The new fiscal review has been conducted in secrecy and without significant consultation with the Scottish Government.
This is a depressing state of affairs. What should be done? Four steps should now be taken:
1. The Scottish and Westminster Governments should explain why the fiscal settlement review was not conducted along the lines promised in the Kate Forbes letter. And they should release a full account of the negotiations leading to the 20th July agreement.
2. On a point of relative detail, but nevertheless important: the original Smith Commission recommendation that consideration should be given to a wider scheme of prudential borrowing in Scotland should be picked up again.
3. There should now be a wider debate about the extent of the detriment Scotland will incurr through the suboptimal performance of the UK monetary union which is implied by the current fiscal settlement: and how this should be compensated for under a reasonable interpretation of the Smith principles.
4. And the fiscal settlement itself should be re-opened, as allowed for under the Joint Exchequer Committee arrangements.