My SNP colleagues and I have long advocated for an end to the austerity measures of the Tory UK Government that deepen economic and social inequalities. The SNP are concerned that the UK Government have persistently failed to couple monetary policy with necessary fiscal measures. We firmly believe that they should listen to the SNP, scrap austerity and invest in public services and infrastructure that benefit the whole of society.
The Backbench Business Debate on QE was sponsored by my SNP colleague Ian Blackford MP. It aimed at highlighting the concern about the wider consequences of continuing the expansive monetary policy of low interest rates and QE over the longer term. In recognising that QE has largely benefited a small number of asset rich individuals, the SNP urged the UK Treasury to conduct an assessment of its broader effects in society.
The UK’s recent decision to leave the EU has triggered a fresh wave of economic instability, which the people of Scotland did not vote for. The SNP Scottish Government will continue to explore ways to maintain Scotland’s full access to the Single Market, and my SNP colleagues and I at Westminster will continue to do all within our power to pressure the UK Government to deal with the realities of a post-Brexit economy.