Scottish trade union leaders have asked the pro- and anti-independence campaigns for detailed plans to improve workers rights and tackle inequality but are not impressed by the first offerings, from either side
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a A rundown estate in Glasgow: Yes Scotland argues that tackling poverty and inequality offers the strongest reason for independence
An independent Scotland should use the tax system to target the wealthiest, investing in universal benefits and welfare to promote a "social justice agenda", the Yes Scotland chief executive Blair Jenkins believes.
As he released a lengthy submission to the Scottish TUC's "A Just Scotland" agenda, Jenkins was asked on Thursday by reporters whether he believed a vote for independence in next year's referendum would be a vote for wealth redistribution in Scotland, and he answered "yes".
Despite repeatedly citing deep wealth inequalities in Scotland (the UK is, according to one study "the fourth most unequal society in the developed world'), its dire record on life expectancy and health for its poorest citizens, as the strongest case for a "yes" vote, Jenkins would go no further.
Jenkins insists this is because Yes Scotland is a "broad church". He added: "it is not our job to make policy". That is for the political parties.
And so, while the Yes Scotland paper was courteously welcomed by the STUC as a "comprehensive and serious" first response from the two camps, it left the congress frustrated.
While Yes Scotland committed itself to the broad principles of greater social justice in a very carefully-worded document which offered few hard, detailed proposals or costings, it threw back its own questions and demands of the STUC.
It asked the unions to do detailed analysis work on "the key economic data" on Scotland's wealth and resources, on the "full impact" on Scotland on the UK government's welfare reforms, on the pensions system, and to arrange event on "small state dynamics" and a programme of grassroots engagement.
On social justice and taxation, it talks of:
a virtuous cycle of enterprise and compassion whereby jobs and investment create growth, creating a more equal and caring society...
It suggests an independent Scotland could entirely scrap the current tax system:
over time to design a system which reflects Scotland's needs and priorities: a system that can work to reduce inequality and support social justice.
[A] new approach might include greater integration of the tax and welfare system, debates about the relative value of taxes on employment or land or pollution or consumption, and reassessment of the weighting given to progressive taxes within the overall balance of the system.
It should, as a starting point, move away from any assumption that the current system of tax collection in the UK, which has enabled a culture of tax avoidance to be fostered, is in anyway a suitable model for Scotland: how can we do it in a way that is simpler, fairer and more effective?
Noting that a few papers on specific policy areas would follow, it asserted that only independence would give Scotland control over the economic levers it needed to meet its specific needs; cites Scotland's relative wealth within the UK; confirmed the Scottish government was right to keep sterling as Scotland's currency; defended free higher education (even hinting other UK students could get free tuition in Scottish universities); and generally protect workers rights
In a formal statement, the STUC's general secretary Grahame Smith said would respond in detail to Yes Scotland's "questions and challenges" later, and he was careful to say thanks:
A Just Scotland was designed to provoke exactly this kind of constructive discussion and debate.
But Smith insisted more was needed:
Nonetheless the STUC believes that significant challenges remain for both campaigns. Commitments in areas such as welfare continue to be made without the necessary related commitment to redistribution through increased taxation.
Both campaigns lack any clear vision of how collective bargaining and a properly regulated labour market might be used to reduce income inequality.
An STUC spokesman expanded on that, in an interview. Unlike the STUC, Yes Scotland has a large paid staff and was backed up by the Scottish government and a wealthy, well-resourced party, the SNP. Even so, it has already published 12 detailed discussion papers on many of these key topics.
He added:
The response we've seen today seems to pose more questions than it answers and misunderstands or confuses the role of that wider civic society can and will play in the debate.
The document lays out some very general statements which seems at times like a wishlist, which fails on a number of matters of detail.
After it had canvassed its own activist base and civic groups, the STUC had set the sides four specific challenges when it published its A Just Scotland interim report last November: Yes Scotland was asked to end the "mixed messages" from the pro-independence campaign:
A central argument for independence has been rejection of the UK approach to taxation, welfare and a range of coalition policies relating to social justice. The first minister said at SNP conference in October 2012 that only independence could protect the social fabric of Scotland.
However, on other occasions, a low tax economic model with 'growth at all costs' as appeared to be the approach with current or increased spending imagined to flow from increased GDP not redistribution. It is fair to say that our members will need to hear of a more detailed vision for fairness in an independent Scotland if the Yes campaign is to succeed.
But then the challenge posed by the STUC highlights policy and political tensions within Yes Scotland itself: of the four political parties in it, three are clearly of the centre left and republican left – the Scottish Green party, Scottish Socialist party and Solidarity.
But the fourth and most powerful party in the coalition, the Scottish National party, will be the most reluctant at this stage to commit to a centre-left agenda on higher taxes to fund welfare when Alex Salmond, the first minister, and John Swinney, the finance secretary, are publicly committed to cutting corporation tax and smaller taxes like air passenger duty, or have funded business rates freezes for tens of thousands of small firms.
Indeed, Yes Scotland too is anxious to keep sympathetic low tax-enthusiast Scottish millionaires like Jim McColl – an entrepreneur frequently cited by Salmond for his enthusiasm for more economic powers for Holyrood - onside.
And it was that tension which the STUC targeted.
The STUC has also demanded information of the anti-independence Better Together campaign (which has an even deeper ideological gulf to bridge between the Tories and Labour than Yes Scotland presently does) and, quite specifically, Scottish Labour.
It says Scottish Labour's challenge is more onerous. Urging Labour to offer greater new powers for Holyrood, it stated last year:
There was concern and, on occasion, outright anger at some of the economic, social and international policies which have been pursued by government, particularly at the UK level.
'Not being the Tories' and negative messages about the SNP will not suffice and members will require a clear steer on how economic and social justice will be achieved at all levels of government and to be convinced that the Scottish Labour party intends to play an active and radical role in achieving this.
Smith said Anas Sarwar, the Scottish Labour deputy leader, had partly addressed their agenda in his lengthy speech on social justice and equality earlier this week.
But again, Sarwar had set out the questions without providing answers. The STUC still wanted "significantly more detail from the Labour party on its vision and the key questions of social justice", the STUC spokesman said.
A Scottish Labour spokesman insisted it would come, but on its terms:
We will answer these policy questions in a number of varied ways: we have conference coming up, a policy review and our devolution commission. What we're not going to do is say 'oh, look, Yes Scotland has put a paper out, we must put one out too'. As a party which seeks to govern, of course, we will respond but it's not going to be a battle of the documents.
Perhaps Yes Scotland will not be overly troubled by the STUC's reservations about progress so far. Yes Scotland has a bigger audience in mind.
Bolstered by this paper, it plans to build its own narrative and platform to attack the UK government – and by association two of Better Together's three partner parties the Tories and the Lib Dems - on its controversial, troubled record on welfare reform and social justice.
Yes Scotland is convinced that this centre-left agenda will help secure it victory in 2014. But that raises a further, more serious challenge: combating its real opponent in the battle for urban votes, Scottish Labour.
Preparing as it is to fight two elections post 2014 – the UK general election just six months later in May 2015 and the 2016 Holyrood poll – Labour's political future also rests heavily on publishing such detail and substance if it wants to win back power.