Politics

Election results across the world have changed the global context in recent years, impacting on inflation (see The Economy) and social unrest (see Society)

• With 41 Scottish seats changing hands at the July 2024 election, many voluntary organisations found themselves needing to build relationships with a new MP in their constituency.  The creation of a new UK Cabinet, and changing membership of parliamentary committees also meant new relationship building for Scottish voluntary organisations that seek to influence on reserved matters
• The Labour government has committed to being ‘mission-driven’, focusing its efforts on five key areas: growth, the NHS, clean energy, safer streets and opportunity.
• It was hoped that the election of a Labour government at Westminster would be a good thing for the voluntary sector, with the Prime Minister committing to a ‘reset’ in the relations of the UK government and civil society.  In a harsh fiscal climate, early decisions by the new government have caused mixed reactions within the sector.  In particular, the decision by the Chancellor to make changes impacting employers’ National Insurance contributions for medium and large voluntary sector employers have been criticised by many (see The Economy).
• One of the government’s first actions has been to consult on a Covenant with the voluntary sector, seeking to define the relationship between the sector and the government at Westminster.  The principles being consulted on are very high level, and it is not yet clear how they might be implemented, or what this will mean in practice.  It is currently unclear whether/how this will impact on organisations that work only in Scotland.
• Under the new government, the Scotland Office is refocussing as a department with spending powers.  There is a lot of conversation about resetting the UK/Scottish government relationship, but no clear sign yet of what this might mean in practice in the long term.

• Since becoming First Minister in May 2024, John Swinney has focussed on four priority areas: eradicating child poverty, growing Scotland’s economy, tackling the climate emergency, and improving Scotland’s public services.  These are all areas where the voluntary sector has much to offer, but the sector overall has not featured prominently in discussions so far.  The 2024-25 Programme for Government focusses on these priority areas, and is considerably shorter than in previous years
• Commitments to fairer funding for the sector by 2026 have been retained and reiterated by the new Cabinet, but progress remains slow.  This includes increasing multi-year funding arrangements, making reporting and monitoring proportionate, ensuring prompt notification, while reviewing grant conditions. The Scottish Parliament Social Justice and Social Security Committee has asked the Scottish Government to prioritise progress on multi-year funding, and the Cabinet Secretary has said that the Scottish Government is “committed to increasing the number of multi-year agreements for third sector organisations where possible”.
• A small number of voluntary organisations have withdrawn from partnership working with the Scottish Government in recent months, as relationships and trust have broken down.
• The next Scottish Parliament election is required by law to take place no later than May 2026. Political parties will be starting work on their manifestos for 2026 during the course of this year, with some (for example, Scottish Labour) already underway. Voluntary organisations wishing to influence political manifestos will need to be working on this during 2025. The pre-election period of sensitivity will usually begin 25 working days before polling day. During this time government departments and officials will avoid making announcements or decisions that could influence the outcome of the election.

• In September 2024, the Community Planning Improvement Board published guidance for fair funding of the voluntary sector; this has been endorsed by Council Chief Executives through the COSLA leaders meeting 
• At the same time, a number of local authorities and Integrated Joint Boards (IJBs) introduced in-year budget cuts for voluntary organisations, and warned of further cuts to come in 25/26 (see The Economy) 
• Relationships between Scottish Government and local government have been strained for some time, particularly around finances and the Verity House Agreement, although COSLA welcomed many aspects of the Scottish budget 
• Local Government elections will take place in May 2027.