The accounts show that total net expenditure during the year was £33,308m, £392m less than budget. The resource budget was underspent by £357m (1.1%) and capital by £35m (1.8%).

 The initial budget for 2015/16 was based on forecasted revenues of £381m from the devolved land and buildings transaction tax (LBTT) and £117m from the new Scottish landfill tax (SLfT), a total of £498m. The actual amounts raised during the year were £425m and £147m respectively, £74m above the amount originally anticipated in January 2015.

The Scottish Budget for 2015/16 reflected new tax and borrowing powers for the first time. With further powers flowing from the Scotland Act 2016, the Auditor General Caroline Gardner said it is ‘increasingly important that the Scottish Parliament and the public have comprehensive, transparent and timely information on how public money is used and what has been achieved’.

The report highlights risks to the management and control of European funding which, for the foreseeable future, will continue to be an important income stream for the Scottish government. Other significant matters from the 2015/16 audit include the continuing risks in the delivery of the Common Agricultural Policy Futures Programme and the need to ensure that management of European Structural Funds, which provide financial assistance in areas such as transport links and business growth, comply fully with European Commission requirements.

During 2015/16, three of the four programmes managed by the Scottish government were suspended by the Commission and the accounts show that it may not be able to recover an estimated £14m in grant funding.

The Office for National Statistics' decision to classify the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route as a public sector project and the Scottish government's decision to adopt a similar treatment for three further projects reduced its capital spending power in 2015/16, though this was successfully managed within overall budget limits.

Gardner said: ‘The construction and management of the Scottish budget is becoming increasingly complex and the Scottish government has established a strong base to address the substantial changes and uncertainty affecting public finances.

‘While recent developments show the Scottish government is heading in the right direction, there's much still to do to ensure that the Scottish Parliament, and the public, have the information they need to fully understand and scrutinise the implementation of the new powers, especially the new tax and spending choices.’

Meanwhile, a survey of members of two of the leading professional bodies representing Scotland’s tax professionals has found that while there is overwhelming support for the principles underpinning the Scottish government’s approach to current and future devolved taxes, less than a quarter of those responding think that these principles will be achievable.

The findings are included in a written submission by CIOT, its Low Incomes Tax Reform Group (LITRG) and the Association of Taxation Technicians (ATT) to the Scottish Parliament’s finance committee, who are undertaking an inquiry into a Scottish approach to taxation.

While an average of 94% of respondents indicated their support for the Scottish government’s four principles of proportionality, certainty, efficiency and convenience, just 24.1% viewed these as achievable, with the remainder either undecided (41%) or viewing the goals as unachievable (34%).

The submission also suggests that one way of translating the principles into practice could be to enshrine them within legislation, proposing that a body such as the Scottish Fiscal Commission takes responsibility for reviewing tax legislation against the four values.

With significant new powers over tax and spending set to be devolved from the UK Parliament to Holyrood in 2017, the CIOT and ATT reiterated their call for a public information campaign designed to educate and inform the public of the current and forthcoming changes.

The CIOT/ATT survey also found strong support for ensuring that Scotland’s devolved taxes align with the rest of the UK in one form or another, arguing that alignment would reduce complexity, costs and uncertainty for individuals and businesses.  Only 6% offered their support for a truly distinctive approach, while 57% said that the involvement of HMRC would limit the scope for a different tax system in Scotland.

Moira Kelly, chair of the CIOT Scotland technical committee said: ‘With yet more changes forthcoming as a result of increased devolution, it has never been more important for the Scottish public to understand who is responsible for setting, collecting and spending taxes raised here in Scotland.

‘The Scottish government’s proposals for a system underpinned by Adam Smith’s four principles of proportionality, certainty, efficiency and convenience are noble, but we must all work to ensure that the theory behind these is achieved in practice.’

The 2015/16 audit of the Scottish Government Consolidated Accounts is here.

CIOT/LITRG/ATT’s submission is here.