LABOUR leader Jeremy Corbyn yesterday warned that an independent Scotland would face “turbo-charged austerity” and struggle to fill “glaring holes” in local government budgets.

On a visit to Glasgow, he cited tumbling oil prices and market volatility as potentially hitting state finances. Scotland is the EU’s largest producer of oil and gas due to its proximity to the North Sea and the Atlantic.

Addressing Labour members, he said that Scotland “has the talent and ability to run its own affairs” but warned that independence won’t tackle underlying problems such as poverty and industrial decline.