SCOTLAND “BANKROLLING” UK-WIDE WINDFALL TAX
Patricia Gibson MP has highlighted a House of Commons Library analysis that Scotland is “bankrolling” the UK-wide windfall tax announced in response to the Tory cost of living crisis – as new data reveals around 90% of the funds raised from the Energy Profits Levy will be taken from Scotland.
With 90% of UK oil and gas income coming from Scottish waters, around £4.5 billion of the £5 billion the UK government estimates its windfall tax will raise will come from Scotland.
The analysis also reveals that if the £4.5 billion of Scottish income was retained and used in Scotland, every Scottish household could receive £1,800 each towards their energy bills.
Commenting, Patricia said:
“Scotland is bankrolling the entire UK’s windfall tax, as it is only thanks to our huge energy resources that the UK Government is able to respond this way to their own Tory-made cost of living crisis.
"What this also reveals is that if Scotland was independent, the money raised from this windfall tax could deliver £1,800 for every Scottish household. However, we will only receive a small fraction of that under Westminster control.
"To add insult to injury, this cash grab comes at a time when the UK Government is already taking money away from Scotland's communities by failing to replace £150 million of EU funding, scrapping £1billion of carbon capture and storage investment, and refusing to match the SNP Government's £500 million just transition fund.
"The UK entered this crisis in such poor shape – with the worst poverty and inequality in north west Europe – because of a decade of Tory cuts, tax hikes, and the soaring cost of Brexit, which has hammered household incomes and taken billions of pounds from the economy.
"While the SNP Government has used its limited powers to mitigate Tory cuts and deliver progressive support like the Scottish Child Payment, the UK Government has taken money away from families by slashing Universal Credit and ramping up regressive taxes.
"The only way to keep Scotland safe from Tory cuts and escape the long-term damage of Brexit is to become an independent country, with the full powers needed to build a fairer and more prosperous society."
The UK government estimates that the Energy Profits Levy will raise £5 billion in its first 12 months: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cost-of-living-support/energy-profits-levy-factsheet-26-may-2022
In 2019, around 90% of UK oil and gas sales income came from Scottish waters (see Table 2.1 of Scottish Government’s Oil and Gas Production statistics 2019: https://www.gov.scot/publications/oil-and-gas-production-statistics-2019/).
There are 2.51million households in Scotland: https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/statistics-and-data/statistics/statistics-by-theme/households/household-estimates/2020
£4.5 billion shared among 2.51million households is around £1,800 per household
"The UK Government's Shared Prosperity Fund fails to deliver replacement funding which was promised to Scotland, meaning communities across the country will miss out on around £150 million of investment in 2022-23:" https://www.gov.scot/news/eu-replacement-funding-gbp-151-million-less-in-first-year/
“Snubbed again: How the north-east missed out on carbon capture investment from Westminster:” https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/politics/uk-politics/3686544/snubbed-again-how-the-north-east-missed-on-carbon-capture-investment-from-westminster/
“Kick in the teeth” - Plea to match £500million north-east fund is snubbed by UK ministers:
Scotland's £9bn Brexit blow as UK suffers exports drop since leaving EU: https://www.heraldscotland.com/politics/19558674.scotlands-9bn-brexit-blow-uk-suffers-exports-drop-since-leaving-eu/
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