Scotland’s
deficit figures
‘argue case
for the Union’
By Simon Johnson
ScottiSh Political Editor
SCOTLAND’S deficit is the equivalent
of more than half the shortfall for the
entire UK thanks to public spending
being £1,600 higher per person, ac-
cording to official figures published
yesterday that damage Nicola Stur-
geon’s independence case.
The annual Government Expendi-
ture and Revenue Scotland (GERS) re-
port found the Scottish deficit was
£12.6 billion in 2018-19, compared with
£23.5 billion for the UK as a whole.
The deficit was equivalent to 7 per
cent of Scotland’s GDP, a slight im-
provement on the previous year but
more than six times higher than the
UK-wide figure of only 1.1 per cent.
Alister Jack, the Scottish Secretary,
said it showed Scots benefited from a
record “Union dividend” of almost
£2,000 each as they receive £1,661 per
head more public spending than the
UK average while paying £307 less tax.
The Tories said the key report – pub-
lished by Ms Sturgeon’s government –
showed Scotland had “dodged a bullet”
by rejecting independence in 2014 and
challenged her to drop her plans for an-
other referendum next year.
Derek Mackay, the SNP’s finance
minister, insisted the record spending
and average lower tax-take in Scotland
did not represent a good deal and a
“better” outcome could be achieved by
separating from the UK.
He insisted the figures were irrele-
vant to an independent Scotland’s fu-
ture finances, but the impartial
Institute for Fiscal Studies said they
gave “an indication of the challenges”
that would have to be faced at the out-
set. Mr Mackay was forced to unveil the
document without Ms Sturgeon, who
has presented every GERS report since
becoming First Minister in 2014 but
chose to skip the event to campaign in a
Holyrood by-election in Shetland.
Scotland’s deficit was equivalent to
53.6 per cent of the UK’s, despite it hav-
ing only 8.3 per cent of the population.
The previous year, the deficit was
around a third of the UK’s.
Murdo Fraser, the Scottish Tories’
shadow finance minister, said: “These
figures reveal an enormous gap be-
tween what Scotland spends and what
it raises in tax. Had we followed Alex
Salmond and Nicola Sturgeon’s advice
in 2014 and backed independence,
Scotland would now be facing up to an
unprecedented financial black hole.”
Mr Jack said: “Today’s GERS figures
show clearly how Scotland benefits
from being part of a strong UK with
every man, woman and child in Scot-
land receiving a ‘Union dividend’ of
nearly £2,000 a year.”
Total public spending for Scotland
was estimated at £75.3 billion, an in-
crease of 2.5 per cent on last year and
the equivalent of £13,854 per person.
That is 13.6 per cent more than the
£12,193 average spend across the UK as
a whole. The spending gap increased
from 12.7 per cent the previous year.
It estimated total public sector reve-
nue in Scotland is £62.7 billion, includ-
ing a geographical share of North Sea
oil and gas. This is the equivalent of
£11,531 per person in Scotland, com-
pared with the UK average of £11,838.
Scotland’s deficit fell from the £13.8 bil-
lion recorded in 2017-8, when it was
proportionally four times higher than
the UK figure. However, the country’s 7
per cent deficit still dwarfs that of every
EU member state, with Cyprus (4.8 per
cent) and Romania (3 per cent) the clos-
est. An analysis by Strathclyde Univer-
sity’s Fraser of Allander Institute said it
“tells us little about the long-term fi-
nances of an independent Scotland”.Business: Page 27Dividend of almost £2,
for every Scot shows they
are better off sticking with
UK, say SNP’s opponents
MPs back Maguire over Pogba troll abuse
By Mike Wright
Social MEdia corrESPondEntSENIOR MPs have backed a Premier
League footballer’s call for social media
firms to use passports to verify ac-
counts in order to stop racist abuse on-
line.
Harry Maguire, the Manchester
United defender, urged Instagram and
Twitter to make users identify them-
selves in the same way as betting apps
after his teammate Paul Pogba was sub-jected to “disgusting” racial abuse from
anonymous trolls.
His call was backed yesterday by the
chairmen of two influential parliamen-
tary select committees, who called for
tighter verification to become “the
norm” to prevent “cowards and racists”
hiding behind digital anonymity.
Damian Collins, chairman of the dig-
ital, culture, media and sport select
committee, said: “I think accounts
should be verified. It can’t be right that
cowards and racists can hide behindthe anonymity of social media to attack
people, often using multiple bogus ac-
counts.”
Norman Lamb, chairman of the sci-
ence and technology select committee,
said that if social media firms did not
act to clean up abuse then the incom-
ing online regulator should take action.
A spokesman for Instagram said:
“We’re working closely with the Gov-
ernment and industry partners to dis-
cuss ID verification and whether this is
a solution to reducing harassment.”Tory Brexit rebel
Sir Oliver to stand
down at election
Baby boomers paid
more in taxes than
today’s millennials
By Daily Telegraph ReporterSIR OLIVER LETWIN, the Tory gran-
dee and vocal opponent of no deal, is to
stand down as an MP at the next elec-
tion, his office has confirmed.
The MP for West Dorset was behind
a series of cross-party moves to block a
no-deal departure from the EU this
year and was critical of Theresa May’s
government, saying not enough was
done to prepare for the eventuality.
Sir Oliver, a former minister, has also
been involved in cross-party talks be-
hind the scenes to prevent departure
without a deal on Oct 31.
Earlier this week, Sir Oliver told the
Today programme on BBC Radio 4 that
he had not ruled out supporting a con-
fidence motion to bring down the Tory
government, but added that he could
not support any action that would lead
to Jeremy Corbyn, the Labour leader,
becoming prime minister.
Sir Oliver was first elected in 1997
and served under David Cameron as
minister for state and government pol-
icy, and Chancellor of the Duchy of
Lancaster. His office said it would not
be adding any further comment.By Charles Hymas
hoME affairS EditorTHE claim that baby boomers are living
the high life at the expense of millenni-
als has been challenged by new re-
search that shows they pay more in tax.
The study by the Office for National
Statistics looked at the disposable in-
come of the highest earner in about
5,000 families across eight decades to
compare the tax contributions and ben-
eficiaries of public spending in differ-
ent generations.
People now aged 20-24 were net
beneficiaries when comparing taxes
and benefits, the study found, receiving
£4,124 more than they paid in, while
the generation born in the Fifties were
net contributors when they were in
their 20s and paid in £2,593 more than
they took out.
The net contribution of the millen-
nial generation, aged 25-34, fell to only
£1,072 a year, much lower than the fig-
ure of £2,967 for their age group 40
years earlier. The present generation of
over-65s take far less from the system
relative to what they pay in taxes than
in previous decades.Brighter future Michael Gove, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, on a visit to
Holyhead, Anglesey, to discuss Brexit preparations. He pledged to ensure continued flow of
traffic through ports and dismissed leaked documents predicting chaos as out of date.PETER BYRNE/PA WIREThe Daily Telegraph Thursday 22 August 2019 *** 7
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