Party Policies Compare Scottish National policies against Uk Independence Party policies

We will protect the Small Business Bonus, ensuring £450 million of support for the small businesses that form the lifeblood of local economies. The small business bonus has saved jobs in the downturn and create jobs in the recovery.

Food & Drink - We know this is an area of huge potential for Scotland and we will work to deliver higher value for Scottish food producers and further increase revenues and exports.

Government must not stand in the way of farm and rural businesses and so we will further co-ordinate inspections as we work towards a one visit approach.

We'll keep the Small Business Bonus, so 80,000 Scottish businesses continue to pay no rates or lower rates. The Small Business Bonus has protected local jobs in the downturn and will create jobs as our economy recovers.

Source: Scottish National party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

Our commitment is to keep the 1000 extra police in our communities. We know this is essential if we are to keep crime rates falling.

Taking more ill-gotten gains from the criminals - We are extending the Cashback for Communities scheme. The law is being changed to let us take more money from more criminals and that extra cash will be invested in our communities.

We will introduce new Serious Crime Prevention Orders allowing us to restrict the activities of people involved in serious and organised crime.

We all know that cheap booze is a root cause of too much crime and anti-social behaviour. Our plans for minimum pricing will reduce the flow of the cheap alcohol and make our town centres and neighbourhoods safer and more pleasant places to live.

We will extend the successful schemes that have seen a 30% reduction in knife crime in Scotland since 2007 and support the ground-breaking police efforts to tackle gang violence.

The SNP supports effective tools such as the European arrest Warrant.

Source: Scottish National party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

The Scottish National Party (SNP) is challenging the UK parties to make a commitment against cuts to conventional defence spending, manpower and bases in Scotland.

Our opposition to the Trident nuclear missile s y stem and its planned replacement remains firm - there is no place for these weapons in Scotland and we will continue to press the UK government to scrap Trident and cancel its replacement.

Conference calls for a Scottish Defence Review to look at all aspects of defence policy, from strategy to the structure of the armed forces, funding and equipment; notes that past reviews have failed to properly anticipate new trends and circumstances; expresses concern that more than 9,500 defence jobs have been lost in Scotland since Labour came to power in 1997, as well as a litany of base closures and regimental amalgamations; further expresses concern that, between 2002 and 2006 alone, the total accumulated defence underspend in Scotland - ie comparing our share of UK defence spending with population share - was a mammoth £4.363 billion; notes that Scottish taxpayers are disproportionately contributing huge sums towards the UK Ministry of Defence, at the same time as the UK's conventional defence footprint in Scotland is disappearing at an unprecedented rate; believes that the analysis of a Scottish Defence Review would demonstrate the modern benefits and opportunities offered by independence.

Source: http://www.snp.org/media-centre/news/2010/mar/championing-scotlands-defence

Source: Scottish National party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

SNP oppose the plans outlined in the Infrastructure Bill that would allow oil & gas drilling, and hydraulic fracturing (fracking) underneath peoples homes without consent.

Support for an international bank tax, as well as limits to industry bonuses.

We will protect the Small Business Bonus, ensuring £450 million of support for the small businesses that form the lifeblood of local economies. The small business bonus has saved jobs in the downturn and create jobs in the recovery.

We will provide support for 125,000 modern apprenticeships over the lifetime of the Parliament and a commitment that every 16-19 year old in Scotland not in work, part of a Modern Apprenticeship scheme or receiving education is offered a learning or training opportunity.

At a time of inflation, higher VAT and sky-high fuel prices we will continue to protect family budgets here in Scotland by freezing the Council Tax.

Source: Scottish National party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

We will introduce a new Early Years Fund so we can expand community based provision for pre-school and the very earliest years of life.

We are committed to a new phase of school building across Scotland as we work to lift all Scottish school children out of the worst condition schools.

We want to see local schools and their communities take more responsibility for our children's education. That will mean, for example, a greater role for head teachers.

We are bringing in a new legal limit on primary 1 classes in August and are committed to a progressive reduction in class sizes starting with the early years.

We are committed to maintaining this better teacher-pupil ratio and over time improving it.

Source: Scottish National party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

Tough action against corporate polluters.

Public accountability of the oil companies.

No return to nuclear energy, close all nuclear plants.

Stop the import and export of nuclear waste and the dumping of it on third world countries.

The introduction of clean-burn technologies into fossil fuelled power stations.

