20 January 2011
An influential parliamentary committee has called on the Scottish Government to disclose how many public sector jobs will be lost as a result of the spending plans in its draft budget.
In a report published today, Holyrood’s finance committee demands that ministers should set out in more detail their intentions on public sector pay, including their position on a recruitment freeze.
The MSPs note that, in evidence to the committee, Finance Secretary John Swinney had confirmed that the government’s economic model – a system of assessing the implications of a particular policy – could calculate the impact of its spending decisions on jobs.
‘The committee would, therefore, welcome an indication from the government of how many public sector jobs it expects will be cut as a consequence of the draft budget,’ the report states.
It adds: ‘It would also have been beneficial to have more information published in the budget document on how much savings the government expects from the pay restraint measures and for the document to spell out the impact on individual budget lines.’
The committee recognises that progress has been made in reducing the costs of the senior pay bill but emphasises that bonus payments to senior appointees should be reviewed. It suggests that as particular appointments come up for renewal, bonus arrangements should be altered or brought to an end in line with the review.
The all-party committee also questions whether boosting the economy is the government’s top priority, as it has declared. The MSPs point out that, during their inquiry into the £34bn draft budget, a number of public finance experts argued that protection of public services had been given priority over economic growth.
The committee welcomes Swinney’s commitment to continuing a council tax freeze for the fourth successive year.
However, it calls on ministers to reconsider their controversial plans to impose a so-called ‘supermarket tax’ – a business rate supplement on large retailers.
Committee convener Andrew Welsh said the committee recognised that it was considering the most difficult budget since devolution and that producing a balanced budget would be ‘a highly significant challenge’ for both government and Parliament.
The draft budget is due to be considered at a meeting of the Parliament on January 26.
