This week not only saw analysis from the
Institute of Fiscal Studies (IFS) showing Scotland’s most deprived households find themselves worse off than when the Tories took office fourteen years ago but also witnessed a report from the
Joseph Rowntree Foundation showing nearly a million people are only £10 a week away from poverty.
The IFS analysis found among the 7.6 million households with children, changes to the tax and benefit system introduced by Westminster have reduced benefit entitlements by £2,200 per year – with those out of work losing an average of £5,500 per year.
The Joseph Rowntree Foundation reported that of the 900,000 people only £10 a week away from poverty includes 200,000 million children, 400,000 working-age adults and 300,000 pensioners). They also reported that 3.2 million people in the UK are only £40 a week from poverty.
These figures are on top of the 14.2 million people already in poverty in the UK, of which 4.2 million are children.
These reports just underline how the broken Westminster system has delivered Austerity, Brexit and a Cost-of-living crisis which has hammered Scotland’s NHS, economy and family budgets. The broken Westminster system does not work for Scotland.
And with both Keir Starmer’s Labour and the Tories committed to a conspiracy of silence over £18 billion of looming public service cuts,
things will only get worse.
In contrast, under the SNP,
Scotland has done all it can to help those less fortunate with one hand tied behind its back – whether that be expanding free childcare, offering free school meals to children, or by introducing the game changing Scottish Child Payment which is estimated to lift 100,000 children out of poverty.
In particular, John Swinney has made eradicating child poverty a top priority but Westminster policies like the two child limit – which Sir Keir Starmer has refused to commit to scrapping – hamper the SNP Scottish Government’s progress.
After his election, the First Minister wrote to Keir Starmer requesting a meeting to discuss shared goals and values on tackling child poverty. The Labour Leader has yet to reply to the invitation.
The Tories are finished, so Labour has an opportunity to deliver a Westminster reset on tackling child poverty. Starmer has failed to do so in this campaign.
It’s clear that neither Rishi Sunak nor Keir Starmer can be trusted to stand up for Scotland – with both committed to imposing even deeper cuts.
On the 4th of July only a vote for the SNP can deliver MPs that will always put Scotland’s interests first and help build a fairer future made in Scotland, for Scotland.
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