The discussion warns against claims that a current taxpayer's money can be traced neatly to one region or purpose. The Barnett Formula is presented historically as support for the educational and transport infrastructure around Scottish heavy industry. A smaller population could not alone finance every road, railway, and school required by industries serving the wider British economy. The Cornwall example extends the point: national taxpayers support roads used by military sites, local residents, commerce, and visitors, so benefit does not stop at the funding boundary.
Chapter · 1:07:50-1:10:48
The Barnett Formula as industrial infrastructure policy
Regional funding can sustain the schools, roads, and railways needed by nationally important industry where the local tax base alone is too small.