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The Herald Scotland
03-07-2025
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
MSPs alarm over welfare costs as bill to soar to £9 billion
Richard Leonard, the convener of the Holyrood committee, wrote to auditor general Stephen Boyle, to respond to future work plans he had presented committee earlier in the year. "The committee supports the areas set out in your draft work programme and agrees that the sustainability of public services in their current models are now in doubt and that fundamental change is required. We also share your concerns around the persistent inequalities in areas such as health and poverty," said Mr Leonard. 'We agree with your assessment that 'social security spending is increasingly outstripping Barnett consequentials in Scotland' and that this is a risk to the Scottish Government's financial position.' READ MORE: Mr Leonard's letter to Mr Boyle on Monday comes as the fiscal watchdog the Scottish Fiscal Commission forecast that social security spending in Scotland is projected to increase significantly, from £6.8bn in 2025/26 to £9.4bn in 2030/31. In its report last November, Audit Scotland warned public services were at risk as a result of the Scottish Government's failure to implement meaningful reforms while making a series of multi-billion pound spending commitments. The spending watchdog accused the administration of not knowing how it will pay for above inflation public sector pay deals or rising welfare costs. It added that the Scottish Government had set out plans to balance the books in 2024/25 with a one-off raid of up to £460 million on a clean energy fund, but "does not know how this higher spending will be funded in the future". Meanwhile, spending on welfare has ballooned, owing to policies such as Nicola Sturgeon's Scottish Child Payment which cost £467m in the current financial year. Mr Boyle told the public audit committee on April 30: "The current context for the Scottish Government and public services in Scotland remains challenging. "Rising demands together with a constrained financial outlook pose risks to the sustainability of public services in their current form. A clear vision and strong leadership are required to drive the reforms that are needed to ensure the sustainability of services into the future." He added: "The scale and pace of the public sector reform that is required to support future sustainability have not yet been delivered." In its latest five-year outlook, published in May, the Scottish Fiscal Commission (SFC) said that while overall funding for the Scottish budget is forecast to grow, much of the increase will be absorbed by the rising cost of devolved welfare benefits, public sector pay settlements, and new policy commitments, such as the permanent scrapping of peak-time rail fares. The Commission noted that Scotland is forecast to spend £1.3bn more on devolved social security than it receives in UK funding in 2025-26, with that gap widening to around £2.2bn by the end of the forecast period. A key factor is the Scottish Government's decision to mitigate the two-child limit in Universal Credit, a policy expected to cost £156m in 2026-27 and rise to £199m by 2029-30. The MSPs' concerns over the rising costs of welfare in Scotland comes after a climbdown by the UK Government on Monday to reform the welfare system. In a late concession on Tuesday evening, ministers shelved plans to restrict eligibility for the personal independence payment (Pip), with any changes now only coming after a review of the benefit. The changes, which were made to meet demands from Labour backbenchers, has left Chancellor Rachel Reeves with a £4.5bn gap to fill with tax rises or cuts elsewhere, after the retreat means the package of welfare reforms may end up increasing spending. Meanwhile, the outlook for the Scottish and UK economies has weakened, with growth now expected to remain sluggish through the rest of 2025, according to the Fraser of Allander Institute at the University of Strathclyde. The analysis said economic growth is now slowing compared to the start of the year and inflation has also edged up to 3.4%, after staying below 3% throughout 2024. It added that the business environment is showing signs of strain, with companies reporting cutting back on activities in the first quarter compared to last year, hit by rises in national insurance contributions, which took effect in April, alongside uncertainty surrounding US President Donal Trump's trade tariffs. Dr Joao Sousa, Deputy Director of the Fraser of Allander Institute, said: 'The fiscal announcements by both governments suggest that there are significant economic challenges in the years and months to come for the UK and Scottish governments. 'Particularly from 2027-28 onwards, the choices of government look to become more difficult. Of course, this is the role of the government in power: but the difficulties of the UK government this week show that events can quickly derail its plans.' Speaking to journalists in Edinburgh on Wednesday the First Minister vowed he would not replicate the Pip changes in adult disability payment, which is the equivalent benefit north of the border. John Swinney said: "We will not make the changes or to make the cuts that the UK Government was proposing, we've made that crystal clear." A Scottish Government spokesperson said: 'Social Security is a vital safety net for families across Scotland and any one of us could need to depend on it at any time. "Our compassionate approach is based on the values of dignity and respect, and seeks to ensure as many people as possible get the help they are entitled to. 'This approach allows for support that is not available anywhere else in the UK, including the Scottish Child Payment which is keeping 40,000 children out of relative poverty this year. As of 31 March 2025, 326,225 children aged 15 and under were actively benefiting from Scottish Child Payment."
