§ Mr. Allan Stewartasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what changes are proposed in the way in which public expenditure within his responsibility is allocated and administered.
§ Mr. YoungerFrom April next year expenditure on all the services in Scotland within my responsibility, which is presently included in public expenditure White Papers as a component of several separate Great Britain public expenditure programmes, will be presented in the form of a separate Scottish programme. Similarly, central Government expenditure on these services, which is contained in Votes in a number of separate estimate classes, will comprise a separate single class. These changes will be reflected in the public expenditure White Paper published after the next annual survey and in the Supply Estimates for 1981–82.
The proposals will make it easier to identify and explain in public expenditure White Papers the plans for those services for which I am responsible. Central Government expenditure within my responsibility will also be more easily referred to as it will be presented in a single volume for the new class of estimates.
The move also gives formal recognition to arrangements under which, where there are comparable English and Welsh programmes, the Secretary of State has discretion in the allocation of expenditure in Scotland within a total determined by reference to these programmes.
Although it is within the new Scottish programmes, expenditure on agriculture, fisheries, food and forestry; industry, energy, trade and employment (excluding tourism); and other public services is outwith this flexible arrangement. This is because the first two services are essentially concerned with Great Britain EEC policies, and there is no 459W directly comparable programme for other public services.