Increased public investment to make homes energy efficient.

Bring the water industry back into public ownership under democratic control; invest in a clean-up of rivers lakes and sea.

High quality recycling facilities to maximise recycling, no new incinerators.

Stop the commercial use of GM foods; a moratorium on trials pending further research.

We will build on the popular and effective Climate Challenge fund to encourage more towns, villages, neighbourhoods or streets to come together to make their community a low carbon community.

We will introduce Green Skills Academies, to ensure we have the right green skills mix for the future.

We will plant millions of new trees, protect our peatlands and protect and expand our marine carbon sinks as ways of rebalancing Scotland's carbon account.

Emergency steps to reduce the use of fossil fuels, alongside massively increased investment in sustainable energy including solar, biological and wind and wave power.

Scotland is leading the world in offshore renewable technologies and the SNP will continue to support the rapid growth of this sector. The National Renewables Infrastructure Fund will help leverage private investment into Renewables, part of over £200 million of investment in Renewables.

Source: Scottish National party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

We will seek to: Improve the internal market and promote sustainable Scottish jobs

Maximise the opportunities for Scottish companies

Co-operate with other countries on organised crime and terrorism

Promote progressive policies to help build better societies

Help Scottish citizens to live and work across the EU

We will not seek membership of either the Eurozone or the Schengen area. We will retain sterling as our currency and remain a member of the common Travel area.

The SNP will work with other progressive voices in the European Parliament to ensure that economic recovery is built on a strong foundation of social justice.

We believe that workers’ rights should be safeguarded and that equality should be at the heart of all EU policy.

The SNP will work to promote EU policies aimed at improving the lives of Scotland’s younger generations.

Legislation should be passed by the EU to complete the single market and remove remaining trade barriers between member states. We are particularly keen that Scottish businesses are able to benefit from the freedom to provide services but are equally convinced that public services should remain free from a privatisation agenda.

We believe that the EU should be ambitious in driving forward initiatives on environmental protection and climate change, with the role of member states enhanced. There should be greater flexibility in target setting and coherence across policies.

We are seeking structural reform of the Emissions Trading System and want to encourage EU action on developing new technologies such as offshore wind, marine energy, carbon capture and storage, and energy storage in general.

Source: Scottish National party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

At a time of inflation, higher VAT and sky-high fuel prices we will continue to protect family budgets here in Scotland by freezing the Council Tax.

We have also removed prescription charges, saving people with long-term health conditions £180.

We support a rapid expansion of high speed broadband across Scotland so that people in rural Scotland can share fully in the digital age.

Source: Scottish National party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

Source: Scottish National party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

We are protecting spending in the NHS over the next few years - with an additional £826 million to the health revenue budget, allowing us to continue efforts to improve healthcare in Scotland.

We will deliver an 18 week referral to treatment standard, ensuring prompt and effective diagnosis.

One stop cancer diagnosis - As part of our plans to ensure shorter cancer waiting times.

We have set up a new watchdog to keep our wards clean and will use this to build on the recent big falls in hospital acquired infections.

More flexible access to healthcare - We want services to more closely reflect the realities of family and working life.

Source: Scottish National party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

We have reaffirmed our commitment to social housing and thanks to support from the Scottish Government; councils are now building more houses than at any time since the early 1990s.

We intend to build 30,000 new homes over the lifetime of this Parliament.

Source: Scottish National party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

The SNP would allow a devolved government to have complete control over immigration into Scotland, and to introduce a system similar to Canada to attract highly-skilled immigrants.

While the Scottish Government wants to see Scotland with a positive and effective immigration policy- as things stand we are hamstrung by the policies of a Westminster establishment engaged in a race to the right in an attempt to outflank UKIP and which is putting economic growth and our international reputation at risk as a result. - SNP MSP Christian Allard

Scotland needs an immigration policy which suits our economic needs, and keeps up with the likes of Canada, Australia, Germany and New Zealand who all have explicit strategies to bring in talent to the benefit of their economies. - SNP home affairs spokesperson Pete Wishard MP.

The Scottish National Party say they would 'celebrate' more people arriving from overseas, reversing what they claim is years of 'depopulation'. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2759128/An-independent-Scotland-celebrate-soaring-immigration-How-SNP-s-plan-open-borders-24-000-year-offer-backdoor-England.html

Source: Scottish National party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

A cheap and integrated transport system to provide an alternative to car use, making the current road-building programme unnecessary.