Glasgow Times
02-07-2025
- Politics
- Glasgow Times
'Our teachers are working harder than ever'
I see this first hand through my own children's teachers, guiding and supporting them through exams and making sure they achieve their full potential in their exams. In the face of unprecedented challenges, our teachers have supported thousands of children across Glasgow, and we should be applauding their creativity, dedication, and commitment. Our teachers are working harder than ever to teach the increasing numbers of pupils needing extra support in the classroom. Audit Scotland found around 40% of Scottish pupils are now receiving additional support for learning (ASL), most of it delivered within mainstream schools. I believe that we need to rethink how we approach ASL and, rather than regarding the needs of pupils as "additional", see them for what they are - support needs that a significant proportion of the classroom population have. An approach that reflected this would involve ensuring every teacher is equipped to support kids with ASL - both in resourcing and training. Auditor General Stephen Boyle said: "The Scottish Government has failed to plan effectively for its inclusive approach to additional support for learning. "The report found only about 20% of schools have dedicated facilities for ASL pupils, and dealing with their needs was increasingly a core role for classroom teachers. "The inclusive approach had not been reflected in funding formulas, training, class sizes, or the design of school buildings," it added. Things are not getting easier for our children; the Glasgow Labour Group is deeply concerned and disappointed by the decision of the SNP-led City Administration to cut school librarian posts across the city as part of its wider budget reductions. This decision has seen 10 out of 14 librarian roles removed, leaving many of Glasgow's schools without the specialist literacy and learning support that pupils rely on. School librarians are essential educators who support young people in developing research skills, nurturing a love of reading, and helping close the attainment gap. Many of them also carry out roles which may not be captured in a job description or organogram. Pitching in on extracurricular activities, identifying children and young people who need support. They are a key part of the school community and cannot be removed without having a negative impact on that community. Removing these roles is a regressive step that may harm pupils' development, particularly those who already face disadvantage. Despite repeated warnings, the SNP administration pressed ahead with a so-called "service review" that was in effect a cover for cuts. The review dragged on for more than a year and was revealed only days before the summer holidays, avoiding meaningful scrutiny or engagement with schools, pupils, or parents. This decision further illustrates the SNP's disregard for Glasgow's education services and their ongoing failure to prioritise young people in this city. The SNP talk about equity and inclusion, but their actions undermine both. The Glasgow Labour Group will continue to stand up for our schools, our librarians, and the young people who deserve access to the opportunities that a properly supported education provides. These roles should have never been on the chopping block, and we will continue to fight for their restoration.
