Public procurement in Scotland generates £13 billion

According to recently published figures, Scotland’s known public sector procurement spend in 2022-23 delivered an estimated 120,000 full-time equivalent jobs and £7.5 billion to Scottish GDP.

The sixth annual report on procurement activity in Scotland shows that known procurement spend generated an estimated £13.7 billion in economic activity.

The figures also show that SMEs in Scotland benefited from more recorded procurement spend compared to the previous year - 61 pence in every pound spent in Scotland was with SMEs, up from 55 pence in every pound the year before.

18,079 suppliers were awarded contracts through the Public Contracts Scotland platform. Of these suppliers, 77 per cent were SMEs.

Public Finance Minister, Ivan McKee said: “Public procurement contributes billions to Scotland’s economy and supports thousands of jobs.

“The increase in contracts awarded to SMEs is particularly welcome. SMEs are critical to the economic lifeblood of Scotland and can often bring an agility and flexibility that allows them to introduce innovative solutions faster than larger organisations.

“Public procurement has a pivotal role to play in delivering a sustainable future for Scotland and with a spend that is now in excess of £16 billion a year, we have an opportunity to make a real difference through using this in even more productive and innovative ways.”