Meeting of the Parliament 01 November 2022
I am grateful to Elena Whitham and her committee for their substantial work on this inquiry. I thank the individuals and organisations who took the time to give evidence on the issues that are affecting people and on how Governments can target their efforts to help those who are most in need. I also thank Gillian Martin and Siobhian Brown for their contributions on behalf of their committees.
The continuing negative impact of Brexit and the current cost of living crisis have pushed households into hardship, and I am acutely aware of that. Those pressures have been made worse by the economic mayhem that the UK Government has caused over the past few weeks. All of that has exacerbated existing inequalities and financial stress since the committee published its report and the Scottish Government provided our response on the actions that we are taking and our plans for the future.
The committee’s recommendations raised a number of issues that span a wide range of policy areas and local, Scottish and UK Government responsibilities. Within our limited powers and finite budget, the Scottish Government is already addressing many of the recommendations in the inquiry report. We will continue to work across Government as well as with partners, including the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, to improve the response to and the services available for people who are experiencing problem debt.
Households are facing the most severe economic upheaval in a generation, with alarming rises in energy bills, food prices and inflation rates undoubtedly hitting people who are on the lowest incomes the hardest. The Scottish Government’s budget is not immune to such economic shocks. As the Deputy First Minister set out last month, our budget is now worth around £1.7 billion less than when it was set in December, because of increasing inflation.
Yet, in stark contrast to the UK Government, the Scottish Government has taken sustained and significant action to tackle poverty. This year, we have allocated almost £3 billion for support that will mitigate the impact of increasing costs on households, more than £1 billion of which support is available only in Scotland. Through free childcare, bus travel, prescriptions, eye tests, dental check-ups and period products, we are supporting households in all areas of life through a range of actions, all of which will help people through this crisis and beyond.
Putting a total of £150 million in the pockets of low-income families through bridging payments over this year and last is also providing direct cash support to households now. In direct response to the additional pressure that families face this winter, we are also doubling the December payment for eligible families.