Social security agency in Scotland: outline business case

Foreword

This Outline Business Case ( OBC) for the agency for social security in Scotland is a repository of the analysis and evidence behind the Ministerial Statement made in the Scottish Parliament on 27 April 2017, that announced the preferred option for the form that the agency will take.

This document follows on from the Stage 1 Options Appraisal that formed the basis of the decision to deliver social security in Scotland via an agency of some form. It has been written following the HMT "five-cases" model of business case development and is published in order to set out the evidence behind the preferred option in a clear and transparent way.

Information on the costs of the different potential options, including the preferred option, is provided but is not broken down in detail. This is because including detailed cost breakdowns at this stage could prejudice the ability of the social security agency to obtain maximum public value from spending on future development.

Social Security Directorate and Communities Analysis Division
Scottish Government
April 2017.