Your Household Budget is Under Attack

Today at 1 o’clock the Labour Party united with the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats to vote down our plans to provide extra cash for Scotland’s public services. Our tax on large retailers would fill some of the gap left by the massive cut in Scotland’s budget by the Tory government in London.

Finance Secretary John Swinney has said the levy is needed to raise an extra £30 million. It will raise this extra cash from a tiny number of the biggest and most profitable businesses. Yet, opposition MSPs have decided to take up the cudgels to protect the profit margins of these big businesses.

The vote today means that the large and successful out of town supermarkets will escape the retail levy – unless we can force a change of mind.

The opposition parties want all of us and Scotland’s public services to fill the £30 million black hole this creates. They haven’t said how, but the only options are higher tax on families and small businesses or less money to spend on public services like hospitals, schools and the police.

As we approach the election in May, it is clear that so much of the progress Scotland has made over these past four years is under threat. We must work hard to protect this progress.

You can help by signing up to our online campaign. You can either just show your support or become involved. Visit http://www.snp.org/100days/protectourprogress to find out more.

And if you are on Facebook, make sure you visit the SNP page and our new Alex Salmond for First Minister page. You can find out more about our campaigns and hear Alex and the Cabinet talking about the election and much more.

Thank you for your help and your support. And please pass on this information to your family and your friends. The more of us involved, the more we can achieve.

Yours, for Scotland

Alex Salmond