City & Business: Scots on the move
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.After the euphoria over Scotland's "yes, yes" vote, cooler heads might start counting the cost to Scottish business of the endorsement for a separate tax-varying authority.
During the campaign very little was heard from the Scottish business community. The reason: to object to devolution would have been to defy popular opinion and invite criticism of certain companies - perhaps even a boycott of products. So business leaders kept their heads down.
But some hard thinking will now need to be done about how changes in the tax regime will affect the Scottish economy. This is particularly true for the financial services community, the second-largest industry in Scotland after tourism. Standard Life is the largest employer in Edinburgh, and Charlotte Square is still home to a large number of fund management groups.
A Scottish parliament would be mad to alter the rate of personal income tax: to lower it below the English rate would be fiscal suicide, while to raise it would be electoral suicide. Which is not to say that one or other won't be tried, along with a changing cocktail of property taxes, sales taxes and the like to prop up the devolved government's edifice.
The point is not just that Scottish business is likely to pay more to be in business. It is the uncertainty about where and how hard these taxes will fall. To an Edinburgh- based fund management organisation already wondering whether it might be better off in London or even another European financial centre, devolution may be the excuse needed to dust down that relocation plan.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments