The SNP has been branded the ‘pay more get less’ government by the Scottish Conservatives in advance of the Scottish budget next week.
The SNP has already made Scotland the highest taxed part of the UK and has failed to improve public services or pass on those tax rises to local authorities or the health service.
Given the SNP’s failure to use taxpayers money effectively, the Scottish Conservatives have called on the SNP government to rule out any further tax rises in the forthcoming budget.
Over the last year, Scottish taxpayers have had to pay an additional £219 million and Scottish businesses an extra £64 million, due to the large business rate supplement.
However, despite asking Scots to stump up more and more, the public is still putting up with the highest waiting times for cancer, narrowing subject choices and deteriorating roads.
In addition, the SNP has failed to use taxpayers cash to improve the health service or in local government.
The latest figures have revealed that if the SNP government had invested the same proportion of expenditure in GPs as NHS England over the last four years, they would have received £658million extra in real terms.
Meanwhile, local council resource funding has fallen by 9.6 percent since 2010/11 according to the latest Audit Scotland report.
Murdo Fraser, Scottish Conservative shadow finance secretary said:
“The SNP has made Scotland the highest taxed part of the UK for businesses and people, and yet people are still waiting months for cancer diagnoses.
“The lack of improvement of public services demonstrates beyond all doubt that the SNP is a pay more, get less government.
“The SNP has received an enormous budget boost this year of almost one billion pounds.
“With all this additional money, there can be no reason for any tax rises on hardworking Scottish families.
“The SNP must give taxpayers a fair deal on taxation, invest in public services and no new tax rises.”
