Chamber
Meeting of the Parliament 19 January 2022
19 Jan 2022 · S6 · Meeting of the Parliament
Item of business
Local Government Funding
I welcome the debate. As Miles Briggs has done—and I am sure that many others will do—I recognise the crucial role that councils play in delivering public services and supporting communities, and the part that they play in delivering a national recovery. We might disagree at times, but I hope that we can all agree on that.
Ultimately, today, we are talking about difficult budget choices. Core to this afternoon’s debate is the fact that the Scottish budget in 2022-23 is lower than it was in 2021-22. That is not my conclusion and nor is it that of the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy; it is the conclusion of the independent Scottish Fiscal Commission, which said in its report “Scotland’s Economic and Fiscal Forecasts”:
“Overall the Scottish Budget in 2022-23 is 2.6 per cent lower than in 2021-22, and after accounting for inflation the reduction is 5.2 per cent.”
The point was made in the intervention by my colleague Neil Gray.
In the same item of business
The Deputy Presiding Officer (Liam McArthur)
LD
The next item of business is a debate on motion S6M-02838, in the name of Miles Briggs, on protecting local government funding in Scotland. I invite members ...
Miles Briggs (Lothian) (Con)
Con
I open today’s Scottish Conservative debate on local government finance by thanking all those who work in our local authorities across Scotland. It is incred...
The Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy (Kate Forbes)
SNP
I respect Miles Briggs’s position on supplementing the local government budget. Where would he take it from?
Miles Briggs
Con
We have been absolutely clear. The finance secretary has seen £3.9 billion of additional Barnett consequentials from the United Kingdom Government. That shou...
Neil Gray (Airdrie and Shotts) (SNP)
SNP
Will the member give way?
Miles Briggs
Con
Very, very briefly.
Neil Gray
SNP
Miles Briggs will note that the Scottish Fiscal Commission has said that, year on year, the Scottish budget is down 5.2 per cent accounting for inflation. I ...
Miles Briggs
Con
The member needs to understand that the Government that he supports has not handed on to local authorities the money that it has been given in Barnett conseq...
The Deputy Presiding Officer
LD
I call the minister to speak to and move amendment S6M-02838.2. 15:39
The Minister for Public Finance, Planning and Community Wealth (Tom Arthur)
SNP
I welcome the debate. As Miles Briggs has done—and I am sure that many others will do—I recognise the crucial role that councils play in delivering public se...
Douglas Lumsden (North East Scotland) (Con)
Con
Can the minister give us a comparison with the budget two years ago, given that last year, of course, we had a huge increase because of Covid spend?
Tom Arthur
SNP
I note that it was about two years ago that my colleague Kenny Gibson raised in the Parliament the issue of a new virus that had been detected in China—I thi...
Miles Briggs
Con
Will the minister give way?
Tom Arthur
SNP
I will give way to Mr Briggs in a moment. In the context of a 5.2 per cent real-terms reduction in the overall budget, the local government settlement has i...
Liam Kerr (North East Scotland) (Con)
Con
Will the minister take an intervention?
Tom Arthur
SNP
I am afraid that I need to make a wee bit more progress; I will take an intervention from Mr Briggs in a moment. In acknowledging the challenges, we must al...
Liam Kerr
Con
Will the minister take an intervention?
Tom Arthur
SNP
I said that I would take an intervention from Miles Briggs, as he requested one first.
Miles Briggs
Con
I thank the minister. I have two things to ask. First, COSLA highlighted that the Scottish Government has not handed on national insurance contributions com...
Tom Arthur
SNP
I recognise that the challenges that we face in our budget are ultimately a reflection of the challenges that we face as a consequence of the UK Government’s...
The Deputy Presiding Officer
LD
You must now conclude.
Tom Arthur
SNP
I again welcome the debate, and I am looking forward to the contributions of members from across the chamber. I move amendment S6M-02838.2, to leave out fro...
Mark Griffin (Central Scotland) (Lab)
Lab
Here we are again: another debate about local government budgets, another SNP budget, another devastating raid on council budgets that provide absolutely vit...
Kate Forbes
SNP
I assume that Mark Griffin wants the local government settlement to go up. Every penny is allocated, so where would the money come from in the budget?
Mark Griffin
Lab
It is clear that the Scottish Government’s budget has increased. We are asking for the—
Kate Forbes
SNP
Where would he take the money from?
Mark Griffin
Lab
We are asking for the Scottish Government to respect local government. I grant that the Accounts Commission has said that, since 2013-14, Scottish Government...
Tom Arthur
SNP
Will the member give way?
Mark Griffin
Lab
I would normally take as many interventions as members would like to make, but I have only five minutes. Today the president of the Convention of Scottish L...
Willie Rennie (North East Fife) (LD)
LD
We have learned something new today, which is that Kenny Gibson discovered Covid. We already knew that local government has been on the rough end of the SNP...