The highs and the lows of the last month

Steve Clarke is being referred to as the greatest Scotland manager ever, along with calls for a knighthood after he guided the men’s national team to its first World Cup in 27 years last month. 

It’s hard to argue that Clarke is not deserving of those accolades, having also led the country to back-to-back European Championships before this latest triumph. His tenure has been a roaring success, despite the quality of football not always being stellar. 

The win over Denmark will be one that lives long in the memories of most Scots. An overhead kick, the drama of being pegged back twice, a red card, a dodgy (in my opinion) penalty for Denmark, Tierney’s winning goal, and the most audacious strike Hampden has ever seen – the game had everything.  

And it sparked celebrations seldom seen by Scotland fans younger than 30. Even the commentators were unable to keep their cool at times, with BBC Sportsound commentator Alasdair Lamont noting at one stage: “Scotland needs to hold out for just a few more seconds; my voice just needs to hold out for a few more seconds.” 

And then there was Conservative MSP Brian Whittle, who watched the game with Lib Dem MSP Liam McArthur and the SNP’s Kenny Gibson and Stuart McMillan, and told parliament the day after the game: “Who would have guessed that beneath the calm, suave and sophisticated air that Kenny Gibson exudes, beats the heart of an absolute maniac?” 

It was such a seismic event that celebrations even registered on the Richter scale, with reports that fans celebrating Kenny McLean’s goal caused an “extremely small earthquake”. 

The evening evoked a genuine sense of national pride and provided a much-needed boost to the country’s mood. However, it came the same month that Chancellor Rachel Reeves delivered her Budget – one that had been touted in the preceding weeks to be defined by “hard choices” in order to protect the health service, reduce debt and tackle the cost of living.

Despite strong suggestions of income tax hikes, this did not materialise. But tax rises elsewhere mean the tax burden is now the highest it has ever been, at 38 per cent of GDP. 

A particularly unpalatable measure is the £2,000 cap on salary sacrifice schemes, such as pensions or childcare, set to come into force in April 2029. In short, any contribution over the cap will no longer be exempt from National Insurance Contributions. And while this will affect everyone who contributes to a pension scheme, it will disproportionally impact people at the beginning of their careers. 

Jon Greer, head of retirement policy at Quilter, said: “At a time when the government acknowledges that tomorrow’s pensioners risk being poorer than today’s, policy should be focused on incentivising saving and not dismantling one of the most effective tools we have.” 

While Mike Ambery, retirement savings director at Standard Life, said: “Salary sacrifice has long been one of the most efficient ways for workers to boost pension contributions, so limiting it will inevitably increase costs and reduce take-home pay for many.” 

I worry that I badger on too much about how ‘my generation’ has it worse than my parents’. And while there absolutely are things that have improved, such as increased workplace flexibility, the implementation of the minimum wage, and better maternity and paternity rights, it’s undeniable to me that the money you work for does not go as far as it once did. 

Take wage stagnation. According to the Resolution Foundation, in the last 20 years wages have risen by six per cent on average in the UK, while in the preceding 20 years they rose by 68 per cent. This is while Zoopla estimates that the average house price has risen by 74 per cent in the same period, and food prices rose on average by 30 per cent in a two-year period between 2021 and 2023. 

It’s little wonder that so many skilled workers are flocking to live in places like Australia. According to the BMA, around 30 per cent of doctors say they are “very likely” or “fairly likely” to relocate abroad at some point, and according to Royal College of Nursing the number of UK‑registered nurses contacting the Nursing and Midwifery Council for a certificate of current professional status – a required document for practising overseas – has quadrupled in less than five years. 

And for the workers at the beginning of their careers who are staying, the national birth rate doesn’t lie – they are having fewer children and doing it later in life. That clearly doesn’t bode well for the future workforce. 

The cap on salary sacrifice schemes is just the latest measure in a long-running series by successive governments that is making the UK a less palatable place to live and work for the citizens who are supposed to drive the next 30 years of UK productivity. 

While many – including me – will be riding high with national pride thanks to Scotland’s efforts in the football, at least until the World Cup begins in the summer, there must be action taken by both governments that injects some long-lasting national pride into people at the beginning of their careers that encourages them to stay.