Portfolio Question Time – in the Scottish Parliament at on 20 November 2024.
Paul O'Kane
Labour
To ask the Scottish Government what on-going discussions the finance secretary is having with ministerial colleagues and officials regarding the planning of portfolio budgets in the lead-up to the publication of its budget for 2025-26. (S6O-03988)
Shona Robison
Scottish National Party
I am in regular engagement with ministerial colleagues in relation to portfolio budgets in advance of presenting the budget next month.
Budget planning with Cabinet secretaries and officials has been on-going since the summer. During the first two weeks of November, I met individually with all cabinet secretaries and their officials to discuss portfolio budgets and priorities. Cabinet has discussed the overall Scottish Government budget on several occasions, including on 19 November. We will meet again on 26 November in advance of the budget on 4 December.
Paul O'Kane
Labour
Correspondence that was obtained under freedom of information legislation shows that, when the Cabinet secretary wrote to Cabinet colleagues in the summer requiring ministers to halt all non-essential spending, her colleagues wrote back highlighting significant pressures dating back to the beginning of the budget year.
The justice secretary said that there was “additional portfolio pressure”. The health secretary said that “enhanced spend controls” had already been in place since the beginning of the financial year and that
“more fundamental decisions were required to bring expenditure into line”.
The transport secretary said that the portfolio had been carrying a
“significant resource deficit since budget 2024-25”
and had already been operating in
“an emergency control environment”.
Does the cabinet secretary think that it demonstrates good management of the public finances that portfolios were setting budgets that immediately entered emergency controls as soon as the budget started? When did she know that that was the case? In relation to the discussions that she just referenced, how will she avoid that in the forthcoming budget?
Shona Robison
Scottish National Party
Dearie me.
First, no one denied the challenge when I stood here and announced the package that was required to be taken. No one denied the impact and the difficulty in relation to any of that, including that only essential spending could be taken forward. We had to do that, because we did not know where the landing space on resource funding was going to be in order to fund pay deals. We had to take that step, and that is the step that we took.
What we are doing now, in relation to the budget of 4 December, is making sure that portfolios and Cabinet secretaries start the year with a clear direction of what they are going to deliver with the funding that is available to them.
What is not prudent financial management is announcing a bombshell about employer national insurance contributions out of the blue and then not fully funding it. At the moment, we do not know whether Scotland’s core public sector—never mind the third sector and the charities that we have heard about—will be funded for the ENIC challenge. If it is not, that will put a pressure on public finances that we could absolutely do without. I suggest that Paul O’Kane gets on the phone to the Chancellor, or whoever he has contact with in the UK Government, to make that point on behalf of Scotland’s public services, because it is a very serious matter, and the Labour Party should take it seriously.
Elizabeth Smith
Conservative
On portfolio planning, in the light of the likely change to three-year planning for budgets, will the Cabinet secretary put on record whether that will be in the new Verity house agreement between the Scottish Government and local authorities, which want to be able to plan long term?
Shona Robison
Scottish National Party
At last, I have a sensible question from those on the Conservative benches. I am very sympathetic to Liz Smith’s position. It depends on whether we get multiyear funding. Indications from the UK Government on that are very positive, with the spending review for resource and capital due in late spring. If we get into a three-year cycle that is reviewed every two years, I am happy to have a similar arrangement with local government. That would also open up potential for an arrangement with third sector organisations. I am happy to keep Liz Smith informed about that.
Liam McArthur
Liberal Democrat
That concludes portfolio questions. There will be a short pause to allow for front-bench members to organise for the next item of business.
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.
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