End the £9 billion tax-break to the airlines.

We will invest in the electrification of the central Scotland rail network, reducing journey times between Glasgow and Edinburgh to just over 30 minutes.

Our investment in the rail network will deliver shorter journey times between Scotland's cities including faster times from Inverness and Aberdeen to the central belt and journeys of just over 30 minutes from Glasgow to Edinburgh.

Work will soon start on the crucial Forth Replacement Crossing. This is an essential project for Scotland's economy and will also create thousands of new jobs.

We are increasing the budgets for low carbon transport and will support the creation of the infrastructure for electric vehicles and continue to expand the number of 'park and rides'.

Improvements for commuters - Our actions are designed to make the commute easier for thousands of Scots with faster and more frequent rail services into our major cities and improvements to our road network to remove bottlenecks.

We will begin the electrification of much of Scotland's rail network, delivering big carbon savings and with faster journey times encouraging more Scots to leave the car behind.

Source: Scottish National party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

Source: Scottish National party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

We will provide support for 125,000 modern apprenticeships over the lifetime of the Parliament and a commitment that every 16-19 year old in Scotland not in work, part of a Modern Apprenticeship scheme or receiving education is offered a learning or training opportunity.

We'll deliver 100,000 training opportunities each year for young Scots, including 25,000 modern apprenticeships.

Source: Scottish National party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

We will continue to support the work of the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and his efforts through the Nuclear Weapons Convention to eradicate nuclear, chemical and biological weapons across the planet.

Scotland has responsibilities in the wider world and so we will continue and protect our current level of investment in international development. We are proud of the work under taken through our International Development Fund. It is making a difference to the lives of many people across the world. We will increase our efforts to support developing nations as they respond to the challenges of climate change. We have heard the calls from many for Scotland to create a Climate Adaptation Fund. Given the pressures on the Scottish Government's budget we will work with partners in business, charitable foundations and non-governmental organisations so we can co-ordinate efforts to build a Scotland-wide climate adaptation fund.

We will continue to update and implement our China and South Asia engagement plans with a focus on business, trade, education, culture, science and tourism.

We will also seek an enhanced role for Scotland in Europe including through the Scotland Europa Office in Brussels and continue to support the effective network of SDI offices.

Source: Scottish National party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

Cut the massive burden of EU red tape

Prevent big businesses deliberately delaying payments to smaller companies

Cut Business Rates by 20% for companies having premises with a total Rateable Value of less than £50,000

Support a credit insurance scheme to improve the financial security of small businesses

Make it easier for small and medium-size businesses to tender for public service contracts

Push for 30 minutes free parking in every high street and shopping parade.

Source: Uk Independence Party party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

Prevent foreign criminals coming into the UK and deport those who commit crimes here

Scrap our opt-in to the European Arrest Warrant and uphold the principle of ‘innocent until proven guilty’

Reduce the number of territorial constabularies and Police and Crime Commissioners to cut costs and tackle serious crime

Prosecute all cases of adult sexual behaviour with minors

Take a zero-tolerance approach to unacceptable ‘cultural’ practices such as female genital mutilation (FGM)

Amend the licensing laws to lower the maximum stake on all Fixed Odds Betting Terminals from £100 to £2

Refuse to give criminals the vote

Insist those who wish to appeal against deportation do so from their home country

Decriminalise non-payment of the BBC licence fee and review its cost with a view to its reduction.

Source: Uk Independence Party party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

Exempt all service personnel on duty overseas from income tax

Increase defence spending to 2% of GDP as required by our membership of NATO

Restore the armed forces to 2010 manpower levels and capability

Open a dedicated, fully-equipped military hospital to provide specialist services to armed forces personnel

Appoint a new Director of National Intelligence

Keep our Trident nuclear deterrent

Oppose the creation of the EU Army.

Appoint a new, dedicated Minister for Veterans, attached to the Cabinet Office

Issue a National Defence Medal to all veterans

Build 500 affordable rent houses every year for veterans

Build eight halfway house hostels for homeless veterans

Guarantee jobs in the police, prison and border services to ex-servicemen and women who have served for 12 years

Support ex-forces personnel who want to set up their own businesses

Issue a Veterans service card to ensure fast-track access to mental health services.

