Too much rhetoric, not enough information

Calton seconds Nick Clegg's request for the SNP 'to provide answers about what it (independence) means for defence, for taxation, for investment, the currency'. At the moment there's too much rhetoric and not enough hard facts coming from Alex Salmond and his party. Take, for instance, the First Minister's statement that 'we will share a currency ... but we won't have diktats from Westminster for Scotland'. A great soundbite but Calton is not sure how it will work in practice, given that, although the Bank of England was made independent by Gordon Brown, it still answers to Westminster if inflation goes above the Westminster Government's target of 2%. Sounds like Alex wants to have his cake and eat it - just like another European leader Calton can think of.

The latest suggestion from the loony left

Calton thinks that Professor Brian Ashcroft (Mr Wendy Alexander) is completely off his trolley in suggesting that higher inflation is the answer to our current economic woes. He may be Emeritus Professor of Economics at Strathclyde University but he doesn't seem to have grasped the basic fact that higher inflation encourages people to take on debt and discourages saving, which is what got us into this mess in the first place. It also particularly penalises pensioners, whose savings are eroded, and low paid workers, whose wages do not keep pace with inflation. To suggest that we are all in this together and so savers should be prepared to take the hit while others borrow up to the hilt is not just bonkers - it is downright wicked in Calton's opinion. He sincerely hopes that our politicians treat Professor Ashcroft's suggestions with the contempt they so richly deserve.