LABOUR’S FAVOURITE THINK TANK REFLECTS SNP SPENDING PRIORITIES.

LABOUR’S FAVOURITE THINK TANK REFLECTS SNP SPENDING PRIORITIES.

WE’VE GOT WHAT IT TAKES WITHOUT WASTING MONEY ON TRIDENT AND ID CARDS.

Joe FitzPatrick MSP - a member of the Scottish Parliament's Finance Committee - has welcomed comments made by the senior economist of Labour’s favourite think tank - the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) – who has suggested today’s budget should protect spending on front line services whilst dumping expensive projects like Trident and ID cards. On Newsnight Scotland last light Tony Dolphin, Senior Economist for the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR); said that cancelling projects such as Trident and ID cards should be looked at to protect front line services in health and education – a comment reflected by the First Minister earlier in the programme. The IPPR has often been described as Labour’s favourite think tank. Commenting Mr FitzPatrick said: “These comments highlight the threat that cutting spending on front line services will have and the alternatives open to the Chancellor . “Instead of targeting such areas of spending the UK government should be doing as IPPR suggests and look at the waste that will be spent on Trident and ID cards. “The focus today has to be on jobs, economic recovery and protecting front line public services. If this budget sees a continuation of massive spending on weapons of mass destruction and intrusive databases then we will know that this government’s moral compass has gone south. “Slashing public spending in the teeth of recession will only add to the anxiety of households and high streets. “The Chancellor must look to America where President Obama has introduced an economic stimulus package worth $787bn and more than half of that is being spent at State level. “The state of Maryland, for example – which has a similar population to Scotland – will receive some £2.6bn extra funding, supporting 66,000 jobs over the next two years. Yet in the UK, Alistair Darling’s Budget is proposing to cut Scottish public spending from 2010 by £500m a year, which would destroy 8,700 jobs in Scotland.”

MORE INFO ON THIS SCOTTISH STORY!

1. Tony Dolphin, Senior Economist for the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR); Newsnight Scotland, 21 April 2009 "We will need to see control, of public spending too. So we think you have to identify your priorities - child poverty, education, health care, child care - and once you've ring fenced those look very hard at projects like the Trident programme, like ID cards and some big projects are going to have to be cancelled because unless you do that you just won't be able to make enough savings."

2. Alex Salmond at the STUC conference; Newsnight Scotland, 21 April 2009 "This budget should focus on jobs, the economy, public services, pulling out of recession. Maybe this is the time to abandon those grandiose ideas like trident missiles and massive id databases. Get rid of these, concentrate on public spending and do not stop Scotland pulling out of recession. That's my message to Alistair Darling."