Treasury finds £1.6bn funding gap in Scottish independence plans

Scottish taxpayers will have to pay out £1.6bn a year to fund initiatives set out in the white paper on the country's independence which have not yet been allocated cash, according to Treasury figures.

In its analysis of the independence plans, the Treasury has highlighted at least three of the paper's proposed policy commitments, including cutting corporation tax by three percentage points, have not been backed by funding. This means Scottish taxpayers would have to foot an annual bill which is equivalent to the combined budget of the Police Scotland and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, chief secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander (pictured) said. IFAs have previously highlighted their concerns about Scottish independence, including there being an 'invisible border', differ...