By Professor John Robertson OBA

In the Guardian today, always Anglocentric, there’s this:

Statistics released today reveal that 123,000 households in England, Scotland and Wales were affected by the benefit cap in May 2024, a rise of about 46,000 in just three months according to government figures. Introduced by George Osborne in 2013, the cap means the most a family without regular work can claim is £25,323 in London and £22,020 in the rest of the country.

and this example:

In our research with families affected by the benefit cap, we have spoken to parents such as Lucy, who pays £1,375 a month to rent a mould-ridden, rat-infested property. At times, the cap has left her family with as little as £65 a week to survive on once the rent and some of the bills are paid. £65. For five of them. It is simply not possible to get by on that.¹

That’s the only reference to Scotland.

There’s no mention of this:

Scottish child payment is £26.70 a week per eligible child, payable every four weeks. There is no limit on how many children within a family can get Scottish child payment.²

So, that family would get an additional £133.50 per week.

Let Labour into to Holyrood and get the same surge in child poverty here too.

Sources:

1. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/sep/17/uk-two-child-benefit-limit-benefit-cap-families-poverty
2. https://cpag.org.uk/welfare-rights/benefits-scotland/scottish-benefits/children-young-people/scottish-child-payment#:~:text=will%20have%20priority-,How%20much%20is%20Scottish%20child%20payment,credit%20or%20child%20tax%20credit.

The OBA – https://scotsindependent.scot/?page_id=116