HC Deb 06 July 1995 vol 263 c319W
Mrs. Fyfe

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what proportion of gross domestic product in Scotland is spent on education. [32237]

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton

Identifiable Government expenditure on education in Scotland in 1993–94 was equivalent to 8.1 per cent. of gross domestic product for 1993.

The following points are relevant to the interpretation of this figure:

  1. (i) It excludes all private sector spending on education.
  2. (ii) It includes expenditure on recreation and leisure, sport and Gaelic broadcasting. If these items were excluded the figure would be 7.8 per cent.
  3. (iii) It includes the cost of grants and of student loans received by all Scottish-domiciled students undertaking higher education courses. It does not include expenditure on awards or loans for students who are domiciled elsewhere in the United Kingdom but are undertaking courses in Scotland.