Invoice payments – Local authorities must settle faster to help small business

Scottish Conservatives have discovered that local authorities are failing to pay their invoices within ten days, with the Scotland-wide average showing only 31% of bills being paid within this timeline.

Gavin Brown MSP, Scottish Conservative Economy Spokesperson – who uncovered the information via FOI – said:

"Prompt payment of bills within ten days is supposedly a key plank in the Scottish Government's economic recovery plan. Their view is that 90% of invoices should be paid within ten days.

"However, it is clear from the data that the Scottish Government is failing to ensure prompt payment is a priority throughout the public sector.

"Local Government accounts for a third of total Scottish Government spending and therefore a third of procurement spend to Scottish businesses, both large and small, and their record is simply nowhere near good enough in most cases.

"The Scottish average is only 31%, with one local authority's record as low as 6%. Five councils' performance has actually decreased on previous years and, most worryingly, ten councils do not collect the information at all so have no idea how well or how badly they are doing.

"Scottish businesses deserve better and small business will be particularly hit by the lack of prompt payments. All of the public sector must do better to pay its bills faster and the Scottish Government needs to tell us what they are actually doing to ensure this.

"It is not enough for the Scottish Government just to talk about prompt payment – they need to make sure it happens on the ground as well."

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