SWBG blog

WEEG: Whose Needs Are Reflected in Budget Decisions?

As the Chancellor stood to introduce the autumn statement, the 2026 Women’s Economic Empowerment Group met for the first time.

This year’s group is being run jointly with Awaz FM. These sessions aim to increase participants’ knowledge about budget processes and economic policy in Scotland and to consider if they see their needs reflected in the decisions taken. 

Outcomes and who benefits from budget decisions 

During this session we looked at the 3 levels of government in Scotland, where budget decisions are taken and how the decisions taken interact and impact on different policy areas.

In the session, the group raised questions about the impact that budget decisions have on the outcomes the government are trying to achieve. These questions included ‘What impact does charging for food waste bags have on recycling rates, as well as how many people stop using the food caddies provided when the initial supply of bags runs out and what does this mean for the initial investment?’

The group also started considering who benefited from decisions and how they often felt that their needs weren’t considered. For example, this discussion included who actually uses cycle lanes and who does this investment benefit. None of the group cycled, nor did they feel that this was an option for them. Citing difficulties with getting messages for them and their family while using a bike as well as concerns about how practical cycling was given the weather conditions in Glasgow.

Chancellor for a day 

As part of this session, we also considered what participants would prioritise if they were Chancellor. Unsurprisingly, a majority felt that health should be prioritised, as they felt you couldn’t have a healthy economy without having a healthy population. When we looked at the breakdown of expenditure, they were pleased to see that this was the biggest area of spend.

They also felt that social care was important and questioned the amount allocated by Westminster to this and what impact this had given that the UK’s population is aging.

One surprise was that a small number of participants felt that defence should be prioritised, as they felt that if you couldn’t defend your country, then it didn’t matter what you spent on other areas. The group were surprised at the high level of debt interest paid by the UK.

To follow the group’s considerations on the budget process and the decisions taken, keep an eye out for upcoming blogs.