The Scottish Government's delivery of sustainable public finances
is being supported by a rise in devolved revenue.
The 2024-25 Government Expenditure & Revenue Scotland
statistics show Scotland's £91.4 billion revenue was enough to
cover all day-to-day devolved spending and all reserved social
security, including the State Pension, which amounts to £84.9
billion.
Devolved revenue grew by 9.7% in 2024-25, as devolved expenditure
increased by 6.8%. However, the report shows Scotland's net
fiscal balance worsening as oil and gas revenues fell.
Finance Secretary said:
“The decisions we have taken here in Scotland are helping support
sustainable public finances. For the fourth year in a row,
devolved revenues have grown faster than devolved expenditure.
“Scotland's public finances are better than many other parts of
the UK, with the third highest revenue per person in the UK,
behind only London and the South East.
“The GERS statistics reflect only the current constitutional
arrangements – of Scotland as part of the UK – and not an
independent Scotland with its own policy, decisions on defence
spending and the economy.
“GERS allocates Scotland a population share of reserved UK
spending rather than accounting for real expenditure. For
example, UK defence expenditure is listed as £5.1 billion, but
only £2.1 billion was actually spent with industry in Scotland in
2023-24.
“Being taken out of the EU, against the will of the people of
Scotland, has also hit Scotland's revenues by £2.3 billion and
the higher cost of UK government debt adds £500 million to the
deficit.
“Falling oil prices and a decrease in extraction present
challenges going forward, but we are clear in our support for a
just transition for Scotland's valued oil and gas sector, which
recognises the maturity of the North Sea basin and is in line
with our climate change commitments and energy security.”
Background
Government Expenditure &
Revenue Scotland statistics 2024-25
Government
Expenditure & Revenue Scotland statistics release 2024-25
The aim of GERS is to enhance public understanding of fiscal
issues in Scotland. The primary objective is to estimate a set of
public sector accounts for Scotland through detailed analysis of
official UK and Scottish Government finance statistics. The
report is designed to allow users to understand and analyse
Scotland's fiscal position under different scenarios within the
current constitutional framework.
Country and regional public
sector finances, UK - Office for National Statistics
(ons.gov.uk)
MOD regional expenditure with
industry 2023/24 - GOV.UK
Modelling by the National Institute of Economic and Social
Research suggests that compared to EU membership, the UK economy
is 2.5% smaller in 2023, and it expects this to increase to 5.7%
by 2035. In Scotland, this equates to a cut in public revenues of
around £2.3bn in 2023. (Source: Revisiting the effect of Brexit:
NIESR: 16 Nov 2023).
