Scotland's First Minister calls for “full powers of independence”
In the Scottish Parliament, in a debate on Scottish Government priorities, opposition MSPs criticised the SNP’s economic and tax policies. Labour, Conservative, Lib Dem and Green motions (the latter calling on the Scottish Government to “make bold use of its existing tax-raising powers”) were all voted down, while the SNP motion was passed.
Below is a summary of the debate, which took place on 2 September 2025:
Scottish Government (SNP)
John Swinney, Scotland's First Minister, began the debate by saying that Scotland’s ability to deliver on its priorities—such as eradicating child poverty and improving public services—is constrained by Westminster policies. He criticised the UK government’s “national insurance tax grab” and claimed that Westminster’s tax regime, particularly in the oil and gas sector, is undermining investment in the North Sea. He added, “Westminster will happily take our energy but will do nothing to lower our energy bills and nothing to give Scottish business the competitive advantage of lower energy costs.”
Swinney emphasised that Scotland’s renewable energy potential could be as transformative as Ireland’s use of corporation tax, but only if Scotland had “full powers of independence”.
Scottish Greens
Ross Greer described the amendment he was putting forward and called for “bold use” of existing tax powers and a creation of new revenue-raising mechanisms for local government. He believed that the Scottish tax system is ‘broken’ and said: “It cannot be right that the poorest households are paying the highest share of their income in council tax or that we have a tax system in which more than half of all households in this country are paying the wrong rate”.
Greer provided further details regarding the Scottish Greens' tax policy initiatives, stating:
- The proposed changes to income tax will result in an additional £1.7 billion available for public services this year alone.
- Doubling the Additional Dwelling Supplement for buy-to-let landlords is expected to free up hundreds of homes for young families.
- The introduction of a visitor levy is projected to generate millions of pounds to address issues people care about.
Scottish Conservatives and Labour
Some Scottish Conservatives, including Rachel Hamilton, Russell Findlay and Murdo Fraser, criticised the SNP for high taxes and “providing less in return”. Findlay believed that the SNP’s economic model is “unsustainable”, while Fraser called for taking “the brakes off oil and gas extraction in the North Sea”.
Likewise, Anas Sarwar, Scottish Labour party leader and Michael Marra (Lab), accused the SNP of ‘wasting’ billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money without improving services. Sarwar said “John Swinney talks of his priorities for Scotland, but… the only way that he can deliver on those priorities is—surprise, surprise—through independence”, while the people of Scotland are “paying the price of his and his government’s inaction”.