Scottish Government has activated disaster scheme 17 times but only paid out cash twice

North East Fife MSP Willie Rennie has today called for a review of a Scottish Government disaster relief scheme after he revealed that it has provided financial relief on two occasions despite being activated 17 times in four years.  

The Bellwin Scheme is a discretionary emergency funding support mechanism that the Scottish Government activates when councils face an undue financial burden as a result of providing relief and carrying out immediate work due to large-scale emergencies. However it only kicks in after councils have passed a "threshold" of spending equivalent to 0.2% of a local authority's budgeted net revenue expenditure.

It was most recently activated after Storm Babet flooded areas including Brechin. However, the BBC have reported that Angus council will have to pass a threshold of £573,240 for this financial year, while Aberdeenshire will only qualify after spending £1,262,730.

Freedom of information requests submitted by Scottish Liberal Democrats reveal:

• Just £9,252,288 has been paid out to councils under the Bellwin Scheme since 2007-08.
• Between March 2020 and December 2023, the Scottish Government activated the Bellwin Scheme 17 times, but paid out cash only twice during that period (£334,105 to Perth & Kinross and £292,340 to Highland)
• “Robust and comprehensive information on the administration of the scheme prior to 2020/21 is not routinely held”.
• The Scottish Government hasn’t conducted a review of the administration or effectiveness of the Bellwin Scheme since the Liberal Democrat-Labour Government last did one in 2006.  

Mr Rennie has been campaigning for the Scottish Government to provide grants for households and businesses in Cupar who saw homes flooded and businesses badly hit by Storm Gerrit.  

Commenting on the figures, Willie Rennie said:

 “It has become a staple of Scottish Government ministers to declare that the Bellwin Scheme is being activated to support communities in need but money is simply not getting to where it is needed.

“These figures show that cash-strapped local authorities are being left out in the cold.  

“There seems to have been little effort to review whether the scheme actually works. That has to change. There will undoubtedly be more disasters in the future, both climate related and otherwise.

“Council budgets have faced steep cuts. It is becoming harder and harder for them to act with haste because the money simply isn’t there.  

“Ministers must undertake an immediate audit of the Bellwin Scheme to ensure that it is working as intended to support communities in crisis.”