Scottish council tax freeze to end next year - BBC News
Local authorities will be given full flexibility over council tax rates for first time since 2007.
There is good news in the Scottish Fiscal Commission (SFC) report, but also a tight squeeze on expectations of increased spending.

The good news is of 10.4% forecast Scottish economic growth for 2021-22. That will take the economy back to the pre-pandemic level of output by the second quarter of next year - two years earlier than forecast in January.

Unemployment will go up, according to the forecast, but to a much lower peak than previously expected, of 4.9%.

However, the prospects for the total budget at Holyrood are very tight. In real terms, the budget falls in real terms, by 1% per year, then rising by the time of the next Holyrood election by only 1%.

Given the expectations set in the election campaign last May, and the pressures to find more funds for health and social care, that is an extremely tough outlook.

It gets much tougher when the promises on welfare are taken into account. The SFC says commitments are rising by £750m per year, half of that to meet the cost of the higher Scottish Child Payment.

So while commitments and expectations rise steeply, income tax revenue goes down and the total budget effectively stands still.