NATIONALIST MSPs have sparked outrage at Holyrood after performing a remarkable u-turn to block measures they recommended just weeks ago.
Holyrood's finance committee had said in a report last month that the Scottish Fiscal Commission (SFC) should be handed a far wider remit which would include the power to set vital financial projections that the Scottish Government's budget is based on.
However, all three SNP backbenchers on the committee, including its convenor and deputy convenor, voted against the measures when the proposed changes were put to them yesterday as the Bill reached its committee stage, scuppering the plan with the help of ex-SNP MSP Jean Urquhart.
They instead backed the position of John Swinney, who opposed stripping the Government of its role in setting the forecasts, sparking further claims that Holyrood's committee system is failing in its role of scrutinising the executive due to SNP backbenchers pandering to the party leadership.
The MSPs' actions also flew in the face of a new report by the Scottish Affairs Committee at Westminster, which is chaired by SNP MP Pete Wishart. The report states today that it there is a "clear consensus" that forecasts should be compiled by a body independent of Government.
The recommendation adds: "We agree with the conclusions of the Finance Committee of the Scottish Parliament and recommend that an enhanced Scottish Fiscal Commission be made responsible for forecasting in Scotland."
Tavish Scott, the former Scottish Liberal Democrat leader, hit out at the behaviour of the SNP committee members. He said: "Weeks ago, SNP MSPs backed giving an independent body control over budget forecasts. Now they have voted for the exact opposite and want John Swinney to keep marking his own homework. Either the Committee have taken leave of their senses or they have been nobbled by the Deputy First Minister. This is outrageous and shows the Holyrood Committee system at its worst."
Gavin Brown, the Tory MSP who put forward a non-partisan amendment in line the committee's previous recommendations, said it had been "a poor day for the Parliament, a disastrous day for the Finance Committee and bad news for the scrutiny of Scotland’s finances."
He added: "Several Committee members reversed their position from an agreed Finance Committee Report just a few weeks ago. The stark contrast between what the Finance Committee agreed in its report and what certain members argued is staggering. We are left with a Bill that creates an advisory body instead of an independent scrutiny body."
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