THE SNP has accused Scottish Labour of sitting on the “political sidelines” ahead of Tuesday’s crunch Budget vote.

Finance Secretary Shona Robison made the claim after securing deals with the Greens, Lib Dems and Alba parties that leave the Budget’s progress into law a virtual certainty.

Weeks of negotiations with the three parties have won a full £16.7 million spending boost from Ms Robison’s original £64.3 billion spending plans, securing additional cash for a regional pilot of a £2 bus fare cap, extra cash for addictions and hospice services, and to lower the means test for free school meals from S1-S3.

But while the Tories have already vowed to vote against the Budget, the Finance Secretary has turned her sights to Labour, whose Scottish leader Anas Sarwar announced in December his party would abstain. 

She said: “The key dividing line in this Parliament is now between parties who want to get things done and make progress for Scotland — and parties who don’t.

“We know where the Tories stand — they have no interest in getting things done.

“But Labour is currently abstaining — and it needs to decide what side it is on.

“Does it want to stand up for the NHS or does it want to stand with the Tories?

“Parties in the Parliament have managed to come together to have sensible, grown-up discussions and come to agreements that make a difference to the lives of the people of Scotland.

“Meanwhile, Labour finds itself standing with the Tories on the political sidelines.”

Scottish Labour finance spokesman Michael Marra hit back: “A UK Labour Budget decisively ended austerity and delivered the largest Budget settlement for Scotland in the history of devolution, boosting funding by £5.2bn.

“After 14 years of Tory chaos and cuts, this funding should be transformative, but the fact is our public services will continue to suffer from the consequences of SNP incompetence.

“With public services at breaking point and one in six Scots on an NHS waiting list — this SNP government is failing.

“This Budget was always going to pass, but what is clear is that it will not deliver the change in direction Scotland really needs.

“The SNP has been passing Budgets for almost 18 years and things have only got worse.

“Because the brutal truth every Scot knows is that they can’t deliver and they have no plan for change.

“Scotland deserves better.”