Swinney's Savings Account.

Mr Smith has some difficulty understanding this one.

"JOHN SWINNEY, the finance secretary, has declared he has found £600 million of savings in the Scottish budget this year, £66 million more than his target. But about two-thirds of the savings have yet to be identified by councils, health boards, universities, colleges and other public bodies which face an across-the-board 2 per cent cut."

How is it possible for Mr Swinney to declare £600 million worth of savings when two thirds of the savings haven't yet been identified ....? When is a saving not a saving? When it is "unrealised" which is exactly what his £600 million figure is at the moment. What is the point in giving public bodies budgets and then arbitrarily top slicing their budgets to generate "savings"? Welcome to the world of Scottish Government finance. It makes no sense to Mr Smith.