Public Finance Minister Kate Forbes has outlined the Scottish budget for 2021-22. Here are the key points from her speech to MSPs.
Health services and Covid-19
image copyrightPA Media- For the first time, £869m will go towards addressing pressures related to Covid-19
- Primary care funding increases by £55m to £250m
- Investment in mental health services increases to £139m, taking overall spending in mental health to over £1.1bn
- An additional £50m for the “national mission” to tackle drug deaths
- The total health and sport budget will be a record £16bn
Tax rates
image copyrightPA- Income tax rates and bands are to remain unchanged, with the thresholds for all but the top rate to rise in line with inflation
- A starter rate of 19% will be charged on earnings between £12,570 and £14,667
- The Scottish basic rate of 20% will then be paid on earnings up to £25,296
- An intermediate rate of 21% will then apply up to £43,662, with a higher rate of 41% and a top rate of 46% for those earning more than £150,000
- A tax cut for housebuyers announced during the first lockdown will end on 1 April, with the starting point for Land and Buildings Transaction Tax to return to £145,000 – although relief for first time buyers will continue
- Non-domestic rates relief for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses will be extended by at least another three months
- The poundage rate of non-domestic rates is to be cut for the first time in the history of devolution to 49p
Childcare and education
image copyrightPA Media- Total education and skills spending will increase to £4.2bn
- Over £30m will be invested to help schools to mitigate the impacts of Covid-19
- For colleges and universities, there is a further £60m of funding
- Support for Gaelic education remains the same at £25.2m
- The children and families budget will increase from £149.7m to £182.4m
- The early learning and childcare programme will remain at £39.8m
Communities and local government
image copyrightGetty Images- Total Scottish government funding for local government will be £11.6bn
- A £90m incentive will be offered to local authorities – the equivalent of a 3% increase – to freeze council tax rates to prevent household bills rising
- Spending on measures to reduce fuel poverty and improve energy efficiency will increase from £137.1m to £145.6m
- £3.6bn for social security, including £68m for the Scottish Child Payment, which was delayed last year due to Covid-19. Eligible families with children under six will initially receive £10 per week, per child every four weeks
- Spending on the third sector will increase to £26.1m
Business and economy
image copyrightPA- £1.1bn of spending on jobs and employment support
- Funding for the Scottish National Investment Bank, which launched in November, will decrease from £241.1m to £205m
- Culture and major events spending has fallen from £180.4m to £174.7m
- Total spending on finance, economy, fair work and culture will increase from £6.5bn to £7.1bn
Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity
image copyrightGetty Images- Spending on rail services will go up from £1.2bn to £1.3bn
- Motorway and trunk road spending will rise from £748.9m to £825.9m
- Funding of £10.5m will go to the National Islands Plan, which aims to tackle depopulation and improve transport links
- The troubled Ferguson Marine will receive £47.4m, a decrease from £49.6m
- Spending on digital connectivity will increase from £63.4m to £102.7m
Justice
image copyrightPA Media- Total spending on justice, which includes the police, court system and fire service, will receive “significant extra funding”, increasing from £2.8bn to over £3bn
- Scottish Police Authority funding will rise from £1.2bn to £1.3bn
- Spending on the fire service will increase from £333.3m to £343.2m
- £50m has been aimed at clearing the backlog in court cases
- Legal Aid spending will increase from £137.5m to £138m
Environment and climate change
image copyrightGetty Images- A total of £506.6m will be spent on the environment, climate change and land reform – an increase from £461.8m
- Marine spending will increase to £84m
- Spending on environmental services will go up from £157.1m to £196.5m
- The Climate Change and Land Managers Renewables Fund, which was substantially increased last year, will increase slightly to £31.8m
Economic forecasts
image copyrightGetty Images- Scottish GDP is forecast to grow by 2% in 2021, by 7% in 2022 and recover to pre-Covid levels in 2024
- Job retention schemes have largely, but not completely, protected the labour market – employment is expected to dip by 1.5% in 2021 and increase by 1.2% in 2022
- The unemployment rate is expected to peak at 7.6% in 2021
- Average earnings are forecast to grow by 2.6% in 2021 and by 2.4% in 2022
- The projections are based on the Scotland’s Economic and Fiscal Forecasts document drawn up by the Scottish Fiscal Commission
— to www.bbc.co.uk
