The Scottish Government’s finance secretary has ordered emergency spending controls to fund public sector pay deals and amid uncertainty over this year’s budget, according to reports.
In a letter to her fellow cabinet ministers, Shona Robison said “emergency spending controls will now be introduced with immediate effect”, with any further spending in 2024-25 only permitted if it is “truly essential or unavoidable”.
In the letter, seen by The Times, Robison said: “By unavoidable, I mean that the Scottish government would otherwise breach its legal obligations or fail to provide essential support to emergency situations or cause significant economic damage across Scotland.”
Robison told BBC Scotland that supporting the public sector workforce would mean “tough decisions”. She said the funding Scotland receives from the UK government will not cover upcoming pay rises and that around a third of the total needed for the pay packages this year will have to come from departmental cuts.
“It will mean that public bodies have to constrain their spend in a way I wish was not the case, but we have no other choice at this point in time,” she added.
A potential agreement with unions on a pay rise for waste collection workers to bring a halt to strikes is set to cost the Scottish Government an extra £77m, while negotiations are continuing with nurses and junior doctors over this year’s pay deals.
In May, the Scottish Government announced a multi-year public sector pay framework, setting out an uplift of 9.3% over three years for Scottish Government civil servants. The Scottish Government’s pay policy document also set out what it would take to provide a higher pay rise to officials, which it said would include receiving more funds from the UK government and wielding headcount cuts.
A series of Scottish Government projects in the pipeline are expected to be scrapped in the coming weeks amid the public sector pay pressures and financial uncertainty.
Today, the Scottish Government also confirmed it would limit the Pension Age Winter Heating Payment following a funding cut of £160m. This comes after Rachel Reeves’ announced last month that the UK government would end universal winter fuel payments for older people.
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The Scottish Government balances its budget every year.
“The Scottish Government and the whole of the public sector faces a financial position that is extremely challenging. It is always necessary to ensure resources are used economically, efficiently and effectively, and increased additional scrutiny will now be applied to expenditure.”
