Tourist tax powers among concessions in Scottish budget
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Finance Minister Derek Mackay claimed that it signalled a huge “empowerment” of local authorities while the Greens claimed it covered over the financial shortfalls in the draft budget.
The deal is still being debated at Holyrood but it is expected to pass, meaning that among the changes to December’s draft budget is a significant funding boost for councils with a package worth over £200 million.
As part of that the Greens claimed that would amount to an extra £8.5 million they secured for Highland Council however the local authority’s budget leader Alister Mackinnon questioned those figures. He said that the final tally has not been revealed yet but he thought it would be considerably lower than expected.
“For me initially they are still debating the budget in parliament at the moment so the simple answer is we don’t know exactly what will happen. I think for us at the moment, we expect it to be considerably lower than what we would hope for after renegotiation.
“But I will be meeting with the director of corporate resources and the chief executive shortly to establish the position.”
Addressing parliament Mr Mackay said: “I'm proposing a budget that invests record sums in the NHS, more for education and the economy.
"And I think it's really important when we face the Westminster chaos that there's stability and certainty in the Scottish Parliament for Scotland's public services.
"So I'm proposing a budget that does stability, economic stimulus and sustainability for our public services."
The Greens are hailing the deal as a political success as much as a budgetary achievement because they have secured a timescale for replacing what they describe as “the broken, unfair council tax system.”
For that a cross-party process will start before the summer with legislation to be published before the end of this session of parliament.
Highland Green MSP John Finnie said: "The public rely on local services such as schools and social care, and local facilities such as sports centres and libraries.
"It's welcome that after consistent Green pressure the SNP government has seen sense and committed to immediate action and longer-term reform. Scottish Greens will always be firm but constructive in these situations.
“Scrapping the Tories' council tax is a historic victory. All parties now have an opportunity to help bring about a fairer system of funding essential local services.
"On top of recent reforms to income tax, today's deal shows yet again Scottish Greens are leading the change, making Scotland the fairer country we know we can be.
“Today's Green budget deal means that Highland Council now has an additional £8.6 million to protect these services and the jobs of front line workers."
