Scottish Budget 2024-2025: Final Outturn Report
The purpose of this report is to present a statement of Final Outturn for the financial year 2024-25 against the statutory limits authorised through the appropriate legislative processes by the Scottish Parliament.
Final Outturn – HM Treasury Controls
15. The final 2024-25 fiscal outturn is £52.1 billion against a budget of £52.7 billion, resulting in an underspend of £595 million. This represents 1% of the total budget (Table 2 below provides further detail). Overall, this is a movement of £38 million from the £557 million underspend reported in June 2024 in the Provisional Outturn Statement.
| Portfolio | Outturn | Budget | Variance | Resource | Capital | Financial Transactions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Constitution, External Affairs and Culture | 276 | 280 | (4) | (1) | (2) | (1) |
| Deputy First Minister, Economy and Gaelic | 1,081 | 1,199 | (118) | (71) | (22) | (25) |
| Education and Skills | 3,195 | 3,204 | (9) | (8) | (1) | 0 |
| Finance and Local Government | 11,259 | 11,612 | (353) | (319) | (9) | (25) |
| Justice and Home Affairs | 3,587 | 3,590 | (3) | (7) | 4 | 0 |
| Net Zero and Energy | 597 | 645 | (48) | (15) | (43) | 10 |
| NHS Recovery, Health & Social Care | 19,808 | 19,868 | (60) | (22) | (37) | 1 |
| Rural Affairs, Land Reform and Islands | 1,033 | 1,069 | (36) | (21) | (15) | 0 |
| Social Justice | 7,107 | 7,217 | (110) | (76) | (23) | (12) |
| Transport | 3,486 | 3,569 | (83) | (9) | (74) | 0 |
| Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service | 218 | 218 | 0 | (3) | 2 | 0 |
| Total Scottish Government | 51,647 | 52,471 | (824) | (552) | (220) | (52) |
| Consumer Scotland | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Environmental Standards Scotland | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Food Standards Scotland | 22 | 23 | (1) | (1) | 0 | 0 |
| National Records of Scotland | 31 | 31 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| NHS & Teachers Pension Schemes | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Registers of Scotland | 2 | 5 | (3) | (4) | 1 | 0 |
| Revenue Scotland | 9 | 10 | (1) | (1) | 0 | 0 |
| Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service | 172 | 172 | 0 | (1) | 1 | 0 |
| Scottish Fiscal Commission | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Scottish Housing Regulator | 5 | 6 | (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total Scottish Administration | 51,901 | 52,731 | (830) | (558) | (218) | (52) |
| Audit Scotland | 12 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Scottish Parliament | 125 | 126 | (1) | (2) | 0 | 0 |
| Total Scottish Budget | 52,038 | 52,869 | (831) | (560) | (218) | (52) |
| Funding & Post Audit Adjustments – Resource | 0 | (11) | 11 | 10 | 0 | 0 |
| Funding & Post Audit Adjustments – Capital | 0 | (196) | 196 | 0 | 196 | 0 |
| Funding & Post Audit Adjustments – Financial Transactions | 25 | (4) | 29 | 0 | 0 | 28 |
| Total | 52,063 | 52,658 | (595) | (550) | (22) | (24) |
16. The Provisional Outturn Statement is presented to Parliament prior to completion of audited accounts for the Scottish Government and associated bodies and is therefore subject to change.
17. The changes between Provisional and Final Outturn were a result of accounting adjustments which occurred as part of the year-end process. The main driver of the change is within the Health and Social Care portfolio with a minor movement of £44 million (0.2% of H&SC budget), reflecting final Clinical Negligence and Other Risks Indemnity Scheme (CNORIS) costs, alongside slightly lower than anticipated spending by NHS Boards and non-cash adjustments. This is partially offset by year end accounting adjustments in Social Justice, Education and Transport.
18. The £595 million underspend was carried forward in full in the Scotland Reserve and utilised in 2025-26. £350 million of the resource underspend was already anticipated at the Spring Budget Revision.
19. Annex A provides a reconciliation to the Scottish Government’s Consolidated Accounts versus Final Outturn statement against HM Treasury Totals.
Contact
Email: Corporate.reporting@gov.scot