THE rollout of free school meals to all primary children and an "enhanced" public sector pay offer will form part of this year's budget plans after the SNP secured deals with opposition parties.

The Greens and the Liberal Democrats both confirmed they will back the Scottish Government's tax and spending plans. 

The move means the minority SNP Government will have a comfortable majority to steer the legislation through Holyrood during its final stages this week.

Finance Secretary Kate Forbes said it "puts us on the path to a fairer, greener and more prosperous Scotland".

The budget deal with the Greens, who have now backed the SNP's spending plans for five years running, includes the expansion of free bus travel to all under 22s.

It will also see an "enhanced public sector pay deal", new "pandemic support payments" for low income households and additional funding to support environmental, active travel and energy efficiency initiatives.

Elsewhere, it includes the phased introduction of free school meals to all primary school children by August 2022.

And it will see an £800 pay rise for public sector workers earning up to £25,000, and a 2 per cent increase for those earning over £25,000 up to £40,000.

Greens co-leader Patrick Harvie said his party have been clear "that the Scottish budget needed to do more to tackle rising poverty and ensure a green recovery from the pandemic".

He added: "I’m delighted that once again our constructive approach has delivered real results for the people who need it most."

Meanwhile, the LibDems secured an extra £120 million for mental health services, an additional £60m to help education "bounce back" with smaller class sizes and a further £20m for in-class support.

An extra £15m was also secured for the north-east to pay for skills and training in a region particularly under pressure given its reliance on fossil fuel industries, alongside "fair funding" for ferries in Orkney and Shetland.

LibDem leader Willie Rennie said: "We think that people expect parties to work together in the middle of a pandemic. Our focus has been to put recovery first.

"We have highlighted the need for business support, an education bounce back plan, and better mental health services, given the pressure we know that the virus crisis has put on people."

Ms Forbes previously confirmed the budget will extend 100% rates relief for the retail, hospitality, leisure, aviation and newspaper sectors for a further 12 months due to the impact of the pandemic.

Money has also been allocated for a council tax freeze, alongside £16 billion for the NHS. Income tax rates remain unchanged.

Extra funding has come from the UK Government as a result of spending commitments related to the pandemic.

Ms Forbes said: "We continue to face unprecedented challenges and I have sought to engage constructively to deliver a budget that meets the needs of the nation.

"I would like to thank all parties for the positive way they have participated in this process.

"The budget addresses key issues raised by every party and I hope all MSPs feel able to support it."

She added: "Today I can announce that we are able to go further in offering a fair and affordable pay settlement to the public sector workers to whom we owe so much through the pandemic, particularly the lowest paid.

"The budget already contains measures to help struggling families, but in this deal we are also announcing details of a £100m programme of one-off pandemic support payments.

"And we commit to providing free school meals to every primary school pupil by August 2022, with expansion for P4s starting after this year’s summer holidays.

"A green recovery lies at the heart of the Scottish Government’s policies and today we are delivering significant new investments in energy efficiency and active travel, while providing additional funding to support biodiversity and make our agriculture more environmentally-friendly.

"And, as we rebuild from Covid, we will support our young people by extending our original commitment to concessionary travel for all under 19s to include everyone up to age 22, giving all 18-21 year olds free bus travel."