Scotland's public sector workforce has grown to a record 603,800 people, despite repeated SNP pledges to shrink it and cut costs. The rise, revealed in official Scottish Government statistics, undermines assurances from ministers, including First Minister John Swinney, who has this month put public sector reform at the centre of his programme for government while ruling out compulsory redundancies. Critics, including the Scottish Conservatives, argue the figures show the SNP has repeatedly failed to deliver on promises to make the sector leaner and more efficient.

In the year to June 2026, employment rose by 6,640, or 1.1 per cent, meaning the public sector now accounts for 23 per cent of all Scottish jobs. Growth was driven by increases in the NHS (up 2 per cent), public corporations (up 2.7 per cent), the devolved civil service (up 1 per cent) and local government (up 0.9 per cent), while colleges fell by 2.6 per cent and police and fire services dipped by 0.1 per cent. Devolved public sector headcount has climbed 11 per cent since June 2019, from 498,700 to 553,600. Swinney has proposed reducing Scotland's 14 regional health boards to two, merging quangos including bringing Transport Scotland back in-house, and consulting on local government restructuring, but has not clarified the likely impact on jobs.