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Other Economy Related Indicators
In addition to the range of economic data and indicators collected and analysed for Scotland on economic accounts, industry, commerce and the labour market, there is a significant amount of other information, some from administrative sources, which is relevant to analysis of the Scottish economy.
Additional information in this first edition includes:
Summary Government Expenditure and Revenue
In 1997/98, total aggregate government expenditure in Scotland was estimated to be £32.1 billion (after the EU adjustment) (Table 5.1). Total government revenues were estimated to be £26.7 billion.
Total gross expenditure for local authorities in 1997/98 was estimated to be just over £10 billion (excluding loan charges). Total income was £11.7 billion, including £1.3 billion from non-domestic rates, £1.1 billion from council tax, £5.3 billion in Government grants, £1.6 billion in fees and charges including rents and £1.8 billion in other income (mainly relating to superannuation funds) (Table 5.4).
As at April 1999, there were just under 200,000 non-domestic subjects (business premises) on the valuation roll with a rateable value greater than zero. Of these almost three-quarters had a rateable value of less than £10,000 (Table 5.5).
Housing Indicators
New building and house prices are commonly considered to be relevant indicators of performance and confidence in the economy.
Since the 1960s, there has been a steady increase in the number of private sector house builds, rising to a total of 104,000 new dwellings completed between 1992 and 1997. At the same time, public sector build has been declining from 159,000 during the period 1962-1967 to a level of 4,000 during 1992-1997. Overall, there has been a significant decrease from a total of 205,000 new dwellings in 1962-1967 to 130,000 during 1992-1997 (Table 5.7).
The number of property transactions declined steadily from a level of 142,000 in 1990, to 99,600 in 1996. There are initial signs of a recovery with a recorded 102,300 transactions in 1997 (Table 5.6). Over this time, average house prices increased by an average annual 5.2 per cent to £55,200 in 1997, and average advances for first-time buyers increased by an average annual 7.4 per cent to £34,600. These average annual increases compare to an average annual increase in GDP(I) (at current prices) over the same period of 5 per cent.
Transport Indicators
Between 1985 and 1997 there were significant increases of over 40 per cent in car travel and a doubling in air travel. Rail passenger travel increased slightly by around 2 per cent. Over the same period, freight transport by rail decreased by over 40 per cent while road freight travel increased by over 20 per cent (Table 5.9).
The number of new registrations of vehicles in Scotland rose by over 20 per cent between 1995 and 1998, however within this significant rise, the number of new goods vehicle licences decreased by around 5 per cent (Table 5.10).
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