No Income Tax Increase in Next Parliament

Anas Sarwar will today pledge that a Scottish Labour government will not raise income tax in the next parliament, as he warns that working Scots are being squeezed to cover up 20 years of SNP economic failure.

Mr Sarwar will say Scotland needs change after 20 years of SNP government and that a Scottish Labour government will fix the mess, get the basics right and build a better future for Scotland.

In 2021, the SNP promised to freeze income tax rates and bands.

Instead, more than a million Scots now pay more income tax than they would elsewhere in the UK.

Everyone earning £33,500 or more is paying more, including nurses, teachers and police officers.

Someone earning £45,000 now pays around £400 more, while someone on £50,000 pays around £1,500 more.

Meanwhile, the maximum saving anyone gets from the SNP’s system is just £40 a year. 

Scottish Labour will say this is the worst of both worlds: Scots are paying more, but Scotland is still falling behind because the SNP has failed to grow the economy.

In 2026-27, the tax base performance gap is forecast to be £0.8 billion. Over the last five years, that gap has cost Scotland £3.1 billion. 

Mr Sarwar will say John Swinney cannot wash his hands of this record. He has been at the heart of the SNP’s fiscal policy for 19 years, and the result is a low-growth, low-pay economy where hard working Scots are asked to pay more and more while public services still struggle and family finances are stretched to breaking point. 

A Scottish Labour government will not raise income tax during the next parliamentary term.

Its ambition is to cut tax over the course of the parliament when growth allows, starting with those facing the highest marginal tax rates. Scottish Labour says that means getting the basics right, ending waste and delivering the growth Scotland needs. 

Commenting, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar said: “Scotland needs change after 20 years of SNP government.

“John Swinney has been at the heart of this failure for nearly two decades. He has had his chance, and he has failed.

“The SNP promised to freeze income tax, then broke that promise and made more than a million Scots pay more than they would elsewhere in the UK.

“They now think a nurse, a teacher or a police officer earning £33,500 has the broadest shoulders.

“That is how out of touch they have become.

“People are paying more and more, and getting less and less in return.

“I’m standing to fix the mess, get the basics right and build a better future for Scotland.

“We will make our tax system work for working people, committing not to increase income tax in the next parliament, but also having a clear ambition to cut tax in the next parliament so people do not feel as if they pay more and more, and get less and less in return.

“That means ending waste, treating taxpayers’ money with respect and working in partnership with workers and businesses to deliver the growth Scotland needs.

“On May 7, vote Scottish Labour on both votes for the change Scotland needs.”