THE SNP pledged yesterday that there would be no repeat of George Osborne’s shock tax raid on the North Sea oil and gas sector in an independent Scotland.
First Minister Alex Salmond unveiled his government’s long-awaited white paper on the nation’s future, with a vision for a separate Scotland that includes a promise of a “stable and predictable” fiscal and regulatory regime for the sector.
The document, Scotland’s Future – Your Guide to an Independent Scotland, revealed there would be no changes without consultation with the industry.
UK Chancellor Mr Osborne’s £10billion raid on producers in the 2011 Budget plunged the sector into chaos.
Yesterday, at a media launch in Glasgow, oil remained at the forefront of the SNP’s economic plans for the future.
Mr Salmond also hailed the paper as a “revolution” in social policy, with a key pledge on childcare, to encourage more mothers to return to the workplace.
Mr Salmond declared: “Scotland’s future is now in Scotland’s hands.”
But last night, Alistair Darling, leader of the pro-Union Better Together campaign, led the criticism of the document, which he claimed failed to address key questions properly.
Scottish Secretary Alistair Carmichael described the paper as “a wish list without a price list”.
He added: “Rarely have so many words been used to say so little.”