Scottish party leaders have clashed over tax in the first Holyrood election debate.
Income tax powers coming to the Scottish Parliament in April 2017 dominated Thursday's BBC Scotland Scottish Leaders' Debate.

The panel which consisted of Nicola Sturgeon (SNP),  Kezia Dugdale (Scottish Labour), Ruth Davidson (Scottish Conservatives), Willie Rennie (Scottish Liberal Democrats), Patrick Harvie (Scottish Greens), David Coburn (UKIP) also answered questions on welfare, education, fracking and what they would say if Donald Trump gave them a call.

Nicola Sturgeon opened the debate by saying she is bringing forward tax plans which are "fair, progressive...balanced and...sensible." She says the SNP will ask the richest 10% to "shoulder a bit more of the burden" by not passing on a planned tax cut to those on the 40p tax rate by the UK Government.

Sturgeon also underlined her proposals to increase the personal allowance - the starting point at which you start paying income tax - to £12,750. Sturgeon was also determined to get across her party's plans not to raise the basic rate of income tax which 2.2 million Scots pay, which Scottish Labour are proposing.

Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale however criticised the SNP's plans on income tax saying that they are "won't be enough to stop the cuts, it won't be enough to end austerity". Dugdale highlighted her party's plans to increase 1p on the basic rate of income tax and to "ask the richest to pay a bit more" by increasing the top rate tax from 45p to 50p. She taunted the First Minister by saying that "this is something that Nicola Sturgeon used to stand for."

Dugdale and Sturgeon continued to clash on tax. The Scottish Labour leader says her party's £100 tax rebate for those earning under £20,000 ensures that those near the bottom of the income ladder don't "pay a penny more" than they already do. The First Minister defended her opposition to a 50p rate saying she "hasn't ruled it out" for the rest of the parliament but current "independent civil servant analysis" spells out that Scotland could lose £30m if high earners leave.

The Scottish Conservatives' Ruth Davidson attempted to make a clear distinction between her tax plans and the previous two. She accused her opponents of wanting to make Scotland "the highest taxed part of the UK". Davidson says that the SNP's and Labour's plans would be like hanging a sign at the Anglo-Scots border with "HIGHER TAXES HERE".

The Tory leader argued that higher taxes will not encourage growth or create jobs.

Willie Rennie was quick to attack the Tories' tax plans. He said her backing of the Chancellor's threshold change was a "tax cut for the wealthiest in society". The Lib Dems want to - like Labour - increase income tax rates by 1p to then spend extra revenues on education.

Scottish Green co-convener Patrick Harvie however tried to change the whole debate on tax. Harvie introduced local taxation to the evening outlining his party's attempts to "scrap the council tax" as it is "25 years out of date". On income tax though Harvie was clear that he wanted to raise rates not only on the highest earners but on people like himself who fall into the 40p tax band.

UKIP's Scottish MEP David Coburn says that his party does not want "Scottish taxes to be significantly higher than those in England or higher at all". Coburn argued that it was jobs which is what the country needs and that the other panellist's suggestions are "absolute nonsense" which would "scare people off".

Ruth Davidson was first to set out her party's plans to use the new welfare powers which are being devolved to Holyrood. She said her party wants to raise the carer's allowance to the same rate as job seekers allowance. The Tories also want to devolve personal independence payments down to local authorities so they can instead set out how it should be spent - not Holyrood.

Willie Rennie praised the Scottish Government's new strategy on welfare. He also set out that he would raise carer's allowance to the same level as job seekers allowance.

UKIP's David Coburn however got himself into a muddle over welfare. He repeatedly talked about the NHS (he loves it as his Dad was a pharmacist, he says) despite being asked specifically on welfare. When moderator Glenn Campbell instructed him to outline UKIP's welfare policies he began discussing a proposed EU trade deal with the United States.

Deborah Torrrance, the audience member who asked the original question, said that Ruth Davidson had "a wee bit of a cheek" to talk about raising welfare spending after the Conservative UK Government's cuts to welfare benefits.

Nicola Sturgeon pledged to establish a Scottish social security agency so that the country is less reliant on the UK's Department for Work and Pensions. The First Minister pledged to abolish the bedroom tax and set up a new early years maternity and early years allowance. She promised not to "balance the books on the backs of disabled people".

She was followed by Kezia Dugdale who said that Labour's welfare plans were largely similar to the SNP's. However she said that she would create a new employment agency to run the newly devolved work programme which the SNP have not proposed. Dugdale claims that her policies would allow people to live "dignified and fulfilled lives".

Patrick Harvie said that there is a consensus largely in Scottish politics over welfare. But Scots must ask themselves what the system is for. The UK's welfare system. Harvie argues, is slowly turning into a system which is used to "bully people into low paid work". Harvie said that his party's long term goal is a 'citizen's income'.

Willie Rennie says that his tax plans would lead to a "transformational" investment for the education system. He says that the Lib Dems would invest in early years learning also as children from the poorest backgrounds are already a year behind those from the richest backgrounds.

Kezia Dugdale wants to close the attainment gap between the richest and the poorest students. She says that drop-out rates from universities is rising after the First Minister cut funding to bursaries.

Nicola Sturgeon conceded that yes the drop-out rate is too high but it has reduced since the SNP took power in 2007.

Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson says that there is an issue with resourcing to schools. However the main issue, she argues, is leadership in schools. She wants to empower head teachers to run their schools with more control and less interference from local authorities.

David Coburn was the only panellist to propose a return of grammar schools. He accused various ministers who have been in power of conspiring to destroy good schools. He says that these schools allow "every child" to get ahead regardless of their parent's backgrounds.

Green party leader Patrick Harvie ended the discussion by saying all the serious parties (a dig aimed at UKIP) believe that there is more that can be done to close the gap between the richest and poorest students. He believes that progress can be made in the next parliament but it cannot be done if local councils are seeing their funding cut.

Ruth Davidson says that it should be do wn to local councils to decide if fracking should take place in their area. Scotland has "the best safety regime anywhere in the world" due to the North Sea oil and gas industry. Unconventional gas extraction (fracking) should be part of a mixed energy programme for Scotland.

However, Willie Rennie was clear that his party would not allow fracking in Scotland. The country has some of the boldest climate change targets in the world and to meet them Scotland cannot allow fracking, Rennie argues.

He faced questions though over his party's recent conference where his members voted to lift the temporary ban over fracking. Rennie however said that "he is the leader" and that fracking will not be in the Liberal Democrat manifesto.

David Coburn remarked that Longannet coal power station closed on the very same day as this debate. The country now relies on renewable energy.

Coburn asked: "What happens when the wind doesn't blow?"

The UKIP MEP then continued for a long period on the subject until the BBC's Glenn Campbell interrupted him and asked the audience if they wanted to hear from Patrick Harivie. They did.

Patrick Harvie spelled out his belief that the fossil fuel age is coming to an end. The "mantra of maximum fossil fuel extraction" is now busted. Fracking is an "absolute no" for the Greens.

The segment ended with Kezia Dugdale and Nicola Sturgeon debating the Scottish Government's commitment to ban fracking. Dugdale spelled out her party's opposition to the industry.

Sturgeon says that science will led her party's policy on fracking and that without "solid evidence" they will not change their position: no fracking is allowed in Scotland right now.

On Tuesday the party leaders will again be under the spotlight. STV will be broadcasting a live debate from 8pm chaired by our Political Editor, Bernard Ponsonby.