28 September 2012 Last updated at 13:44 ET

Scottish government spent £88m cutting civil servant jobs

The Scottish government has spent £88m shedding more than 2,000 civil servants in the past two financial years, new figures have shown.

The data reveals two civil servants, out of 2,028, left with pay-offs worth £250,000 or more.

A government spokesperson said the money would be recouped in three years and would deliver recurring savings.

The accounts also show First Minister Alex Salmond is entitled to a pension of about £40,000 a year.

There were no compulsory redundancies in the programme of reducing civil servant numbers.

Scottish Government Consolidated Accounts year ended 31 March 2012

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'UK terms'

The Scottish government spokesperson said: "The costs of our voluntary exit scheme will be recouped in three years and will deliver recurring savings of £13m a year, as part of action to significantly cut our central spending.

"Last year alone we achieved savings of over £64m in our central spend.

"The terms of the Civil Service Compensation Scheme, which dictates how much is received by those taking voluntary severance, are set by the UK government."

The accounts showed Scotland's top civil servant, Sir Peter Housden, has the biggest civil service pension pot, worth £1.7m.

Mr Salmond receives his pension from the day he leaves office but his successors will have to wait until they are 65-years-old, after the system was reformed in 2009.

Former chief economist, Dr Andrew Goudie, took early retirement last year with a pay-off of £186,583 and a pension worth £910,000.

In other figures, the former Lord Advocate, Dame Elish Angiolini, was given a £28,499 resettlement grant when she left her £113,000 post in May 2011.