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The government has agreed to give the Scottish Environment Protection Agency
(SEPA) an extra £2.5 million to stave off a crippling financial crisis.
Four months ago, SEPA was forced to make drastic cuts in monitoring pollution
around factories in order to meet an unexpected £3 million VAT bill
(This Week, 26 April, p 5).
The Scottish environment minister, Lord Sewel, says that
increasing the agency’s budget by 12 per cent this year will enable it to meet
its statutory obligations. SEPA welcomed the money, but said that cutbacks it
introduced earlier in the year—including a jobs freeze and fewer
inspections—would remain. According to one insider, the agency had to
promise to “stop whingeing” in return for the cash.