not able to stand up to that storm? I'll start. The weather we
:50:51. > :50:57.had seen in the January event was very extreme. We had a huge part of
:50:57. > :51:03.the mainland hit by this weather. We were not the only infrastructure
:51:03. > :51:09.damage. There were lots of aspects of infrastructure damage. We
:51:09. > :51:16.experienced a huge amount of false honour networks over 1,100 vaults.
:51:16. > :51:22.The vast majority of that was driven by debris being driven on to
:51:22. > :51:31.our lines and having to be clear, such as trees. That was the largest
:51:31. > :51:35.reason we see. We saw roofs over adjacent buildings flying in terse
:51:35. > :51:44.sub-stations. It caused damage to her infrastructure that needed
:51:44. > :51:47.repaired. What I would dad is that -- what I would add is that where
:51:47. > :51:51.there was unprecedented in that period between the first beacon
:51:51. > :51:57.December through to the first week in January. It was the stronger
:51:57. > :52:03.winds that we have recorded since 1974. It was the 4th wettest, that
:52:03. > :52:07.meant a lot of the ground was saturated, a lot of the tree roots,
:52:07. > :52:16.foundations for a weekend. Certainly we have never seen
:52:16. > :52:20.anything like that. Some of the evidence was quite horrendous and
:52:20. > :52:25.unacceptable. People were left without heating, lighting and in
:52:25. > :52:34.some cases without any water. I am sure everyone on the panel there
:52:34. > :52:43.will be aware the old at - be prepared for her the worst. Were
:52:43. > :52:48.you caught completely on the hop? would like to think we were
:52:48. > :52:52.prepared. We had a view that we were entering into a number storm.
:52:52. > :52:56.We tried to model Honor End and some of the very strong levels we
:52:56. > :53:02.experience through what we expected to come through. What Aesop was the
:53:02. > :53:08.Met Office changing mat to a red status and we had already mobilised
:53:08. > :53:12.for staff to come in. Can I interrupt? You will need to treat
:53:12. > :53:17.me as if I know nothing. When you're talking about Amber storms,
:53:17. > :53:22.what are you talking about? The Met of us have a national criteria for
:53:22. > :53:28.informing people about weather warnings. The more severe the
:53:28. > :53:32.weather is a further rapid goes from green to red. How do you
:53:32. > :53:38.decide eight where your priorities are for investment or refurbishment
:53:38. > :53:42.and how do you decide how much to Britain? N a price control review
:53:42. > :53:48.we have a contract with the core regulator that has been negotiated.
:53:48. > :53:52.That is a very detailed contract. It has operating costs and what
:53:52. > :53:56.your plans are for investment. We have to deliver for that a series
:53:57. > :54:03.about pits. Also to help NZ devisers, there are incentive
:54:03. > :54:08.schemes to improve all rates. And all response. Those are symmetrical.
:54:08. > :54:16.If you beat the targets that have been given by Ofgem, that is based
:54:16. > :54:22.on your performance those targets. You perform well. We can go back
:54:22. > :54:28.over to Holyrood now. If you are finding is frustrating, you can see
:54:28. > :54:31.the assault on democracy alive. I am delighted to say that their core
:54:31. > :54:35.convenor of the Scottish Greens Patrick Harvie is in the lobby now.
:54:35. > :54:38.Thank you for coming out to talk to us. You were talking about
:54:39. > :54:43.sustainable travel and active travel and the Government's
:54:43. > :54:47.commitments to that. Can you explain what they are a what the
:54:47. > :54:56.point was of your intervention today? Yes indeed. Active travel is
:54:57. > :55:03.an umbrella term for any measures that support walking and cycling.
:55:03. > :55:07.So we can start moving some of the share journeys on to those
:55:07. > :55:13.sustainable and Green was a travel. It also covers public transport,
:55:13. > :55:18.anything with a lower carbon impact. The SNP's amendment was to increase
:55:18. > :55:22.their share of the overall transfer budget the cost is sustainable and
:55:22. > :55:25.active travel. And what we have seen in the first couple of years
:55:25. > :55:32.so far is huge increases in the road-building programme and huge
:55:32. > :55:37.cuts to sustainable an act of travel. I was asking John Swinney
:55:37. > :55:39.wide and today's announcement, although you is reversing a small
:55:40. > :55:44.part of the cut to sustainable one- acter Trouble, he is putting even
:55:44. > :55:49.more money into the road-building programme. This is putting us
:55:49. > :55:54.further weight on the SNP policy and a closer to it. Thank you very
:55:54. > :56:00.much. We have to leave it there. Taking the time to talk to us. John,
:56:00. > :56:04.before we go, you know John Swinney has been saying time and time again,
:56:04. > :56:08.every day my of his people are turning up with ideas of how to
:56:08. > :56:11.spend money, but no one is coming up with ideas with where we can get
:56:11. > :56:16.that money from. None of the political parties would say where
:56:16. > :56:19.the cuts would be coming from. With a be fair to say? By it is why we
:56:19. > :56:23.are seeing today it is difficult for other political parties to say,
:56:23. > :56:27.they might say what they want to do, but they're not saying what they're
:56:27. > :56:32.going to cut in order to do it. So those difficult decisions are being
:56:32. > :56:35.left there. Also, if they wanted to be more brave they would say, we do
:56:35. > :56:39.not want to make any more cuts, or we will do is raise more money
:56:39. > :56:49.through student fees, through raising council tax. But again I
:56:49. > :56:49.
:56:50. > :56:53.have not see any mention of doing that. So, while that remains the
:56:53. > :56:57.case that other political parties will be in a weak position to
:56:57. > :57:00.criticise what the Government is doing. If we are going into a
:57:00. > :57:06.referendum debate, to think any party is going to start talking
:57:06. > :57:11.about what they would cut in cuts to services, cuts to jobs? At the
:57:11. > :57:17.Autumn Statement, the Office of budge a responsibility push for it
:57:17. > :57:20.for another two years of austerity up to 2016/17. That means the
:57:20. > :57:28.independence referendum will take place in the middle of this period
:57:28. > :57:33.of austerity which will make it interesting, perhaps, on what are
:57:33. > :57:36.the key things or the different ways that you may go round of
:57:37. > :57:41.funding Government and the services that a Government is far. We're not
:57:41. > :57:45.going to be out of the woods by the time the referendum comes about. So
:57:45. > :57:49.it will be interesting. A lot about the relationship we can expect
:57:49. > :57:53.between the Government and the councils across the country? How do
:57:53. > :58:00.you think that is going to develop in the months and years ahead?
:58:00. > :58:08.think there is -- I think the Government tries to give local
:58:08. > :58:13.governments a good deal. Local Huth -- local councils are not happy.
:58:13. > :58:17.They end up getting a reasonable deal but it will take a fair head.
:58:17. > :58:20.That has happened for a couple of years, once it happens for longer
:58:20. > :58:25.than they can raise council tax, I think things are going to get more
:58:25. > :58:31.combustible between the two. the public will not it is more?
:58:31. > :58:38.think more people will start to say, this is an important budget and we
:58:38. > :58:42.need to protect it. Thank you very much for coming in today. That is
:58:42. > :58:47.it from us. You can see all of the Sun democracy alive. Newsnight