‘Tesco tax’ sets Scottish government on course for collision with supermarkets
You have to give it to the SNP in agreeing they are canny. This very smart policy instead of trying to stifle the supermarkets penalises their most corrosive activities for the benefit of the tax payer. The story explains:
“John Swinney, the Scottish finance secretary, unveiled plans for a £110m windfall tax on supermarkets to help cushion heavy cuts in public spending which will see local councils lose more than £1.7bn over three years, with significant cuts in legal aid, culture, courts, historic buildings and the civil service.
The Scottish Retail Consortium said the new tax on large shops – a measure targeting retailers who sell tobacco and alcohol – was “a blatant fundraising exercise which is illogical and discriminatory”. The measure was blocked by opposition parties in the last parliament, but is now likely to be pushed through with the Scottish National party’s overall majority in Holyrood.”
I would like to see this approach piloted in England with greater hypothecation of the proceeds going to stimulate rural retail and post office development as a positive means of rebalancing things.