The Scottish elections happen on May 6th.
This year, for the first time and co-funded by the Scottish Policy Foundation, the Institute for Fiscal Studies is publishing a range of Scottish Election analysis on tax, benefits and public spending, and the parties' plans for the coming parliamentary term.
Find out more at https://www.ifs.org.uk/scottish-election
Authors

Associate Director
David is Head of Devolved and Local Government Finance. He also works on tax in developing countries as part of our TaxDev centre.
Explainer details
- DOI
- 10.1920/ex.ifs.2024.0082
- Publisher
- IFS
Suggested citation
Phillips, D. (2021). Government spending [Explainer] IFS. Available at: https://ifs.org.uk/articles/government-spending (accessed: 1 November 2026).
More from IFS
Understand this issue

Is the Chancellor’s spending plan credible?
Higher inflation, rising borrowing and potential spending cuts: what will the Chancellor’s first Budget mean for the economy and households today?
15 October 2026

The tax and spending choices facing Andy Burnham
Andy Burnham faces difficult choices over tax, borrowing and public spending. How much room will the new Prime Minister have to act?
16 July 2026

The tough fiscal reality facing the UK government
Britain faces high debt, high borrowing costs, rising taxes and stretched public services. We explain the fiscal reality facing any government.
28 May 2026
Policy analysis

The IFS Scottish Budget Report 2026–27
Our analysis of the 2026–27 Scottish Budget highlights a difficult outlook for both spending and investment in Scotland.
6 February 2026

Scottish Budget and Spending Review signal big shifts in health and investment spending – but reliance on ambitious efficiency targets brings risk
IFS analysis shows the Scottish Budget relies on ambitious efficiency savings to shift health spending and reshape capital investment.
6 February 2026

None of Scotland’s parties has fully faced up to the fiscal reality facing the next Scottish Government
All parties’ plans would add to the fiscal challenges facing the next Scottish Government – albeit to very different extents
27 April 2026
Academic research

Tax Modelling and Distribution
This chapter provides a review of the literature on the distributional, poverty, and inequality impacts of taxation and public spending in Africa.
16 October 2026

The unintended consequences of infrastructure development
I investigate the social costs imposed by poor implementation of public infrastructure.
23 September 2026

Discretion versus algorithms: bureaucrats, tax equity and acceptability
We study how replacing bureaucrats’ discretion with algorithmic assessment affects the accuracy, equity, and public acceptance of tax decisions.
11 May 2026