Scottish Government will ‘undoubtedly’ need to make cuts – deputy first minister

The deputy first minister has said the Scottish Government will “undoubtedly” need to make cuts because of a predicted shortfall of nearly £5 billion by the end of the decade.

Scotland’s auditor general previously said ministers lacked a clear plan to deal with a £4.7 billion funding gap by 2029-30.

Speaking on the BBC’s Sunday Show, Jenny Gilruth said the newly appointed public service reform secretary Ivan McKee would be “driving some of the efficiency” needed to tackle the gap.

“If you look again in the budget, we set out portfolio efficiency savings targets,” she said.

“I know that from my time in cabinet we all as cabinet secretaries had to go through a period of considering where savings might come from, so all of that work has already been undertaken.

“But it is important to note that we’ve had the appointment this week, of course of Ivan McKee who’s going to lead on public sector reform, and his work will be pivotal in that regard.

“And, of course, in the 100-day plan that we have brought forward as part of the manifesto, we’re going to bring forward proposals to legislate in that regard too, and Ivan McKee I’ll be working with very closely on driving some of the efficiency we need to see.”

However, when asked if the Government will need to make cuts, she replied “undoubtedly”.

She continued: “We need to look at where we can make those efficiencies, for example, in relation to sharing services, and actually a really good example of this has been the approach to whole family wellbeing, which the First Minister has championed in relation to how we tackle child poverty, looking at how we share services better across the piece.”

Scottish Labour Finance spokesman Michael Marra said the SNP is “wreaking havoc” with Scotland’s public finances.

He said: “The SNP has wreaked havoc with Scotland’s public finances and harsh cuts are looming as a result – but Scots still don’t have any answers about what lies ahead.

“There is now a dedicated minister for cuts in this SNP Government, but the Deputy First Minister still is still keeping Scots in the dark about where those cuts will fall.

“This new term was a chance for a new approach, but we are hearing the same secrecy, the same spin and the same complacency from the SNP.

“The SNP must come clean about how it is going to fix the mess it has made of Scotland’s budget and give a clear commitment that it will put Scotland’s priorities ahead of its own.”