Chamber and committees

Public bodies are reviewed quarterly as part of the Scottish Government’s Assurance cycle to ensure they are operating efficiently and effectively.

One of the key aims of our Public Service Reform (PSR) programme is to drive efficiency and effectiveness across government and public bodies, making sure we have the public body landscape to deliver the services the people of Scotland need. As part of this, we have commissioned data on expenditure on corporate functions to identify where there is duplication and are working with public bodies to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of our services.

The Scottish Government’s policy is that any new public body should only be set up as a last resort and after consideration of all other delivery mechanisms has been exhausted. The Ministerial Control Framework ensures any Scottish Government proposal to establish a new public body is based on evidence and value for money, with approval from Cabinet before any decision is made.

The Scottish Government is progressing the Public Sector Reform Programme to ensure public services are sustainable, efficient and effective. Our work in this area is expected to save up to £280 million over a two year period by the end of 2024-25.

We have already streamlined the public sector landscape by reducing the number of Scottish public bodies under our control from 199 in 2007 to 131 as at 1 December 2024.

Accountable Officers for all public bodies have a personal responsibility for the propriety and regularity of the finances under their stewardship and for the economic, efficient and effective use of all related resources. This includes being personally answerable to Parliament for the exercise of their functions. This is set out in the Public Finance and Accountability (Scotland) Act 2000 and the Scottish Public Finance Manual.

Given the changes in the Scottish Government's devolved powers since devolution it is not possible to apply a direct like with like comparison in Scottish Government funding levels between 1999-00 and 2025-26. Similarly, the powers and responsibilities of Local Government have changed over that time, most notably due to the devolution of around £5.6 billion for the administration of social security benefits, as well as the transfer of Police and Fire services out of Local Government in financial year 2013-14 which resulted in over a £1 billion adjustment to General Revenue Grant.

More frequent and meaningful budget engagement with COSLA and Councils was fundamental to informing the record funding settlement made available to Local Government in the Scottish Budget 2025-26. Scottish Ministers remain committed to deepening and broadening that partnership to ensure the sustainability of local services.

The needs-based formula used to distribute the funding available for local government is agreed with COSLA on behalf of all 32 local authorities each year. Scottish Ministers are open to exploring the funding formula through that meaningful engagement but any proposals for a formal review should properly come through COSLA in the first instance.

The information requested is not currently held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

More frequent and meaningful budget engagement with COSLA and Councils was fundamental to informing the record funding settlement made available to Local Government in the Scottish Budget 2025-26.

That engagement included consideration of financial viability, the importance of sustainable local services and the critical need for transformation.

The Local Government Settlement was significantly more generous than Councils were expecting based upon the trajectories set out in previous Medium Term Financial Strategies. Despite this, all local authorities, along with the rest of the public sector, are facing difficult decisions as part of their budget setting processes including on how to meet the increased costs of employer National Insurance Contributions following the UK Budget in November 2024.

Whilst no specific concerns over financial viability in 2025-26 or 2026-27 have been raised since the Scottish Budget was published, Scottish Ministers remain committed to deepening and broadening budget engagement to ensure the sustainability of local services in the long term.

The Scottish Government provided funding to Chest Heart and Stroke Scotland in 2018 to support a stroke awareness campaign. This was managed by Chest Heart and Stroke Scotland and delivered via NHS Boards. Scottish Government does not hold an evaluation of this campaign.

Chest Heart and Stroke Scotland launched a public FAST awareness campaign on 30 October 2024; World Stroke Day. Further information can be found at:

https://www.chss.org.uk/news/chest-heart-stroke-scotland-launches-new-f-a-s-t-campaign-to-improve-stroke-awareness/

The national action plan on relationships and behaviour published in August 2024. The first published progress report will publish in the coming weeks.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-35046 on 5 March 2025. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

The national action plan on relationships and behaviour published in August 2024. The first published progress report will publish in the coming weeks.