12 hours ago
Conservative Central Scotland MSP backs proposals to give "taxpayers a fair deal"
Meghan Gallacher says her party's plans would cut the cost of running government, allowing a tax cut worth up to £444 a year for everyone earning over £15,397 in Lanarkshire.
Conservative Central Scotland MSP Meghan Gallacher is strongly backing new proposals from the party that would 'give taxpayers a fair deal.'
Meghan's call comes after the policy was unveiled at the recent Scottish Tory conference in Edinburgh.
Meghan says the common-sense plans would cut the cost of running government, allowing a tax cut worth up to £444 a year for everyone earning over £15,397 in Lanarkshire.
This would be done by abolishing the current 20 and 21 per cent thresholds and ensuring the 19 per cent stater rate applies up to when the higher rate kicks in.
The policy paper entitled Giving Taxpayers a Fair Deal also reveals proposals to cutting the size of the SNP's civil service back to 2016 levels by imposing a hiring freeze as well as transferring people to positions that actually support the delivery of frontline services across Scotland.
Meghan has also backed the party's plans to end SNP 'cronyism' and ensure that taxpayers' money in Central Scotland will go to frontline services, rather than to be used by the SNP for political purposes.
Meghan added there would be 'no more rewards for failure' as the Scottish Conservatives would reverse the recent £20,000 pay rise awarded to failing SNP ministers.
She said: 'Under the SNP, taxpayers in Lanarkshire and acrosss Central Scotland are continuing to pay more, but get less in return.
'It is time for them to get a fair deal which is why I am strongly backing the plans laid out by the Scottish Conservatives at our party conference.
'These common-sense plans would cut the cost of running government, which would enable us to deliver a tax cut worth up to £444 a year for people in Central Scotland.
'The SNP have allowed the size of their civil service to spiral out of control while failing to deliver the services people in Central Scotland rely on.
'Hard-working taxpayers deserve to see an end to the SNP using their money for political purposes or rewarding themselves for failure with their recent £20,000 pay rises for ministers.
'The Scottish Conservatives want this culture to change and ensure that a smaller state is better run, so tax cuts can be passed onto people in Central Scotland.'
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