Is Scotland's public sector workforce too big and paid too much?

And is that, along with recent pay deals, partly to blame for this moment of crisis at Holyrood?

Shona Robison hinted as much, by extending a recruitment freeze across public bodies, beyond the Scottish government.

Why?

Scotland has more public sector workers than England, as a proportion of its population.

It's over 20% for Scotland - compared to about 18% for the UK as a whole.

Median public sector pay in Scotland is also higher than across the UK.

So if the Scottish government matches a 4% public sector pay deal for England, the impact on the Scottish budget is greater.

More workers and higher wages per head deliver that effect.

And even if the UK government funds a pay deal from a new tax rise, the knock-on Barnett funding for Scotland wouldn't be enough, as wages are higher here.

All this could create an annual problem - with the Scottish government having to find the money for wages from other spending priorities.