"I could not find any mention of this in the English press/media and wonder if their silence was for the same reason."

What got me was that the then Scottish secretary (was it George Younger?) went along with the idea of hiding cuts from the Scottish people only objecting to how much was involved. Not because he objected to more being cut from the budget but because he gave a maximum figure which he felt could be cut without the other parties or the electorate detecting it. It then went to an argument because the gvt decided the amount should be much more than he recommended could be hidden. Talk about being underhanded and working against your own country!