Hands up who’s all moving to another part of the UK after Derek Mackay’s budget increased tax for middle and higher earners.

Anyone? No, I thought not.

It is the biggest change to the income tax system since devolution almost 20 years ago.

Much has been made by opponents about taxing success and penalising hard work and ambition and other such nonsense.

Here is the news people, workers on low incomes work hard too.

Now Mr Mackay’s budget is not perfect and public services, especially councils are still underfunded.

But can anyone seriously complain too much about the small changes to the income tax rates and bands?

The upshot is if you earn below £33,000, which is a large number of the population, you will either pay the same or less income tax. If you earn more you will pay more, increasing gradually the higher your earnings are.

If you are fortunate enough to earn £100,000 a year, then genuinely, good for you.

It probably means you have indeed worked very hard to get to that position and you are being rewarded for a job that comes with significant responsibilities.

If so, you will pay £584 more a year in income tax. That’s £11 a week.

If you earn between £40,000 and £50,000 a year, you are by no means rich but must recognise that you are paid considerably more than the majority of the population.

You will pay £70 a year more in tax. Less than £1.50 a week. While recognising some people will have tight budgets and hefty financial commitments, I’m pretty sure those earning that salary can absorb a £1.50 a week tax increase without running to the pay day lender.

If we want to try and maintain our public services and be able to invest cash in health, education, care of the elderly and other priorities then it has to be paid for.

Labour wanted Mr Mackay to go further with his tax plans and raise more for public services.

He could obviously, have gone further but chose to only ask people earning above the average to pay a little more.

With an increase in in-work poverty the tax cut for people on lower than average income will be a huge benefit to them.

There has been another comparison made, with tax payers in England and the rest of the UK.

That person on £100,000 a year will pay £1,324 more than if they were in England.

But they are not in England. They are in Scotland. The comparison might as well be made with taxpayers in Azerbaijan.

Public services are also not the same as in England or rest of the UK. Indeed while there are improvements to be made it could be argued that there is a far bigger crisis in health, education social work and care of the elderly in the rest of the UK than in Scotland.

If anyone seriously thinks they would be better off moving to England, assuming they would be able to walk into a job at the same salary, for the sake of a few pounds less in tax per week then they need to do their sums.

If they still conclude they want to move. Let me know I’ll drop them off at Central Station.