Brown urges Scottish no vote, claiming pensions timebomb

Gordon Brown, the former British prime minister, yesterday warned Scots of a pensions timebomb in their ageing population as he joins a fight to dissuade them from voting to leave the UK.

Brown, a Scot, is making his first speech in support of the cross-party Better Together campaign, warning Scots of a possible deficit in pension funds if they opt out of the 307-year-old union in a September 18 referendum.

Polls show the campaign against independence still in the lead but the yes campaign has rallied support, narrowing the gap significantly.

Brown has kept a low profile since losing the 2010 general election, but he has respect in Scotland, where Labour was the major party until beaten by the Scottish National Party (SNP) in 2007.

He said pensioners will benefit from being in a UK-wide scheme. “The bills for pensions mount because of a pensioners’ timebomb as Scottish pensioner numbers rise by 300,000 even as Scotland’s working age population grows more slowly than that of the UK,” Brown said, estimating that the number of Scottish pensioners will rise to 1.3m.

“Pensioners are better protected when the risks are spread across the UK and it is also clear that in the year the SNP want independence, the Scots pension bill alone is three times the income from oil revenues,” Brown said at Glasgow University.

The increasingly bitter debate about Scottish independence has already ranged over use of Britain’s pound currency, the impact on businesses, defence, and EU membership.

Brown says the cost of separation would include £1bn for a new pensions and benefits system.

The SNP accused Brown of repeating “economically illiterate” claims made by the Conservative/Liberal Democrat coalition a year ago, tapping into voter dislike of the Conservatives in Scotland.

“He has finally ended the charade and joined his Labour colleagues in the Tory no campaign,” said Eilidh Whiteford, SNP’s works and pensions spokeswoman.

Last month, Brown said he intended to play a major role ahead of the September vote, but this is his first foray.

- Reuters