Portfolio Question Time – in the Scottish Parliament at on 20 November 2024.
Richard Leonard
Labour
To ask the Scottish Government whether local authorities will receive a fair budget settlement. (S6O-03985)
Shona Robison
Scottish National Party
Yes. The independent Accounts Commission confirmed that the Scottish Government provided a real-terms increase to local government in this year, in 2023-24 and in 2022-23. We will continue to work in partnership with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities to ensure that local authorities receive a fair settlement in 2025-26.
Richard Leonard
Labour
The Cabinet secretary mentions the Accounts Commission. It is projecting a budget gap of £392 million next year, rising to a cumulative gap of £780 million by 2026-27. Integration joint boards, which are responsible for caring for the most vulnerable, had a funding shortfall of £357 million last year, which is up 187 per cent. In social care and social work, staff shortages are rife, and more than 6,000 people are waiting for a social care assessment. Every single council in Scotland is making cuts, while nearly all are hiking up fees and charges. Will the cabinet secretary match her warm words about the value of local government with some cold, hard cash to deliver the services that our communities need?
Shona Robison
Scottish National Party
First, I will go back to the Accounts Commission. It has confirmed that the Scottish Government provided real-terms funding increases this year, in 2022-23 and in 2023-24. That was against a backdrop of the most severe constraint on public finances in the whole era of devolution, so I think that that was a fair settlement to local government. In fact, the Scottish Parliament information centre confirmed that a real-terms increase in funding was provided to local government in 2024-25.
Do I accept that there are pressures? Yes, there are pressures across the public sector, because the inflation of costs has outpaced spending availability. We will continue to talk to COSLA, with which we are having very constructive discussions, particularly in the area of social care. We will bring those to a conclusion in time for the budget on 4 December.
Question Time is an opportunity for MPs and Members of the House of Lords to ask Government Ministers questions. These questions are asked in the Chamber itself and are known as Oral Questions. Members may also put down Written Questions. In the House of Commons, Question Time takes place for an hour on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays after Prayers. The different Government Departments answer questions according to a rota and the questions asked must relate to the responsibilities of the Government Department concerned. In the House of Lords up to four questions may be asked of the Government at the beginning of each day's business. They are known as 'starred questions' because they are marked with a star on the Order Paper. Questions may also be asked at the end of each day's business and these may include a short debate. They are known as 'unstarred questions' and are less frequent. Questions in both Houses must be written down in advance and put on the agenda and both Houses have methods for selecting the questions that will be asked. Further information can be obtained from factsheet P1 at the UK Parliament site.
The cabinet is the group of twenty or so (and no more than 22) senior government ministers who are responsible for running the departments of state and deciding government policy.
It is chaired by the prime minister.
The cabinet is bound by collective responsibility, which means that all its members must abide by and defend the decisions it takes, despite any private doubts that they might have.
Cabinet ministers are appointed by the prime minister and chosen from MPs or peers of the governing party.
However, during periods of national emergency, or when no single party gains a large enough majority to govern alone, coalition governments have been formed with cabinets containing members from more than one political party.
War cabinets have sometimes been formed with a much smaller membership than the full cabinet.
From time to time the prime minister will reorganise the cabinet in order to bring in new members, or to move existing members around. This reorganisation is known as a cabinet re-shuffle.
The cabinet normally meets once a week in the cabinet room at Downing Street.
