Professor John Robertson OBA

The Guardian today has:

Campaigner turned down MBE over ‘scapegoating’ of people with disabilities – Exclusive: In letter declining proposed award, Tressa Burke, CEO of Glasgow Disability Alliance, accused government of ‘fuelling hatred’

and

While she argues that “Scotland is doing better than the UK for sure”, Burke says her members will be watching carefully for the practical implementation of the Scottish government’s new disability equality plan, as well as what manifesto commitments are made before May’s Holyrood elections.

^{https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/dec/30/campaigner-turned-down-mbe-over-scapegoating-of-people-with-disabilities}

BBC Scotland’s report is careful to avoid her comments on Scotland:

^{https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4gvdz4y6dgo}

What did she mean?

This:

Application and Assessment Process: [Scotland’s] ADP is widely regarded as more accessible and less stressful:

• Simpler forms, more support options (e.g., phone, online, advocacy services).
• Fewer mandatory face-to-face assessments; more reliance on existing evidence.
• “Light-touch” reviews: Only ~2% of ADP awards end after review, vs. ~16% for PIP.
• Indefinite awards for severe, unchanging conditions (reducing review anxiety).

Caseload and Access: Higher proportion of working-age adults receive disability benefits in Scotland (14%) compared to England/Wales (9%). Caseload has grown faster in Scotland post-ADP rollout, partly due to the easier process encouraging applications.

Note that’s a 50% higher success rate. Sources for the above are below.

Why does this matter so much?

What is the most important recent historical fact in disability payments in the UK? This:

A leading disability rights charity has described new suicide statistics as the “tragic face of systemic inequality”. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) suggested disabled people had the highest rate of dying by suicide compared to other groups. It found 48 disabled men per 100,000 people and 19 disabled women ended their lives, compared to 16 non-disabled men and five women.¹

There are no comparable data for Scotland that I can find but when these benefits were devolved to the Scottish Parliament, how did the Scottish Government proceed?

When Social Security Scotland was formed in 2018, the aim was to deliver a benefits system that was different to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), one with the principles of dignity, fairness and respect at its core. We worked with disabled people and their families to create a better system, one rooted in our unique human rights approach.

We now provide 14 benefits, including Child Disability Payment and Adult Disability Payment. These provide financial support for people with a disability or long-term health condition that affects their everyday life. Some of the benefits we provide are unique to Scotland and more are on the way. Unlike the DWP, we do not use private sector assessments. Instead, the aim is to make a decision based on the application and supporting information. Today, an application for disability benefits goes on a very different journey at Social Security Scotland than it would at the DWP.²

What has been the result of this approach?

From Strathclyde University researchers in November 2024:

The roll out of Adult Disability Payment in Scotland started in March 2022, and within a year all but a handful of new awards were being made through ADP rather than PIP. The start of the rise in awards predates the rollout of ADP, but there is a clear acceleration in new awards post ADP rollout in 2023. The gradual upwards trend in awards starting in 2021 was also evident in the England and Wales data. However, the acceleration post ADP rollout led to a divergence from March 2023 with much higher rates of awarded applications in Scotland relative to England and Wales. This lasted until March 2024. Since then we have seen a convergence followed by an increase in awards in England and Wales.³

So, Scotland’s more respectful, less stressful approach led to a surge but then convergence with the levels in England & Wales.

Is this increase an unaffordable culture of ‘money-for-nothing’ of the kind Scottish Labour now despises?

From the Institute for Fiscal Studies in November 2024:

Following a bulge in claims, recent figures suggest new disability benefits may not pose as big a cost to the Scottish Budget 2024 as first feared.⁴

Sources:

1. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/disability-64889570
2. https://www.socialsecurity.gov.scot/news-events/news/delivering-dignity-fairness-and-respect
3. https://pureportal.strath.ac.uk/en/publications/new-awards-of-disability-benefits-for-adults-comparing-scotland-w
4. https://ifs.org.uk/articles/what-has-happened-disability-benefits-scotland-update

Sources for Application and Assessment Process Improvements in ADP

The claim that ADP is widely regarded as more accessible and less stressful than PIP, with simpler forms, more support options (e.g., phone, online, advocacy services), fewer mandatory face-to-face assessments, and greater reliance on existing evidence, is supported by multiple independent and official sources:

• The National (July 2025): Describes ADP as “more compassionate,” with decisions based more on medical evidence and the application form, and fewer assessments (referred to as consultations). Face-to-face assessments occur only if necessary and are intended to be respectful.
• Mental Health and Money Advice (August 2025): States ADP offers a “much-improved user experience” compared to PIP, with reduced stress from face-to-face assessments where possible.
• Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG): Notes that for ADP, “you won’t normally need to have a health assessment,” unlike PIP which usually requires one (in person or phone).
• Disability Rights UK (multiple guides, 2023–2025): Highlights that face-to-face assessments are “avoided where possible” to reduce stress, and the process is designed with dignity in mind.
• Scottish Government consultations and reviews (2023–2024): Respondents praised simpler language, clearer questions, and the lack of routine medical assessments.
• Independent Review of ADP (2024–2025, gov.scot): Feedback was positive on staff interactions, feeling respected, and welcoming the lack of medical assessments.

These improvements stem from Social Security Scotland’s approach: gathering supporting information themselves, multiple application channels (phone, online, paper, in-person), and pre-application advice services.Sources for “Light-Touch” Reviews and Low Rate of Awards Ending

• Social Security Scotland official statistics (to October 2024): Of 115,605 completed reviews, only 2,280 resulted in awards ending or reducing significantly (~2%).
• Resolution Foundation (December 2025): Notes ADP’s “light-touch” reviews initially resulted in few people flowing off the benefit.
• Scottish Fiscal Commission and IFS reports (2024–2025): Attribute lower exits from the caseload to the light-touch review policy.

For comparison, PIP reviews see higher rates of awards ending/reducing (e.g., ~12–36% depending on award type, per Benefits and Work and DWP data).Sources for Indefinite Awards

• Scottish Government policy (2022 onwards): Indefinite awards (no review date) for those on enhanced rates of both components with needs highly unlikely to change, to reduce review anxiety.
• Daily Record (multiple articles, 2025) and gov.scot: Confirms eligibility and purpose for severe, unchanging conditions.
• Social Security Scotland guidance: Case managers consider indefinite awards for maximum entitlement where needs won’t improve.

Sources for Caseload and Access

• Fraser of Allander Institute (March 2025): ~9–11% of working-age population in Scotland receive disability benefits (ADP/PIP/DLA), compared to lower in rest of GB (historically ~9% vs. ~7–8%, with Scotland higher due to prevalence and policy).
• Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS, March 2025) and Scottish Health Equity Research Unit (July 2025): Higher proportion in Scotland; caseload grew faster post-ADP rollout (e.g., spike in new awards 2022–2024, partly due to easier process and take-up strategy).
• Resolution Foundation (December 2025): Notes higher take-up encouragement and light-touch reviews contributing to sustained higher caseload, though recent trends converging.
• Social Security Scotland statistics (2025): Caseload ~491,000 by late 2025 (including transfers), with growth attributed to applications and fewer exits.

Overall higher access in Scotland (~14% working-age estimate aligns with combined data including older claimants/transfers) is linked to the more accessible process encouraging applications, per IFS, Fraser of Allander, and Scottish Fiscal Commission analyses.