This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Scotland's 'world class' public services
13/09/2006
Increased investment in frontline staff is helping deliver the world-class public services the people of Scotland expect, a Minister said today.
Minister for Finance and Public Service Reform Tom McCabe was speaking after the publication of the latest Scottish public sector employment statistics.
There were 585,600 people employed in the public sector in the second quarter of 2006, an increase of 0.8 per cent or 4700 on last year. The figures underline increased investment in nurses, teachers and police in Scotland.
Mr McCabe said:
"The people of Scotland expect and deserve world-class public services. And they also expect those public services to be as efficient and effective as possible, consuming no more precious resources or employing no more staff than necessary.
"We share that expectation. That is why we are driving up efficiency and effectiveness across the whole public sector.
"That is why we have offered the public sector a unique opportunity to put forward their views on how they can reform our public services. The size, productivity and efficiency of the public sector is, of course, central to this dialogue process.
"To deliver the world-class services people expect, we need to invest in the right areas of the public sector. We have already seen the benefits of increased investment in frontline workers like nurses, teachers and police.
"We recognise, of course, the balance which needs to be struck between the private and public sectors. That is why our top priority is growing the economy and creating opportunities for businesses of all sizes to thrive."