Scottish Government
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Government Expenditure and Revenue

Scotland’s Chief Statistician today announced the release of Government Expenditure and Revenue Scotland (GERS) 2010-11.

This report is the eighteenth in the series of official published estimates of expenditure and revenue balances relating to the public sector in Scotland.

The aim of GERS is to enhance public understanding of fiscal issues in Scotland.  It estimates the contribution of revenue raised in Scotland towards the goods and services provided for the benefit of Scotland.  The estimates in this publication are consistent with the UK Public Sector Finance Statistics for December 2011, published in January 2012 .

The key results for 2010-11 are as follows:

  • In 2010-11, total public sector expenditure for the benefit of Scotland by the UK Government, Scottish Government and all other tiers of the public sector, plus a per capita share of debt interest payments, was £63.8 billion.  This is equivalent to 9.3 per cent of total UK public sector expenditure.
  • In 2010-11, total Scottish non-North Sea public sector revenue was estimated at £45.2 billion, (8.3 per cent of total UK non-North Sea revenue).  Including a per capita share of North Sea revenue, total Scottish public sector revenue was estimated at £45.9 billion (8.3 per cent of UK total public sector revenue).  When an illustrative geographical share of North Sea revenue is included, total Scottish public sector revenue was estimated at £53.1 billion (9.6 per cent of UK total public sector revenue).
  • In 2010-11, the estimated current budget balance for the public sector in Scotland was a deficit of £14.3 billion (12.0 per cent of GDP) excluding North Sea revenue, a deficit of £13.6 billion (11.2 per cent of GDP) including a per capita share of North Sea revenue or a deficit of £6.4 billion (4.4 per cent of GDP) including an illustrative geographical share of North Sea revenue. 
  • In 2010-11, the UK as a whole ran a current budget deficit, including 100 per cent of North Sea revenue, of £97.8 billion (6.6 per cent of GDP).
  • In 2010-11, Scotland’s estimated net fiscal balance was a deficit of £18.6 billion (15.6 per cent of GDP) when excluding North Sea revenue, a deficit of £17.9 billion (14.7 per cent of GDP) when including a per capita share of North Sea revenue or a deficit of £10.7 billion (7.4 per cent of GDP) when a geographical share of North Sea revenue is included. 
  • In 2010-11, the equivalent UK position including 100 per cent of North Sea revenue, referred to in the UK Public Sector Accounts as ‘net borrowing’, was a deficit of £136.1 billion (or 9.2 per cent of GDP).
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