The Standard
· collected 2026-09-05 · by Press Association Scotland Reporter
Lord Malcolm Offord has pledged that Reform UK will review the six-band income tax system in Scotland, which he calls "nuts". He claims that the system is dragging people into higher tax bands and increasing their marginal tax rate. A Scottish Government spokesperson counters that the majority of taxpayers pay less income tax than those in the rest of the UK due to progressive taxation policies. The government also notes that since 2017-18, more people have moved to Scotland for work than left, with an average net inflow of almost 4,600 per year.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-05,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event.
Claims extracted
13
claim-shaped sentences
Uncertain
15%
2 of 13 hedged
Leaning
Leans right
of the writing, not the subject
Publisher trust
95.9
red-flag proxy, not a credibility rating
Outlets on this story
unclustered
not grouped into a story yet
Narrative spread
1
articles carrying this framing
Why this leaning score
The article's own words the score was based on. Each is quoted
verbatim and was checked against the article text before being
stored, so you can find it in the original.
Leaning score +0.35 for article 4713 (high confidence, 1 verified quote) · logged 2026-09-05
Lord Malcolm Offord said the party would review the six-band income tax system north of the border.
asserted
party → say → border
He said: “We’ll deal with the income tax.
asserted
We → say → tax
“So we are now in the most heavily taxed part of the UK.
asserted
we → tax → UK
We have six bands – income tax bands – in Scotland, versus three in the UK.
asserted
We → have → UK
“We’re dragging a lot of people who would normally be in medium wages, like nurses etc, into higher tax bands, which is nuts.
asserted
which → drag → bands
“By being dragged into these higher tax bands and sometimes losing other marginal benefits, you’re ending up paying a much higher marginal tax rate.”
asserted
you → drag → rate
Lord Offord led Reform UK to joint second place at Holyrood in the elections in May.
uncertain
Offord → lead → May
SNP MSP Alex Kerr said: “Lord Offord was part of a Liz Truss’ government which crashed the economy and now serves under the man who dragged us out of the European market – we will take no lectures from him.
Read More
“Reform isn’t interested in supporting working people, they are only focused on helping out their rich pals.
“
asserted
they → say → pals
Today Offord should have been calling on Farage to resign, but he has failed that test and will now be left to defend the indefensible.”
asserted
he → call → indefensible
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The majority of taxpayers in Scotland can expect to pay less income tax than those in the rest of the UK thanks to our progressive income tax policies, which raised a record £18.8 billion for the Scottish Budget in 2024-25.
asserted
which → say → 2024
“The approach to progressive taxation also means that those who earn more pay a little more to support policies that are not enjoyed elsewhere in the UK, such as free university tuition, free prescriptions, and the game-changing Scottish Child Payment.
asserted
that → mean → tuition
“The most up-to-date information available, to 2022-23, suggests that since the introduction of Scottish Income Tax in 2017-18, more people with taxable income have come to Scotland than have left, with net inflows averaging almost 4,600 per year.
uncertain
people → suggest → year
“Our economy is one of the best performing parts of the UK, with Scotland the top UK destination for foreign direct investment outside of London for the past 11 years.”
asserted
Scotland → perform → years
