The SNP budget was unravelling before our wondering eyes even before Finance Secretary John Swinney sat down in the Scottish Parliament after his speech on Wednesday. Such is the reality of an SNP manifesto which flung unrealisable promises about with such gay abandon to obtain votes in May.

But it is surely clear that the SNP's broken promises have nothing to do either with any constraints of minority government or with the above-inflation settlement from Westminster - the SNP budget problems arise from the very straightforward fact that its figures never did add up in the first place. The backtrack on manifesto promises on police numbers, class sizes and student debt in particular was not because of opposition in the Parliament but because, ultimately, a government has to choose priorities.

And, as was pointed out during the debate, the SNP government had - in real terms - a bigger budget to play with than any previous Scottish Government. So it's not, after all, the fault of the beastly Westminster Government.

So now we know that law and order is not an SNP priority, neither is education and nor are university students. Promising all things to everyone gets found out at the end of the day.

Robert Brown MSP, Policy Convener, Scottish Liberal Democrats, 142 Queen Street, Glasgow.

Ian Bell tells us the pantomime season is here. John Swinney would, indeed, have needed a magic wand to wave away all Labour's wasted years of incompetence and neglect. Instead, Mr Swinney gave us a budget that was fresh, fair, caring and innovative, and one that will move Scotland forward. Reasonable people understand that not everything can be done at once, but this is a tremendous start, and John Swinney should be commended for both his budget and his honest approach to politics.

Ruth Marr, 99 Grampian Road, Stirling.

When any budget is announced, there is usually a rush to identify the winners and losers. With Mr Swinney's budget, it is easy enough to detect the losers: students, children and schools, first-time buyers, police forces (and the communities they police) and the environment. In fact, pretty much anyone who expected the SNP to keep its election promises. But who are the winners? The Nationalists would obviously hope we would say: council tax payers. But that's not entirely clear. In his own words, Mr Swinney has delivered "the resources to deliver a council tax freeze", but he has not delivered a "council tax freeze". At least not yet. Only the councils can do that, and that will depend on the fine detail and the arithmetic: has the bribe been big enough and will the councils buy it?

And if there is a "freeze", which services will be cut? Social services and education are the biggest budgets in all local authorities, and they are delivered to the most vulnerable and the most deserving in our society. A council tax freeze which cuts home-helps and classroom assistants might be all very well for the better off, but it will not help those most in need of council resources. And even the better off will not be happy if, in a year or two, they notice pavements or rubbish collections have been shaved to pay for a few more pounds in their pockets.

Key to all of this, and not mentioned by Mr Swinney in his budget speech, is the fact that the much-trumpeted "concordat" with Cosla will last only one year, whereas his budget stretches over three years. So even if councils take Mr Swinney's money, and even if it is enough to deliver a decent level of services to voters, the whole arrangement will have to be renegotiated again this time next year. From this budget, it is not at all clear where the money will come from for a further extension of any council tax freeze.

We know who the losers are in the SNP budget, but where exactly are the winners?

Alex Gallagher, 12 Phillips Avenue, Largs.

How very disappointing. From a most encouraging start, barely six months into government and the SNP is already tinkering with the truth on police numbers. Far better to come clean and admit what common sense dictates, whether that be in terms of a miscalculation or something else. That way lies not simply honesty, but integrity; a virtue, politically very much in short supply but prized above all else by an ever-sceptical but discerning public.

Gerry McCulloch, 47 Moffat Wynd, Saltcoats, Ayrshire.