This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Government expenditure report
17/12/2001
The Government Expenditure and Revenue in Scotland, 1999-00 report was published today.
Minister for Finance and Local Government Andy Kerr said:
"I am confident that this report will make an important contribution to understanding budgetary issues in Scotland. Carried out by economists and statisticians in the Scottish Executive, it offers an impartial examination of budgetary issues in Scotland."
Secretary of State for Scotland Helen Liddell said:
"The GERS report provides important information about revenues and public expenditure issues in Scotland and enhances our understanding of how public finances are distributed throughout the UK.
"For the first time the GERS report covers the period since the creation of the Scottish Parliament
"The report provides detailed and impartial information about what is a very important aspect of the Scottish and UK economy."
Government Expenditure and Revenue in Scotland, 1999-00 is the eighth in the series of official publications examining budgetary issues in Scotland, following previous editions in 1992, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, and 2000. The new report presents data for 1999-00, the latest year for which information on Government expenditure and revenue is available for Scotland.
The report:
- describes the allocation of "identifiable" expenditure across spending programmes in 1999-00, distinguishing between the expenditure in that year by the Scottish Executive and related departments (broadly equivalent to the present scope of the Scottish Executive budget) and the spending of other Government Departments;
- estimates the proportion of "non-identifiable" expenditure incurred on behalf of the United Kingdom as a whole (such as defence) that is attributable to Scotland;
- allocates Scotland's share of "other" expenditure (including debt interest); and
- estimates total receipts for Scotland, the five largest components of which are income tax, value added tax, corporation tax, social security contributions, and local authority revenues.
The report uses these estimates of aggregate expenditure for Scotland and aggregate receipts for Scotland, to derive an estimate of Net Borrowing (NB) attributable to Scotland. The technical appendices to the report provide estimates of the Scottish fiscal position for the five years up to 1999-00 and set out a number of methodological issues.
The principal findings of the report on Government Expenditure and Revenue in Scotland, 1999-00 are:
- Aggregate expenditure for Scotland was £33.8 billion in 1999-00, equivalent to 9.8 per cent of the UK total. This is over one percentage point above the Scottish population share (8.6 per cent) in 1999
- Aggregate receipts (excluding North Sea revenues) for Scotland were £29.8 billion in 1999-00, equivalent to 8.3 per cent of UK receipts. This is below Scotland's 1999 population share, and equal to its share of UK GDP;
- Net Borrowing attributable to Scotland - the extent to which aggregate expenditure exceeds aggregate receipts - was £4.0 billion (excluding North Sea revenues) in 1999-00. This is equivalent to 5.5 per cent of Scottish GDP (excluding oil); in the same year, the corresponding UK ratio was around minus 1.6 per cent (i.e. surplus);
- The NB of £4.0 billion in 1999-00 compares with a figure of £4.7 billion in 1998-99. The latter was around 6.7 per cent of Scottish GDP (excluding oil);
- Calculations are shown on the effect of allocating different levels of North Sea revenues to Scottish receipts. North Sea revenues accruing to the UK exchequer were around £2.5 billion in 1999-00. The report also includes an analysis testing the sensitivity of the NB result to variations in key revenues.
Government Expenditure and Revenue in Scotland 1999-00 is available, free of charge, from the Scottish Executive, Room 357 St Andrew's House, Regent Road, Edinburgh, EH1 3DG.