
THE Fraser of Allander Institute’s report on funding state pensions in an independent Scotland (“Think-tank’s ‘hammer blow’ to SNP pension plan under indy”, The Herald, February 5) concludes that determining liability would be “both more complex and more uncertain than either ‘side’ might claim”.
The UK Government’s own document “State Pension if you retire abroad” states in its first sentence “You can claim State Pension abroad if you’ve paid enough UK National Insurance contributions to qualify”, making clear that following payment of contributions there is a liability to pay a state pension, consistent with the terms of the scheme at the time.
Of course, these terms can change, “reduce, or even, in principle, eliminate”. Certainly, the state pension has varied in real value over the years, but it is no less clear that, in any post-Yes vote negotiation, pension liability could not be valued on the basis of something that might or might not happen several years later.
As for elimination of pensions, the politics of telling the UK’s grey vote, and the expats all over the world, that they are not getting their pension any more is, in terms of political disaster, much worse even than Downing Street parties.
Likewise, it is possible that the UK Government might challenge its liability on the basis that “the tax and NICs made by Scottish residents were used to pay for public services that they previously enjoyed”, but…