Senior members of the DUP and UUP have attacked SDLP social development minister Alex Attwood’s opposition to reforms being introduced on housing benefits by the coalition government in Westminster.
In an appearance before the Welsh Assembly’s finance committee yesterday, the Liberal Democrat’s cutter in chief, Danny Alexander, performed what can only be described as the next in a long line of Lib Dem U-turns, this time on how the devolved administrations are funded by Westminster.
As with all good Budgets, it is only once the dust settles that the implications of the measures announced become clear and Scotland is no exception. Following the publication on Wednesday of the SNP government’s draft Budget, finance secretary John Swinney is facing calls from the main opposition parties to explain to parliament the government’s decision to forego its albeit limited tax varying powers.
Left Foot Forward’s Devolution Correspondent Ed Jacobs looks at the Scottish and Welsh draft Budgets, published yesterday.
Later today, Welsh budget minister Jane Hutt will present the Assembly government’s draft budget in what amounts to the toughest fiscal environment since the birth of devolution. She will do so as it emerged that Liberal Democrat run Swansea Council is considering outsourcing its entire adult social services department by 2012 to save costs.
Over the next fortnight, the devolved bodies are expected to publish their draft budgets against the background of the toughest fiscal environment since the birth of devolution. Last week Left Foot Forward reported on the double whammy being faced by Northern Ireland with health minister Michael McGimpsey warning of “large numbers of redundancies” in the NHS and substantial concerns over the impact of the UK government’s welfare reforms on the most vulnerable.
In further evidence that the coalition’s claims the NHS budget is ring fenced are questionable at best, Northern Ireland health minister, Michael McGimpsey, has warned that without protection for his department’s budget, the NHS across Northern Ireland faces the prospects of significant job losses.
SDLP leader Margaret Ritchie has ruled out any merger with parties south of the border under her watch, reports Ed Jacobs.
In his speech to Scottish Labour’s final conference before next May’s elections to Holyrood, Ed Miliband declared “Labour’s fight back has begun”, but what have we learnt from the weekend on Oban? First, these’s no love lost between the Liberal Democrats and Labour, with Miliband’s deputy Harriet Harman calling Lib Dem Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander a “ginger rodent”.
A spokesman for the SNP has said: “There is no possibility whatsoever of a coalition deal with the Tories at Holyrood now or in the future… To suggest a deal is possible is simply ludicrous and reveals that the Tories still don’t understand how deeply opposed the vast majority of Scots are to what they represent.”
