2024-25 Financial Performance
2024-25 Financial Performance
Financial performance and use of resources
The purpose of this section is to summarise the financial performance against the budget for the 2024-25 financial year. Transport Scotland received the majority of its funding from the Scottish Government and a small amount of income is also generated (Note 5). During 2024-25, total income reported was £12.2 million and funding received from the Scottish Government of £3.9 billion reflected in our revised budget (HM Treasury total).
Transport Scotland’s overall budget includes its Non-Departmental Public Bodies (NDPBs) Highland and Island Airports (HIAL), David MacBrayne (DML), Scottish Canals and Scottish Rail Holdings (SRH). The expenditure of NDPBs is reported in Transport Scotland’s consolidated HMT budgets in the same way as Transport Scotland’s own spending. Scottish Government funding is accounted for in the Scottish Government accounting system (SEAS), now Oracle, but there are further accounting adjustments in the NDPBs that are reflected in Transport Scotland’s overall HM Treasury outturn. The amounts in the tables below show all expenditure and accounting adjustments to reflect the total HM Treasury budget envelope that Transport Scotland is accountable for. During the year, budgets are subject to revision and adjustment via the Scottish Government Autumn Budget Revision (ABR) and Spring Budget Revision (SBR) processes.
In 2024-25, Transport Scotland successfully managed its finances within all budget controls as outlined below.
Total Budget and Outturn
| Opening Budget Bill 2024-25 £’000 | Budgetas at SBR 2024-25 £’000 | Outturn 2024-25 £’000 | Variance £’000 | %Variance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rail Services | 1,424,318 | 1,496,586 | 1,467,622 | (28,964) | -2% |
| Bus Services | 429,728 | 454,141 | 446,914 | (7,227) | -2% |
| Motorway and Trunk Roads | 984,597 | 969,832 | 801,493 | (168,339) | -17% |
| Ferries | 434,454 | 461,861 | 422,008 | (39,853) | -9% |
| Air | 79,761 | 73,508 | 74,359 | 851 | 1% |
| Other Transport | 299,159 | 193,808 | 179,546 | (14,262) | -7% |
| Local Authority Grants | 51,727 | 41,700 | 41,946 | 246 | 1% |
| Total SG funding | 3,703,744 | 3,691,436 | 3,433,888 | (257,548) | -7% |
| HMT Adjustments | 221,563 | 265,660 | 275,163 | 9,503 | 4% |
| HMT TOTAL | 3,925,307 | 3,957,096 | 3,709,051 | (248,405) | -6% |
Other Transport includes Sustainable and Active Travel and Low Carbon expenditure.
Outturn Analysis
| Budget Classification | Budget as at SBR 2024-25 £’000 | Outturn2024-25 £’000 | Variance £’000 | %Variance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Resource | 1,525,493 | 1,520,283 | (5,210) | -0.3% |
| Capital | 2,090,048 | 2,019,120 | (70,928) | -3% |
| Non-cash | 358,504 | 227,551 | (130,953) | -37% |
| Financial Transactions | (46,500) | (46,500) | - | 0% |
| AME | 29,551 | (11,403) | (40,954) | -139% |
| HMT TOTAL | 3,957,096 | 3,709,051 | (248,045) | -6% |
Outturn variances – summarised by type
| 2024-25 £’000 | |
|---|---|
| Total Outturn Variance | |
| of which: | |
| Technical accounting adjustments (provisions) | (40,954) |
| Non-cash | (130,953) |
| Rail Resource | 4,700 |
| Bus Resource | (6,900) |
| Other Resource | (3,010) |
| Rail Capital | (18,452) |
| Motorway and Trunk Roads Capital | (26,664) |
| Ferries Capital | (20,503) |
| Other Capital | (5,310) |
| Total Outturn Variance | (248,045) |
Overview
The total underspend of £248 million (2023-24: £100 million underspend) represents approximately 6% (2023-24: 3%) of the overall budget. £172 million of this underspend relates to technical accounting adjustments and non-cash budgets which are ringfenced and cannot be used to cover other expenditure. Therefore, the remaining underspend totals £76 million, 2% of the overall budget.
The Statement of Comprehensive Net Expenditure (SoCNE) on page 99 records net operating costs of £3.167 billion. Capital expenditure and HMT Adjustments in NDPBs are not recognised as in-year expenditure within the SoCNE, and the Net Operating Costs from SoCNE, and the table below on page 46 provides a reconciliation of overall outturn to the SoCNE.
Resource
Resource outturn of £5.2 million (0.3%) underspend was largely delivered by:
- £6.9 million underspend in Bus Services due to lower than anticipated Concessionary Travel expenditure as a result of bad weather towards the end of the year as well as lower than forecast claims by bus operators relating to the bus support grant.
- £2.6 million underspend in Ferries following the reprofile of vessel procurement timetables.
- This underspend is offset by an overspend in Rail due to lower than forecasted revenue related to a downturn in leisure patronage.
Capital
Capital outturn of £71million (3%) underspend which relates to:
£18.5 million underspend in Rail which reflects underspends of £22 million on Network Rail programmes driven by rephasing of national (UK wide) Network Rail Programmes whose costs are allocated to Scotland Region as well as lower than anticipated compensation payments. A further £6 million underspend relates to slippage in works by Scottish Rail Holdings subsidiaries. These underspends were offset by £10 million additional spend on infrastructure improvement and rolling stock renewal programmes, including early feeder station milestone achievements.
The £26.7 million underspend on Motorway and Trunk Roads Capital relates to unavoidable weather and construction related delays across several projects including Woodside and the A83 Rest and Be Thankful.
£20.5 million underspend on Ferries relates to a reprofiling of vessel payments and ports and harbour works into 2025-26.
Financial Transactions
The Transport portfolio returned £47 million in FT repayments from the Low Carbon Transport Loan Scheme in 2024-25, as agreed with the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government.
Non-Cash
£130.9 million or 53% of the overall underspend is driven by movement in non-cash depreciation driven by fluctuation in the Roads valuation. This budget is ringfenced and cannot be used to cover other expenditure.
Annually Managed Expenditure (AME)
AME is related to accounting adjustments for provisions which are less predictable and therefore resulted in a variance of £41 million. This represents a number of accounting adjustments to release previously made provisions where the liability had crystallised or, upon reconciliation, were no longer required and unwinding the discount on loans to the Energy Saving Trust. AME budgets are ringfenced therefore underspends cannot be used elsewhere.
Reconciliation of overall outturn to the SoCNE
| 2024-25 £’000 | |
|---|---|
| Net Operating Costs from SoCNE | 3,166,840 |
| Add HMT Adjustments that do not go through SoCNE | 275,163 |
| Add: Additions to PPE (Note 6) | 215,786 |
| Add: Additions to Investments (Note 9) | 108,844 |
| Less: Repayments of Investments (Note 9) | (57,581) |
| Outturn | 3,709,051 |