Government Expenditure & Revenue Scotland 2014-15

9 Mar 2016 12:59 PM

A National Statistics Publication for Scotland.

The publication of Government Expenditure and Revenue Scotland (GERS) 2014-15, which estimates expenditure and revenue balances relating to the Public Sector in Scotland, was announced today by Scotland’s Chief Statistician.

Total Public Sector Revenue 2014-15

• Scottish onshore revenue was estimated as £51.6 billion (8.0 per cent of UK onshore revenue). This represents £9,600 per person, £400 less than the UK average;
• Including an illustrative geographic share of North Sea revenue, total public sector revenue is estimated at £53.4 billion (8.2 per cent of UK public sector revenue). This represents £10,000 per person, slightly below the UK average, although not notable when rounded to the nearest £100.

Total Public Sector Expenditure 2014-15

• Total expenditure for the benefit of Scotland by the Scottish Government, UK Government, and all other parts of the public sector was £68.4 billion. This is equivalent to 9.3 per cent of total UK public sector expenditure, and £12,800 per person, which is £1,400 per person greater than the UK average.

Current Budget Balance 2014-15

This is the difference between current revenue and current expenditure (i.e. excluding capital investment). The current budget balance:

• Excluding North Sea revenue, was a deficit of £13.7 billion (9.8 per cent of GDP).
• Including an illustrative geographic share of North Sea revenue, was a deficit of £11.9 billion (7.8 per cent of GDP).
• For the UK, was a deficit of £59.8 billion (3.3 per cent of GDP)

Net Fiscal Balance 2014-15

This is the difference between current revenue and total public sector expenditure including capital investment. The net fiscal balance:

• Excluding North Sea revenue, was a deficit of £16.7 billion (11.9 per cent of GDP).
• Including an illustrative geographic share of North Sea revenue, was a deficit of £14.9 billion (9.7 per cent of GDP).
• For the UK, was a deficit of £89 billion (4.9 per cent of GDP).

The figures released today were produced in accordance with professional standards set out in the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.

Notes To Editors

The full statistical publication is available at http://www.gov.scot/gers. 

The aim of GERS is to enhance public understanding of fiscal issues in Scotland. The primary objective is to estimate a set of public sector accounts for Scotland through detailed analysis of official UK and Scottish Government finance statistics. The report is designed to allow users to understand and analyse Scotland’s fiscal position under different scenarios within the current constitutional framework.

This publication provides results for 2010-11 to 2014-15. In response to user demand, time series are available back to 1998-99 on the GERS website, making GERS series consistent with other Scottish economic statistics.

Official statistics are produced in accordance with professional standards – more information on the standards of official statistics in Scotland can be accessed at:http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics/About