Source: Uk Independence Party party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

Raise the personal tax allowance to at least £13,000, taking those on minimum wage out of tax altogether

Raise the threshold for paying 40% tax to £55,000 and introduce a new 30% intermediate rate on earnings between £45,300 and £55,000

Abolish inheritance tax

Increase the transferable tax allowance for married couples to £1,500

Ensure big corporations pay their fair share of tax

Remove VAT from listed building repairs and sanitary products.

Source: Uk Independence Party party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

Ease teachers’ workloads by cutting down on assessments, data collection and appraisals

Scrap teachers’ performance-related pay

Abolish Key Stage 1 SAT tests at primary level

End sex education for primary school children

Bring back grammar schools and support a range of secondary schools including vocational, technical and specialist schools

Waive tuition fees for science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medicine (STEMM) subjects at university

Make First Aid training part of the national curriculum.

Source: Uk Independence Party party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

Scrap the 2008 Climate Change Act and the EU’s Large Combustion Plant Directive

Support ‘fracking’ for shale gas

End subsidies for wind turbines and solar photovoltaic arrays

Support renewable energy where it can deliver electricity at competitive prices

Seek to rejuvenate the coal industry

Abolish ‘green levies’ to cut the cost of fuel bills

Force energy companies to end higher charges for pre-payment meters

Source: Uk Independence Party party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

An immediate referendum on whether the UK should be in or out of the European Union.

We would review all legislation and regulations from the EU (3,600 new laws since 2010) and remove those which hamper British prosperity and competitiveness.

We will extend to EU citizens the existing points-based system for time-limited work permits. Those coming to work in the UK must have a job to go to, must speak English, must have accommodation agreed prior to their arrival, and must have NHS-approved health insurance.

We would negotiate a bespoke trade agreement with the EU to enable our businesses to continue trading to mutual advantage.

UKIP will withdraw from the jurisdiction of the European Court of Human Rights.

UKIP would not seek to remain in the European Free Trade Area (EFTA) or European Economic Area (EEA) while those treaties maintain a principle of free movement of labour, which prevents the UK managing its own borders.

UKIP will reverse the government’s opt-in to EU law and justice measures, including the European Arrest Warrant and European Investigation Order. We will replace the EAW with appropriate bi-lateral agreements.

UKIP will leave the EU and save at least £8bn pa in net contributions.

Students from the EU will pay the same student fee rates as International students.

Work permits will be permitted to fill skills gaps in the UK jobs market.

By leaving the EU, the UK will leave the Common Agricultural Policy. Outside the EU UKIP will institute a British Single Farm Payment for farms.

UKIP will leave the Common Fisheries Policy and reinstate British territorial waters. Foreign trawlers would have to apply for and purchase fishing permits to fish British waters when fish stocks have returned to sustainable levels.

We will repeal the Human Rights Act and replace it with a new British Bill of Rights. The interests of law-abiding citizens & victims will always take precedence over those of criminals.

Source: Uk Independence Party party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

Honour existing childcare voucher and tax-free childcare schemes

Extend these existing schemes to informal, non-Ofsted registered childminders

Offer wrap-around childcare before and after school for every school-age child

Amend planning legislation to ensure more nurseries are built to expand childcare places

Give parents easy access to emergency childcare through their local authority

Legislate for an initial presumption of 50-50 shared parenting in child residency matters, and give grandparents visiting rights

Initiate a thorough review of childcare and child safeguarding systems.

Source: Uk Independence Party party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

Continue to give UKIP Councillors the freedom to vote as they choose

Keep Council Tax as low as possible

Give local people the final say on major planning decisions in their area

Adopt a zero-tolerance approach to noisy or anti-social neighbours

Make the setting up of a traveller pitch without permission illegal

Reinstate weekly bin collections where they have been lost, if residents want them reinstated

Oppose the cabinet system of local governance and push for cross-party, collaborative committee systems

Provide best value for money for council tax payers by cutting council costs.

Give a national referendum on the issue of greatest importance to the British public every two years on the most popular petition with over two million signatures

Genuinely debate petitions gathering over 100,000 signatures in the House of Commons

Give voters real power to sack their MP, Councillor or other elected politician

Insist on English votes for English laws: only MPs for English constituencies will vote on laws affecting only England.

