[jambutty]

1. Alex Salmond is proposing to scrap Council Tax in Scotland and replacing it with a local “Income Tax of 3p in the pound of any taxable income”.

2. The other proposal is to scrap all hospital parking charges in Scottish hospitals except for the 3 PFI hospitals.

I wonder if Alex Salmond would like to swop jobs with Gordon Brown?

1. This is a Poll Tax under another name but much fairer than the current Council Tax. Obviously this proposal will upset those households where there is more than one wage earner and delight those where there is only one. But in all tax changes there will always be winners and losers. It is time that the winners were the least well off.

My argument is simple enough. Why should a household with only one wage earner pay the same amount of Council Tax as a household with more than one? That is plainly unfair.

2. Although free parking would be desired, surely most people would not object to say 50p for the day between 8:00 am and 8:00 pm including Blue Badge holders. A simple barrier that opens when 50p is inserted in the slot would take care of collections thus there would be no need to employ an attendant. To prevent some people from trying to get in for free by using the exit to enter there would have to be an automatic device that allows cars to leave but prevents cars from going in.

I’m not sure if I can explain this so that others will understand but here goes. I can only get it wrong, which should please some people.

A series of spring loaded steel plates embedded in the ground across the exit would stick up in the air at an angle of about 45° facing outwards. A car leaving would just push the plates down and drive over them. But a car trying to get in would be presented with a barrier some 12 inches high. If the plates were serrated with points at the end this would deter the four by four clan from riding rough shod over the plates.