Scottish public spending per head was £2,000 higher than the UK average

PUBLIC spending per head of population in Scotland is almost £2,000 higher than the UK average, according to new figures from the UK Government

North of the Border, the average spend per head in 2021/22 was £13,881, compared to £13,401 in England and £11,549 in Wales.

Northern Ireland has the highest level of spending per head at £14,062.

That means Scotland’s figure is £1,984 higher than the UK average spend of £11,897, according to the data.

Of the UK’S £797 billion of identifiable expenditure in 2021/22, Scotland accounts for £76bn, compared to £652bn in England, £42bn in Wales and £27bn in Northern Ireland.

The figure fell from £895.2bn in 2020/21 because of the lower expenditure in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Scotland Office Minister John Lamont said the figures show Scotland “benefits massively” from being in the union.

On a per head basis, total UK expenditure fell by just over £1,500 since the previous year, compared to an increase of more than £3,400 in 2019/20.

However the analysis found the share of identifiable spend by country remained broadly unchanged, although England showed a slight increase in recent years because of pandemic expenditure.

Mr Lamont said: “Scotland benefits massively from being part of a strong United Kingdom, as today’s figures show.

“In Scotland, £13,881 was spent per head of population on public services – that’s £1,984 above the average of for the UK as a whole.

“As was expected, the overall Uk-wide public spend fell from the previous year when the UK Government invested heavily in much-needed support through the pandemic, including the vaccination programme and help for families and businesses through furlough, self-employed grants and business loans.

“We still face considerable global challenges but the broad shoulders of the UK Treasury will continue to support Scotland and the rest of the country.”