DEBT write-off is far from unheard of between the nations of Europe.

Greek premier Alexis Tsipras said - even before his election - these words, which must bite hard into the collective consciousness of the German people: "It [a debt write-off] happened in 1953 in Germany. I am wondering on what ethical grounds does Germany refuse a solution ... which it benefited from many years ago, when coming out of World War Two, and when Germany itself had many open wounds?"

It is not for the people of Scotland to tell Greeks how to vote in tomorrow's referendum, but clearly a No vote is what is needed if Greece is not to be pulverised by more economically illiterate austerity, and the entire European project placed in jeopardy.

Syriza is right when it says that the Troika is trying to enact a form of regime change and force the left-wing party out of power through fear and bullying. A Yes vote would be a blow for national democracy and a win for bankers who would have successfully cowed the Greek people.

We are about to see just how austere an unfettered Tory government can be when UK Chancellor George Osborne unveils his much feared budget this week. And it is 'much feared'. That is no overstatement. The poor, the young, hard-working families on low wages, the disabled - they are all living in dread of what the Tories have in store for them.

This newspaper has opposed austerity from the start - not just because it is morally wrong to brutalise the poorest in a society for the mistakes of the richest, the bankers, but also because austerity is not working. An eleven year old with a calculator could do the sums and see that cuts are not the answer.

So, if those on the progressive side of the political debate in Scotland and the rest of the UK oppose austerity at home, we should also stand shoulder to shoulder with those Greeks who feel the same way, and have experienced a level of austerity that voters on these islands would find impossible to bear.