Scottish Budget sets out funding for social care and the green transition

Plans to tackle climate change and inequalities and invest in public services were set out in the Scottish Budget for 2022-23.

The Budget included a record £18bn of funding for Health and Social Care, including £12.9bn for health boards and £1.2bn for mental health, with a commitment that 10% of all front-line NHS spend will go to mental health and 25% will go to social care by the end of the parliament.

It also included a range of funding measures to tackle the climate emergency, such as £150m for active transport, £123m to protect and restore nature, £336m for energy efficiency and low carbon heating, and the first £20m for the 10-year £500m Just Transition Fund for the North East and Moray.

The Budget also set out to tackle child poverty and inequality, with over £4bn in social security payments, including £197, to double the Scottish Child Payment from April 2022 and extend it to under 16’s by the end of 2022, helping to lift an estimated 40,000 children out of poverty by 2023-24.

Other highlights of the Budget include £1.4bn to maintain, improve and decarbonise Scotland’s rail network, £1.95bn to start the delivery of the Adult Disability Payment in 2022-23, and £831m for affordable housing.

Finance Secretary Kate Forbes said: ‘The 2022-2023 Budget addresses our key priorities, targets resources for low income households and paves the way for future investment over the life of this Parliament. It is a budget of choices. My last two Budgets have been shaped by our experiences of Covid but we are now lifting our eyes to the future. This is a transitional Budget, as people, businesses and services get back on their feet.

‘This Budget focuses on tackling the climate emergency, reducing inequalities and supporting economic recovery. It is the first budget of this partnership in government and has been development in cooperation with the Scottish Green Party, delivering on commitments made as part of the Bute House Agreement. I welcome their support and their constructive challenge.’

Scottish Government Minister and Scottish Green Party Co-Leader, Patrick Harvie added: ‘This Budget delivers on key commitments made in the cooperation agreement between the Scottish Government and the Scottish Greens, including making bus travel free to children and young people and doubling the Scottish Child Payment. Our plans will also see over £2 billion invested in tackling the climate emergency, helping accelerate a just transition to a net-zero economy and laying the foundations for a green economic recovery.’

Photo by Adam Wilson