Introduce an Open Primaries Bill to ensure Parliamentary candidates need not be Westminster insiders

Give Commons’ Select Committees the power to approve or veto senior ministerial, civil service and quango appointments and public spending plans

Introduce a new proportional voting system that truly reflects the number of votes cast

End postal voting fraud by restricting postal votes to those with a valid reason to have one.

Source: Uk Independence Party party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

Fund 20,000 more nurses, 8,000 more GPs and 3,000 more midwives

Invest an extra £1.5 billion into mental health and dementia services over the next five years

Scrap hospital parking charges

End ‘health tourism’ by making sure those ineligible for free NHS care pay for treatment

Replace Monitor and the CQC with powerful new County Health Boards to drive up standards.

Integrate health and social care and bring both under the control of the NHS

Increase social care funding in total by £5.2 billion between 2015 and 2020

Promise to invest any tax profits from ‘fracking’ into setting up a Sovereign Wealth Fund to pay for elderly care

Protect services such as day care centres, home care and Meals on Wheels

Abolish the practice of arranging home-care visits in 15-minute windows

Source: Uk Independence Party party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

Protect the green belt

Bring empty homes back into use

Build one million homes on brownfield sites by 2020

Prioritise social housing for those with local connections to an area

Give local people the final say on major planning developments in their area

Restrict the ‘Right-to-Buy’ and ‘Help-to-Buy’ schemes to British nationals

Oppose the so-called ‘Mansion Tax.’

Source: Uk Independence Party party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

Leave the EU and take back control of our borders

End immigration for unskilled jobs for a five-year period to re-balance our work economy

Introduce an Australian-style points-based immigration system to assess all potential migrants to Britain on a fair, ethical and equal basis

Tackle the problem of sham marriages

Introduce a new visa system for workers, visitors, students, families and asylum seekers

End access to benefits and free NHS treatment for new immigrants until they have paid tax and NI for five years

Require all visitors and new immigrants to the UK to have their own health insurance.

Source: Uk Independence Party party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

Scrap HS2: this is an expensive, politically-driven vanity project for which there is no good business case. It will blight our countryside and not solve the problem of capacity

Campaign to re-open Manston airport to address the lack of airport capacity in the South East

Ensure speed cameras are used to improve road safety, not just to raise money

End road tolls wherever possible

Oppose ‘pay-as-you-go’ road charging schemes

Support British HGV drivers by charging foreign lorries extra to use our roads

Roll back the VED exemption for classic vehicles to 25 years.

Source: Uk Independence Party party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

Support a lower cap on benefits

Crack down on benefit fraud

End welfare tourism with a five-year embargo on benefits for migrants

Stop child benefit being paid to children who don’t live here permanently and limit child benefit to two children for new claimants

Scrap the ‘bedroom tax’

End unfair ATOS-style work capability assessments and return the system and funding to GPs

Increase Carers’ Allowance to match Job Seekers’ Allowance - £572 more a year

We will also put 800 advisors into foodbanks to help those using them with additional problems such as debt, addiction, family breakdown and mental or physical health problems, and to offer employment and legal advice.

Source: Uk Independence Party party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

Protect workers’ rights

Enforce the minimum wage

End the abuse of zero-hours contracts

Allow British businesses to choose to employ British workers first

Prevent access to EU schemes which encourage businesses to hire foreign workers

Scrap EU directives which restrict the British economy and go against our work ethos.

Source: Uk Independence Party party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.

Take back our vacant seat at the World Trade Organisation

Seek to establish free trade agreements across the globe

Negotiate a bespoke UK-EU trade deal

Join the ranks of over 60 prosperous, independent countries that have profitable, mutually beneficial trade relationships with the European Union.

Consult Parliament before committing our armed forces and taxpayers’ money to combat situations

Protect the British sovereignty and territorial integrity of Gibraltar and the Falkland Islands

Foster closer ties with the Anglosphere

Put our faith in trading with our neighbours as a sovereign nation as the best way to avoid conflict

Encourage peace efforts in the Middle East and support a peaceful two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict.

Cut the overseas aid budget from 0.7% to 0.2% of GNI, on a par with the USA

Continue to spend at least £4 billion annually on current figures (more than Spain and Italy combined), prioritising clean water and sanitation, healthcare, innoculation and emergency aid programmes

Remove trade barriers to provide sustainable livelihoods for the world’s poorest people

Close the Department for International Development and merge its essential functions into the Foreign Office.

Source: Uk Independence Party party website, existing manifesto or officially-published policies.