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Diane Abbott: Jim Murphy 'trying to buy' Scottish votes Jim Murphy defends plan to fund Scots nurses from mansion tax
(about 1 hour later)
Labour MP Diane Abbott has accused Scottish Labour leader Jim Murphy of trying to "buy" Scottish votes with money "expropriated" from London. Scottish Labour leader Jim Murphy has rejected claims he is trying to "buy" Scottish votes with money "expropriated" from London.
It follows Mr Murphy's pledge that a UK-wide "mansion tax" would allow a future Labour government to create 1,000 new nursing posts in Scotland. Mr Murphy has pledged that a UK-wide "mansion tax" would allow a future Labour government to create 1,000 new nursing posts in Scotland.
Mr Murphy said most of the money raised by the tax would come from London and the south east of England. He said most of the money raised would come from London and the south east.
In response to Ms Abbott's criticism Mr Murphy insisted his plan was fair. Labour MP Diane Abbott accused him of "unscrupulous" behaviour, but Mr Murphy insisted his plan was "sensible".
He said the mansion tax was Labour Party policy, adding that the proceeds should be shared across the UK. Mr Murphy compared the plan to spend money levied on English homes on Scottish nurses with the way the oil wealth from the North Sea was shared around the UK.
"The way in which the UK works, as we all know, is about pooling and sharing our resources," he told BBC Radio 4's World at One programme. "It's part of pooling and sharing your resources across these islands, it's pretty sensible," he told BBC Radio 4's World at One programme, and pointed out the property tax was Labour Party policy.
'Tax' on Londoners
Labour has pledged to impose a levy on homes worth more than £2m across the UK to fund the NHS if leader Ed Miliband wins the general election.
In his first major policy announcement, Mr Murphy said he would use Scotland's share of the money, allocated under the Barnett formula, to pay for extra nursing staff, if Labour wins May's UK General Election and then the Scottish Labour Party wins the Holyrood election in 2016.
But Ms Abbott, the Labour MP for Hackney who hopes to run for London mayor, told the World at One she was very surprised that Mr Murphy was "making these boasts".
"Jim Murphy is saying that he's going to be recruiting nurses from day one on the basis of this mansion tax. You can't recruit people on the basis that money that hasn't even been raised yet," she said.
She added: "Jim Murphy is jumping the gun in a highly unscrupulous way."
While supporting the mansion tax "in principle", Ms Abbott said a lot of discussion was needed as to how to implement it fairly, warning it amounted to a "tax on Londoners".
She said the policy would affect people who bought homes many years ago which have since increased substantially in value, while the wealthy would try to "evade" the tax.
"That's all got to be thought through - Jim Murphy isn't waiting for that. He just thinks he can buy Scottish votes with money expropriated from London," she said.
'Cash cow'
Mr Murphy - who Ms Abbott mistakenly called 'John' at the start of the interview - hit back by saying he did not have to consult Ms Abbott or clear things with Labour leader Ed Miliband over what he does in the Scottish Labour Party.
"When it comes to issues that are devolved - so health and education in Scotland - I am in charge. I am the leader of the Scottish Labour Party."
Reserved issued such as foreign affairs and welfare, he added , were the responsibility of the Labour leader, who he said he looked forward to campaigning alongside for a Labour victory at the general election.
Ms Abbott, he suggested, should get behind Labour Policy "rather than either forgetting my name or attacking my approach to what I do in Scotland".
The policy announcement, made by Mr Murphy on Monday, has also faced criticism from some other Lodnon-based politicians.
Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, described the plan as "fiscally vindictive" to the south east of England and amounted to trying to "bribe the Scots to vote Labour", while Labour's Dame Tessa Jowell said London should not be treated as a "cash cow".