The Verity House Agreement, signed in 2023, sets out the Scottish Government and Local Government’s ambition to “work together strategically to advance public service reform”. The Committee has agreed to explore how the Scottish Budget supports this.

The Committee will consider the following themes:

• how local authorities have been reforming public services in recent years
• what is preventing councils from achieving “transformative change”?
• what impacts have efficiency savings had on service users?
• the support available to councils trying to reform how they deliver services
• local authority engagement with the Scottish Government’s Invest to Save fund, a £30 million fund supporting efforts to catalyse efficiency, effectiveness and productivity projects
• will the Invest to Save Fund continue and expand in future years?
• how multi-year funding packages from the Scottish Government could help councils reform
• how successful is the partnership between the Scottish Government and local government in delivering public service reform?