McArthur comments as councils face half billion budget gap

Responding to a new embargoed report from the Accounts Commission which notes that:

• Overall, Scotland’s councils face managing a budget gap of around £529 million for their 2026/27 daily operating costs - around three per cent of their revenue funding. Capital funding is down by 15 per cent.  
• Social care makes up a high proportion of council spending and increasing demand for these services is putting major pressure on local budgets.
• Anticipated reductions in Scottish Government funding over the medium term are expected to intensify these pressures and increase the risk of councils becoming financially unsustainable.

Newly appointed Scottish Liberal Democrat finance spokesperson Liam McArthur said:

“This report shows that there is a vast gulf between what the SNP Government have provided and what councils say they actually need to maintain basic local services and functions.

"The SNP have demanded councils do more with less while an increasing proportion of spending decisions are dictated by ministers in Edinburgh. As a result, we have ended up with school strikes, bin strikes and a shortage of elderly care packages.

“The Scottish Government must act now to put local authority finances on a sustainable footing.

"We need real reform to push powers over both revenue raising and spending out to communities and help them to provide the reliable local services that people are crying out for."