Labour party business: Scotland's future 1

Scottish Labour leader Johann Lamont called for an "open and honest debate" on universal services, otherwise the people of Scotland would "pay the price".

Ms Lamont was leading a Labour debate on Scotland's future on 3 October 2012.

Last week in a speech to fellow party members the Scottish Labour leader criticised a "something for nothing" society, casting into doubt Labour's support for free university tuition fees, the council tax freeze and free NHS prescriptions.

During the debate Ms Lamont said people were already "facing the consequences of SNP cuts every day" and said she cared too much about Scotland's public services to let them "bleed to death".

The Scottish Labour leader said the SNP did not have a basic understanding of fairness and insisted "it's about what we can and cannot afford, it's about affordability, it's about sustainability and it is about protecting the vulnerable in tough times" .

She attacked Education Secretary Michael Russell who she said had questioned universal benefits in a book he co-wrote.

Mr Russell accepted he had been wrong and called on Ms Lamont to accept she was wrong now.

Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said Ms Lamont had reached the conclusion that the best response to tory cuts was to pass them on to pensioners, the sick, families and working class kids.

Ms Sturgeon said her government had made its choices and it would stand on these choices which they were elected on.

Scottish Conservative finance spokesperson Gavin Brown said of the debate on universal services "inaction is the path of least resistance, it's not a debate we want to have but one we need to have"

Mr Brown called on the Scottish government to agree to publish "ten years worth of projected data for universal services going forward" to enable an "open honest debate".

The second part of the debate can be viewed below: