Im not the boy who went to the Falklands wearing a uniform and carrying a gun any more ... and Im not the man who came back Paul Hutcheon interviews Tony Banks, chair of Business for Scotland. He is currently engaged in political combat, but 30 years ago Tony Banks was involved a very different type of conflict. Tony Banks supports a tax increase to support care for the elderly Tony Banks supports a tax increase to support care for the elderly. The Perth-based tycoon, chairman of the pro-independence Business for Scotland, was a paratrooper sent to the Falkland Islands to defend the British territory after Argentina invaded. In his 2012 memoir - published before he became politically active - his descriptions of the war made for uncomfortable reading. Following the battle of Goose Green, Banks wrote of a captured Argentine soldier: He was standing there above it all, in his shit-hot beret. A red mist of rage descended on me and I thought, F*** him. Arrogant bastard. Tossers like him started this whole thing. And why has he still got his hat on when nobody else has? It pissed me right off. I walked up to him and knocked the beret off his head. Then, as he looked at me with some defiance, I smashed my rifle butt into his face. He dropped to his knees and I walked off with his beret. F*** him. Banks added: Of course, if Id been caught mistreating a prisoner, I would have been in the shit. But Id had more than enough of the Argies by then, given how many men wed lost. He also recalled how he and his colleagues found a terrified young Argie with his hands in the air: He was pleading for his life, begging not to be killed. We looked at each other and hesitated. Finally, somebody threw a tarpaulin over him, shot him, and finished him off with a bayonet. That was it. One less to worry about. Three decades on, how does Banks feel about these episodes? Im not the boy who went to the Falklands wearing a uniform and carrying a gun any more, he says. And Im not the man who came back. Im older now and Im doing my best to make this world, this country, better. Im doing what I can to make things just a little better for soldiers who survive wars. They deserve better treatment. After leaving the army, Banks suffered from combat stress but turned his life around and is now a successful businessman. His Balhousie Care Group had a turnover in excess of £19 million in 2012. He also works with charities helping veterans and appeared on Channel 4s Secret Millionaire. He also hit the headlines in 2010 for returning a trumpet he had seized from an Argentine solider after being ordered to strip belongings from prisoners in the Falklands. As Business for Scotland (BFS) chairman, Banks recently attracted media coverage due to the CBIs botched registration as a No campaigner, a decision he felt was a disaster. Sources say that BFS sees itself as having a long-term future, rather than being a short-term campaigning vehicle. Theres a definite role for Business for Scotland after the vote, to become the voice of business in Scotland, particularly for SMEs, says Banks. However, a bigger political profile comes hand in hand with meeting basic levels of transparency. The CBI was criticised for not answering questions about its membership or income, issues BFS is similarly reluctant to get into. Banks says BFS has more than 2000 members, so will the group publish its membership list? Its not anything that has come across my desk. Ive never heard it discussed. On funding, Banks says BFS has raised a few hundred thousand pounds since last year and over six figures since January. But when asked what the organisations biggest donation has been, he is coy: Thatll be declared, as and when we have to declare. On whether controversial tycoon Brian Souter - who made a £100,000 donation to Christians for Independence - has donated any money to BFS, Banks dodges the question, saying only: As I said, when we have to declare our donations, that will be public knowledge. Banks traces his support for independence back to his teenage days in Broughty Ferry. At that time, all the headlines were [that] oil was going to run out in the 80s, he recalls. I remember saying to my dad, who was an ordinary working-class guy, Why are the Americans and Canadians spending all this money in the North Sea, but its going to run out in 15 years time? My dad just turned round and said, Son, they are lying to us. That stuck with me. Like many nationalists, it is difficult to place Banks on the conventional left-right political spectrum. He is not a right-winger demanding a smaller state, nor is he a socialist - instead he talks about nation building. He says an independent Scotland should back a simpler taxation system and appears to be broadly on the centre-right on this issue. Asked about fellow businessman Jim McColls belief that an independent Scotland could abolish capital gain tax, he replies: Any government has to raise taxes. Theyll have a certain amount of money they need to raise to run the country. Its just how we raise that. Part of that is saying, well, not only can we get rid of capital gains tax, can we look at inheritance tax? What tax advantages can there be for starting business? However, he supports a tax increase to pay for long-term care for the elderly, an issue he says is a huge problem worldwide - and of course central to his business. I think free personal care is very laudable. We are told its affordable. I dont know in the long term if its really affordable. Ive advocated 1p on ring-fenced taxation to deal with care on the elderly. Such a policy would be bold, but a cynic might observe that a portion of this revenue stream would end up going to care home operators. On universal benefits, such as free prescriptions, a policy associated with the SNP, he says: I generally dont advocate it. I think theres a bit of the, If you can afford to pay, you pay. Banks symbolises the eclectic nature of the wider Yes campaign - if independence happens, dont expect these short-term allies to stay in the same political trench for long. heraldscotland/politics/referendum-news/im-not-the-boy-who-went-to-the-falklands-wearing-a-uniform-and-carrying-a-g.24619513
Posted on: Sun, 29 Jun 2014 10:13:12 +0000
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