Last week, the auditor general, Stephen Boyle, warned that “fundamental change” in the way public money is spent in Scotland is necessary to “ensure services can meet demand and remain affordable beyond the short-term”.
It is a stark conclusion about the state of the country’s current and future finances and the public services they fund. If you missed this, it’s not your fault. While Boyle’s warning should have those in charge of Scotland’s purse strings worried, it wasn’t covered widely. That’s because, despite the urgency in his words, warnings like his are hardly new or uncommon.
Boyle is not the first person to call for fundamental change in how public services and finances are run. And this isn’t the first time he’s raised concerns and urged reforms himself.
It doesn’t take a deep dive into the detail of government spending plans to know that finances are stretched everywhere. This week, the latest Understanding Scotland Economy Tracker revealed that one-third of Scots reported financial worries were impacting their mental health, while 16% cited physical health implications – with the majority believing that the current economic situation will only get worse.
It makes for grim reading. Whether it’s personal, business or public money, the pinch is being felt in almost all walks of life. And when everyone is struggling, everyone wants support – or at least to see the prospect that things are improving.
Here lies the problem for finance secretary Shona Robison, as she prepares to deliver the Scottish Government’s draft budget next week. To quote again the person responsible for ensuring public money is wisely spent: “the Scottish Government does not know what additional funding is required to support reform and has not provided enough leadership to help public sector bodies deliver change.”
Robison and her boss, John Swinney, have power, not just to come up with more short-term solutions but to drive long-term fundamental change in Scotland. Politicians can choose to get bogged down by the mistakes and failures of previous years, discuss how the Covid pandemic has impacted public and private finances, or point to the woes bestowed on us by Brexit.
Or they could take notice of Boyle’s latest report. Yes, it might have taken them a while to sit up and admit the changes they need to make, but it’s better than continuing down the same road.
Ultimately, what Boyle is calling for, along with many others who work in public service, is for long-term funding plans allied with service reform.
If we look at the NHS, for example, professional bodies such as the BMA have warned that without change the health service simply does not have a sustainable future.
While there isn’t much money to be meted out, throwing what little cash there is at a problem won’t deliver change, unless there are strategic reforms to address the real issues and make our public services relevant for our current needs.
We need a government brave enough to do this. If you listen to the language of the Labour government at Westminster, there at least appears to be an understanding that services must improve with the times. Could John Swinney be the first minister to usher in genuine change in Scotland?
We all know that change is difficult, but most things worth doing are and, as things stand, there is a sense of pessimism setting in across Scotland. If we are to lift that cloud, things cannot go on as they are.
When Robison stands up next week, let’s hope she decides to be brave and clear about how this government proposes to put Scotland on a path to real change.