The Scottish Government has prioritised spending on healthcare, housing and social security in a budget that sought to set a positive tone in the face of looming cost pressures and a deteriorating...
Reversing the Scottish Government’s 2024-25 cuts to affordable rented homes is needed to address “spiralling” waiting lists, housing associations have warned.
The Scottish Government has been warned that its reliance on short-term budget fixes poses a significant risk to fiscal sustainability and future public service delivery.
The Scottish Government has been accused of failing to take a strategic approach to public finances, with delays in publishing key documents giving the impression of ministerial inertia.
A review of the fiscal arrangements between Scotland and the rest of the UK may be needed to address the “asymmetric shock” of climate change across the country, according to Scotland’s official...
A real-terms increase in funding will not be enough for Scottish councils to run preventative services that help people out of poverty, local leaders have warned.
Workforce shortages have forced Scottish NHS boards to spend more on expensive temporary staff to fill gaps, the Scottish Conservatives have claimed after making Freedom of Information requests.
Income tax is set to generate £700m more for the Scottish Government next year than previously expected, but only a small portion of this is from the hike for high-earners announced in this week’s...
Higher-than-expected public sector pay and meeting spending commitments will create a £1.5bn gap in Scotland’s 2024-25 budget, the Fraser of Allander Institute has warned.
A proposal to freeze council tax next year risks “compounding councils’ ongoing underfunding”, the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities has warned while criticising the lack of engagement with...
Proposals to raise council tax rates for properties in the highest bands in Scotland shy away from the fundamental reform local taxation needs, researchers have said.
First minister Humza Yousaf is set to let Scottish councils double council tax on second homes, and will develop “alternative governance arrangements” for island authorities.
Unexpected tax growth in Scotland was not enough to avoid the removal of £390m of block grant funding in 2024-25, the nation’s fiscal commission has said.
Record oil and gas income in Scotland helped to close the gap between money raised and spent on public services last year, the latest Government Expenditure and Revenue Scotland report said.
Proposals to freeze the recruitment of police staff in Scotland will worsen conditions for existing employees and could leave services at unsafe staffing levels, bodies representing those staff have...
Reducing borrowing restrictions and removing limits on reserve use will give the Scottish Government more flexibility to respond to challenges arising from forecasting mistakes.
Proposals to increase council tax rates in Scotland will impact the highest value properties and make the levy less regressive, ministers and local leaders have said.
More flexible council funding and the understanding that services will be run locally “by default” are the cornerstones of the Scottish Government’s new deal with its local authorities.
Plans to sharply lower the level of child poverty in Scotland will fail without significant investment from the Scottish government, experts have warned.
The Scottish government has succeeded in expanding subsidised early learning and childcare places, but the sector faces risks from budget, workforce and market pressures, Audit Scotland has warned.
