Prime Minister’s Questions – BBC News

SNP and Labor agree on Budget moveReleased October 31 at 12:35 Greenwich Mean Time

31 October 12:35 GMT

Philip Sim
BBC Scotland political correspondent

John Swinney, who effectively defended the budget in his meetings with Russell Findlay, had to tone things down a bit when discussing Anas Sarwar.

The Scottish Labor leader made this very point, saying Mr Swinney was “desperate to be disappointed” with the budget but had little to complain about.

Mr Swinney acknowledged there were many positives to welcome and that the budget was “a step in the right direction”.

But he highlighted the familiar bug in the two children’s cap – he said 63,000 children would be affected by its failure to remove it by next year – and also noted testing for winter fuel payments.

It also said there remained “significant uncertainty” about how public sector employers would be reimbursed for increases in National Insurance contributions. Apparently this is still being worked on by the authorities.

The fact that the two parties are broadly in agreement on the Budget puts them in curiously similar territory ahead of the next Holyrood election. Both take a big government view, arguing in favor of higher taxes and public spending.

They may be vying for the same votes in 2026, and both are still considering exactly what their approach to this crucial election will be.