Scotsman
19-06-2025
- Health
- Scotsman
GPs in Scotland forced to use decades-old IT systems
Holyrood's public audit committee heard the profession is at 'crisis point' Sign up to our Politics newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... GPs in Scotland are using IT systems that are more than two decades old amid an ongoing 'crisis' in the profession, it has been warned. Holyrood's public audit committee heard recent measures have failed to address workload and capacity issues. MSPs were told the infamous '8am rush' is endemic and cannot be addressed until capacity is increased. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The committee discussed a recent Audit Scotland report which found the Scottish Government is failing to deliver on its key missions for the sector. GPs forced to use decades-old IT servers | PA Dr Iain Morrison, chair of the general practice committee at the BMA Scotland union, was one of those giving evidence on Wednesday. He said general practice is at a 'crisis point' due to inflation and the erosion of funding, highlighting that potentially hundreds of trained GPs in Scotland are now finding themselves under-employed. Dr Chris Provan of the Royal College of General Practitioners Scotland agreed, saying: 'General practice feels like it's in a state of perpetual crisis.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Dr Morrison also said GP IT systems are of 'exceedingly poor quality', saying: 'We're running on Internet Explorer 8 software, 2004 servers, we have multiple systems trying to speak to legacy systems. 'So it's very hard for the IT system to have robust data capture that can be reliable and easily interpretable.' He said Scotland's GPs have no equivalent to a system called The Spine, which is used in England. Dr Provan said: 'The IT is not fit for purpose, people talk about AI and other activities, which is really really important. But GPs just want a computer that switches on in the morning.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Conservative MSP Graham Simpson remarked that systems seem to be in the 'dark ages', as he asked the doctors about the 8am rush phenomenon, where patients ring surgeries as soon as they open in the hope of securing an appointment. Dr Morrison said: 'Until we address capacity then we will always have this 8am rush, because it has become endemic.' NHS Scotland's chief executive Caroline Lamb also gave evidence to the committee. She said access to data has been a 'long-term endeavour' with known risks. Factors like the Covid pandemic and UK fiscal constraints have affected the GP service, Ms Lamb said. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Discussing the Audit Scotland report, she said: 'I don't shy away from the challenges identified in this report but we must now build on what we've learned and what we've delivered and focus on what comes next to build access, quality and continuity in general practice.' She accepted that the government has not progressed 'as quickly and completely as we might have wanted to do'. Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton said: 'GPs could not be clearer about the challenges they face. All the SNP have offered them are half-baked wheezes that barely touch the sides. 'Scottish Liberal Democrats would tackle capacity head-on by recruiting more pharmacists, more physiotherapists and more specialists in mental health to work alongside GPs. That's how we ease their workloads and get more people seen on time.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Douglas Lumsden, a Tory MSP for the North East Scotland region, said services in his area are at 'breaking point'. His warning came as NHS Grampian announced savings of £23 million last week as part of a recovery plan to reduce its deficit. Mr Lumsden said: 'GP services across North East are at breaking point on the SNP's watch which has been exacerbated by the UK Labour Government's National Insurance hikes. 'These cuts announced by NHS Grampian are going to be devastating for communities such as Inverurie, and its patients who are already paying the price for the SNP's dire workforce planning. 'That is why they must come up with a robust plan that will address the deepening workforce crisis across NHS Grampian, which has left many of our rural areas dangerously short of GPs.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad A recent BMA Scotland survey found many GPs are struggling to cope with their workload, with some describing it as 'unmanageable'. Nearly half (48.7 per cent) said they were struggling to cope and work was having a negative impact on their physical and mental wellbeing and a quarter (26.2 per cent) described their current workload as unmanageable. Meanwhile, 44.6 per cent said the future of their practice was precarious or not sustainable, up 10 per cent since 2023.
Daily Record
18-06-2025
- Business
- Daily Record
Falkirk Council urged to be more 'transparent' over cost cutting changes
Council officials must keep councillors and public informed as work continues to transform services Falkirk Council has been told it must be more 'transparent' about the efforts it is making to transform its services in a bid to save cash. External auditors from Audit Scotland say the council is making progress with its transformation programme - known as Council of the Future - but it stresses that it has to do better at reporting publicly on results. In the annual 'Best Value' report, auditors also say that reporting to elected members the results of transformation could also be improved, while engagement with communities in Falkirk should be more consistent. Some of the previous Council of the Future (COTF) projects were welcomed as modernising and efficient - such as the move from analogue to digital telecare, developing an online school payment system and introducing an online health and safety system for reporting workplace incidents. But others have been much more controversial and one of the biggest - the council's plans to change and shorten the learning week for pupils - was rejected by elected members after an outcry from parents. Rejecting the plans to change the school week meant that that the council's plans to save £26 million from the COTF programme over the five-year period to 2028/29 have been revised to £14.7 million. The Best Value report, which focuses on a