The Outcome of the Targeted Review of the Capital Spending Review – Updated Spending Allocations for 2023-24 to 2025-26

Conclusion

The Scottish Government is committed to improving the lives of the people of Scotland by focusing investment on tackling the climate and nature emergencies, supporting economic recovery and tackling child poverty, guided by the strategic principles set out in the Infrastructure Investment Plan and the National Infrastructure Mission.

This document sets out the outcome of the targeted review of the Scottish Government's capital spending plans, as published in February 2021. This review has been prompted by a range of factors – including changes in funding allocations, market conditions and fresh commitments outlined in the Programme for Government and the Bute House Agreement.

Scotland is constrained by reliance on the UK Government for capital grant allocations as well as limited capital borrowing powers, therefore, it has not be possible to immediately fund all the commitments from the existing spending review and those set out in the Programme for Government. However, the investment pipeline presented here creates a balanced and strategic plan for Scotland's infrastructure assets, remaining aligned with the themes of the Infrastructure Investment Plan. The Scottish Government will continue to press the UK Government to use the levers at its disposal to help mitigate the current market conditions and support infrastructure investment which is so vital for the economy.

The revised capital allocations presented here are designed to steer infrastructure investments and provide some medium-term planning certainty. However, as stated above, there remains significant volatility and elements of the infrastructure programme will continue to develop. The Scottish Government will therefore keep progress under review, with final allocations agreed by Parliament each year through the annual budget process, and will periodically provide public updates on this progress through our six-monthly reporting to Parliament on the Infrastructure Investment Plan.