Source · Select Committees · Scottish Affairs Committee
Recommendation 11
11
Accepted
UK fiscal event timing and uncertainty significantly challenge Scottish Government financial planning
Conclusion
The timing of supplementary estimates and UK Government fiscal events can cause clear challenges for the Scottish Government in terms of financial planning, with the Scottish Government’s final funding position not confirmed until close to the end of the financial year. This uncertainty is compounded by in-year changes to UK Government spending plans, and the possibility of multiple fiscal events per year. We welcome the UK Government’s commitment to “one major fiscal event” every year and the stated commitment to informing the Scottish Government of relevant funding changes as early as possible. While noting the regular official- level communication regarding spending, we remain concerned about the significant impact UK Government spending decisions can have on the Scottish Government’s budget, often at very short notice and without warning. (Conclusion, Paragraph 92)
Government Response Summary
The government explained that the Block Grant Transparency is published annually, and the Scottish Government is informed of changes at the earliest possible opportunity, justifying its current practices as appropriate for managing market sensitive information.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
The Block Grant Transparency breaks down all changes in the devolved governments’ block grant funding from the 2015 Spending Review. As set out in the accompanying Explanatory Note of the last publication, the breakdown has generally been updated and published on an annual basis. It would not be appropriate to publish the breakdown alongside a fiscal event. The process for publishing the breakdown includes a review by each of the devolved governments, which can only happen once the devolved governments receive their block grant totals at a fiscal event. An annual publication therefore remains the most appropriate response. HM Treasury sets out the impact on Scotland of policy changes at fiscal events in the publicly available fiscal event documents. The Scottish Government is given notice of changes at the earliest possible opportunity, given the market sensitive nature of information about some policy changes.