different theme every year, was looking closely at how councils can transform operations to make savings without cutting essential services. Audit Scotland is clear that similar financial problems are facing every council in Scotland, noting that they have "never faced such a challenging situation". While demand for council services has continued to rise since the Covid-19 pandemic, funding has not kept pace. The auditor's report says that in Falkirk, the transformation programme has achieved savings and they are happy with how these are reported to the Council of the Future Board. However, it says there is a "lack of transparency as this information has not been published externally". Despite the success of the projects, other cuts to department budgets and a 15.6 per cent rise in council tax, the council still faces a £58.5 million funding gap between 2025/26 and 2029/30. According to the report, "the financial challenge remains significant and the council will need to be ambitious and radical to continue to respond to this challenge". In particular, it says much more work must be done in partnership with other organisations to achieve transformation and says that this has been "very limited to date". The Best Value report states: "The council therefore needs to be more ambitious and look at alternative ways to make more radical changes and generate further savings required to address the financial challenge." But while the report says the COTF programme is "well resourced and frequently monitored", it highlights how difficult it has been to make significant changes. In the 2025/26 budget, £10 million of recurring savings include savings from the Strategic Property Review and the closure of Blackness Primary School. But a proposal to radically change school hours in Falkirk - which would have cut time in the classroom for pupils - was rejected by councillors after an outcry by parents. Following on from that, February's budget paper included seven savings that were hastily introduced to help the council bridge its budget gap. But of the cuts totalling £1.2 million to be considered, just one was approved by members, amounting to £0.06 million, with councillors complaining about the lack of consultation and feeling that they did not have enough information about the impact the cuts would have on communities. Auditor Pauline Gillen told members that Audit Scotland recognised the difficulty councils, including Falkirk, are facing. She said: "Falkirk seems to be in a similar position to other councils, recognising difficulty in identifying projects and programmes that are truly transformational, rather than just looking for simple financial efficiencies." What is needed, she said, is projects that "shift the dial" and transform service delivery to make longer term savings. But she admitted that it was difficult for councils to deliver radical projects while maintaining day to day services. The Best Value report also highlighted uneven engagement with communities, noting: "The council engages with communities but it is not always clear how the engagement has influenced changes to service design." The risk, the report says, is that the council "does not identify and mitigate against potentially negative impacts of its transformational activities on communities". It recommends that: "The council should ensure community engagement is consistently factored into its decision-making processes where appropriate and should clearly document how engagement with communities has informed changes to services." Falkirk Council's chief executive, Kenneth Lawrie, accepted the recommendations and said that a new Community Engagement strategy would help ensure consistency. But he said there had been successes, in particular, with the council's Strategic Property Review, where he said the council has made "a really radical change" that has "engaged with communities and produced significant financial savings". Several halls and facilities - including Polmont Snowsport Centre, Grangemouth Stadium and several community halls - are now in community ownership. But the review also led to the controversial closure of Bo'ness Recreation Centre which was bitterly opposed by many in the community, despite the promise of new facilities being built in a new wing of Bo'ness Academy. Mr Lawrie acknowledged there is much more to do to get to financial stability and he said officers considered the report to be "fair and balanced".
Daily Record
10-06-2025
- Business
- Daily Record
Another council tax freeze could sound a death knell for local authorities
The political benefit of John Swinney freezing the council tax before a tricky Holyrood election is obvious. The First Minister wants to go into the campaign showing he has helped Scots with their bills during the cost of living crisis Slamming the brakes on planned rises by town halls would be a popular move with voters sick of paying more for less. But the impact of a freeze would be a disaster for public services and the locals who depend on state education, youth work, roads and leisure facilities. Council services have been on their knees for years and the SNP Government is to blame. Instead of allowing councils the freedom to set their own rates, SNP Ministers have for years paid town halls to freeze the tax - usually on the cheap. A recent Audit Scotland report laid bare the funding pressures faced by local authorities. Wage rises, higher employment national insurance costs and increased demand for services contributed to a £647m black hole in 2025/26 alone. Imposing a freeze next year would lead to another toxic double dose of service cuts and user charges. The First Minister should look in the mirror when the blame is handed out for the mess councils find themselves in. As Alex Salmond 's Finance Secretary, he was the architect of the original council tax freeze policy. He also helped persuade Humza Yousaf to announce a freeze in 2023 despite howls of anguish from councils, unions and centre-left politicians. Local authorities are in desperate need of financial stability and an end to SNP Government short-termism based on generating headlines. Yousaf 's council tax freeze was followed twelve months later by rises of over 15% - a farce that does not benefit anybody. If a charge sheet was drawn up of SNP sins over the last 18 years, council under-funding would be close to the top.
