COSLA and Scottish Government have written to the UK Government about the Employers' National Insurance rise proposed in the recent UK budget.

On Friday 3rd of January COSLA President ,Councillor Shona Morrison, and First Minister John Swinney, wrote to the UK Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, calling for funding to fully cover the additional costs the public and charity sectors are facing.

Commenting, Councillor Morrison said:

“We have written to the UK Government expressing concerns around the impact of the increase to employer’s National Insurance on councils and a range of services we commission.  While we expect the direct costs to councils to be met in full, we also expect UK and Scottish Government to help us ensure that vital services provided by the third sector and others are protected from the increase.

“COSLA’s stated view is that it would be unacceptable for Scottish councils to be made to meet the bill and we will continue over the coming weeks to work constructively with both governments on this.”