GERS 2025: More money for public services as part of the UK

Being part of the UK means there is more money to spend on vital public services like schools and hospitals every year, the latest government figures have confirmed.

Sadly, these extra resources are being squandered by the SNP following two decades of decline, division and broken promises.

The annual Government Expenditure and Revenue Scotland (GERS) report, a National Statistics publication for the Scottish Government, helps to illustrate how the whole of the UK benefits from the pooling and sharing of resources and risk.

Public expenditure per person in Scotland on public services was £2,669 higher than the UK average in 2024/25, protecting our local communities in Scotland.

Scotland’s deficit (the gap between what is raised and what is spent) increased to £26.2 billion, or 11.7% of GDP – more than double the UK deficit of 5.1% of GDP. This shows the direct benefit to Scots of staying together as part of the UK.

But despite having more to spend on public services, the SNP has run the NHS into the ground, left the police force unable to investigate crimes, and failed to close the attainment gap in schools.

The latest figures cover the period a decade on from the independence referendum, when the people of Scotland overwhelmingly voted to remain part of the UK.

Including North Sea oil revenues, the Scottish Government’s own figures for 2024/25 show:

• Public spending in Scotland was £117.6 billion in total, up more than £6 billion - fuelled by increases in social protection and health.

• Scotland makes up around 8.2%of the UK population, but 9.1% of all UK public spending was here.

• Public expenditure per person in Scotland on public services was £2,669 higher than the UK average, yet the money raised - which varies greatly depending on North Sea revenues - was only £91 per person higher than the UK average. That creates a ‘UK dividend’ of £2,578 per person.

• The £26.2 billion deficit is equivalent to more than the entire annual bill for Scotland’s public health and transport services.

Alastair Cameron, chair of Scotland in Union, said:

“As part of the UK, Scotland has billions of pounds of extra money for vital public services like the NHS and schools.

“The people of Scotland chose to stay together with the UK, enabling this continued sharing of resources and rejecting the SNP’s fantasy economics.

“Remaining in the UK means we benefit from the UK’s economic heft, trade, global strength, and trusted currency.

“But despite the massive financial and non-financial benefits, the nationalists have squandered Scotland’s potential because they are obsessed with trying to divide us.

“The SNP is failing Scotland. At the May 2026 election, it will be time for change.”

Link to latest GERS release here.