Budget Implications for Scotland

As an amendment to motion S3M-04004 in the name of John Swinney (Budget Implications for Scotland), insert at end “; notes the research by the Centre for Public Policy for Regions (CPPR) that predicts that in real terms the Scottish Government Departmental Expenditure Limit (DEL) will be between £2.1 billion and £3.8 billion lower in 2013-14 than in 2009-10; further notes the comments of John McLaren of CPPR that “the prospects beyond 2013-14 are also not good and although positive real terms growth rates are likely to return, they are unlikely to be very large until UK net debt as a share of GDP falls, possibly not until the 2030s”, and calls on the Scottish Government to prepare contingency plans on how such changes to the Scottish DEL will be managed.”