Salmond nets an extra £2bn on English taxpayers after Cameron bows to Scottish pressure in bid to save union

Alex Salmond has grabbed more money for Scotland from the UK taxpayer following the SNP’s success in last week’s elections and his demand for a referendum on independence by 2015.

David Cameron is believed to have agreed a deal allowing Scottish ministers to borrow £2billion from the Treasury for ‘capital projects’.

The deal is contentious as it bucks the squeeze being inflicted across other areas of government spending.

'Capital projects': David Cameron is believed to have agreed a deal allowing Salmond's Scottish ministers to borrow £2billion from the Treasury

Mr Cameron has vowed to fight to save the Union, and is believed to have given in to Mr Salmond’s demands in talks on Friday.

The extra cash is expected to fund a revival of the Scottish construction industry and pay for the renewal or replacement of the Forth Road Bridge.

With only a third of his countrymen believed to back full independence from the UK, Mr Salmond has signalled a possible third option for Scots: for ‘fiscal autonomy’.

This would give them more borrowing powers and allow them to set their own corporation tax rate without breaking up the Union.