Scotland’s fiscal position in the UK : accounting for the growth of the fiscal deficit in the post-devolution period

Midwinter, Arthur (2007) Scotland’s fiscal position in the UK : accounting for the growth of the fiscal deficit in the post-devolution period. Quarterly Economic Commentary, 31 (4). pp. 54-56. ISSN 0306-7866

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Abstract

The publication of the annual Government Expenditure and Revenues in Scotland (GERS) Report by the Scottish Executive is a continuing source of political dispute. This set piece confrontation, however, seldom generates any realistic assessment of its merits, because it results in claim and counter-claim over its validity in colourful language. It is not the “bogus” statistical exercise its critics suggest, although not without problems of interpretation.