The SNP pledged to double the Scottish Child Payment in their 2021 election manifesto – from £10 a week to £20 a week. However, when asked when this would be implemented this week, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon merely signalled that it would be introduced “sooner rather than later”.
The one in four children who live in poverty in Scotland cannot wait for sooner rather than later. This government has a moral and legal duty to support children out of poverty. Next month, low income families face a triple whammy as the furlough scheme ends, the universal credit uplift is scrapped and Ofgem’s energy price cap has its largest ever increase.
In West Scotland, we already have high levels of deprivation and some of the highest unemployment rates in the country. Thousands more families in West Scotland are likely to fall below the poverty line as a result of these measures.
I fully back the calls made by anti-poverty campaign groups, charities, faith leaders and trade unionists. The Scottish Government must do everything it can to mitigate these cuts – including doubling the Scottish Child Payment as a matter of urgency, and doubling it again next year.
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Scottish Child Payment
