SHERIDAN SAYS WESTMINSTER SHOULD PAY FOR HOLYROOD
As the cost of the new Holyrood Parliament soars towards £400 million, the Scottish Socialist Party today called for the cost of the building to be borne by the Westminster government.

SSP Convenor, Tommy Sheridan said:
“The Holyrood site was foisted on Scotland by the Westminster government. We were told it would cost the Scottish taxpayer £40 million – now it’s ten times that sum. The Holyrood decision was a monumental folly by Westminster – and Westminster should pick up the tab.
The Scottish taxpayer has paid plenty towards public projects sited in London. I want to see an independent Scottish Parliament. But this parliament does not even have proper fund-raising powers. Westminster wants to have our cake and eat it. It denies us control over our own revenues, yet forces us to spend hundreds of millions on a building commissioned by Westminster. As things stand, the Holyrood parliament building will cost £250 for every single family in Scotland. But if the costs are borne by the Westminster exchequer, it will cost just £6.50 a head across the UK. This is significantly less than the amount contributed by Scottish taxpayers to the costs of the Millennium Dome and Portcullis House.”
[ends]For further info contact Tommy Sheridan 07887 795075 or Alan McCombes on 07881 988337