Question reference: S6W-07351
- Asked by: Willie Coffey, MSP for Kilmarnock and Irvine Valley, Scottish National Party
- Date lodged: 16 March 2022
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Current status: Answered by Shona Robison on 30 March 2022
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on the most recent level of housing and community amenities spending per person in Scotland, and how this compares with (a) England and (b) Wales.
Answer
The level of identifiable public sector expenditure spend per person on housing and community amenities in Scotland was £413 in 2020-21. This is higher than in England (£167) and in Wales (£264), and this has been the case every year since at least 2016-17, as outlined in the following table.
Total identifiable public sector expenditure on housing and community amenities per person (2020-21 prices) | |||||
2016-17 | 2017-18 | 2018-19 | 2019-20 | 2020-21 | |
Scotland | £333 | £379 | £447 | £453 | £413 |
England | £150 | £162 | £161 | £191 | £167 |
Wales | £259 | £253 | £284 | £327 | £264 |
Great Britain | £170 | £185 | £191 | £220 | £192 |
Sources: HM Treasury, Country and regional analysis; ONS population estimates and GDP market price deflator.
Please note that care is needed when making cross-national comparisons because of the different scope of public sector activities in different countries. For example, water supply is a public sector function in Scotland but is in the private sector in England and Wales.