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Freeports are mini tax havens, they should have no place in Scotland

Freeports are mini tax havens that let big corporations off the hook, risk attracting criminal activity and increase regional inequality, say the Scottish Greens.

This intervention from the Party’s finance spokesperson, Ross Greer MSP, comes ahead of a Scottish Government statement welcoming two new so-called ‘green freeports’ in Scotland.

The cooperation agreement that the Scottish Greens negotiated with the Scottish Government specifically excludes freeports, so all Scottish Green MSPs will continue to oppose them.

Ross Greer said:

“This announcement is nothing to celebrate. Freeports are mini tax havens where big corporations can get off the hook from paying their fair share towards keeping public services like the NHS going. 

“The idea that these so-called ‘green freeports’ are in any way green should probably be investigated by the Advertising Standards Authority. There is nothing green about them. If there was, then I doubt that the Tories would have been so quick to embrace them.

“When freeports have been tried in the past across the UK, they only made regional inequality worse by moving jobs around the country rather than creating new ones. 

“Internationally, they have been consistently associated with the worst aspects of disaster capitalism, including money laundering, smuggling and blatant criminality. 

“Freeports should have no place in Scotland, and the Scottish Greens will play no part in rehashing Tory economic policies which have failed time and again.”