News & Information
A welfare
system for Scotland
An expert group which will
advise on how a fairer welfare system can be introduced in an independent
Scotland has been unveiled by Deputy First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon - a
welfare system which protects the vulnerable and supports Scottish households.
The
Expert Working Group on Welfare will look at benefit payments in Scotland,
consider changes to the current system in an independent Scotland, and make
initial recommendations for how a welfare system can reflect Scottish values.
In
December, the UK Government introduced a Bill which will slash vital support
for families and low earners in Scotland by around £210 million. This is
on top of the £2.5 billion in reductions for Scottish households already set
out by the Department for Work and Pensions.
The
group, which includes experts in public sector delivery, social policy, an
accountant and an economist, will be tasked with providing assurance on the
Scottish Government’s assessment of the cost of the benefit system at the point
of independence, as well as its plans for delivering welfare payments in an
independent Scotland.
The group
will also offer views on which aspects of the UK Government’s current reforms
to working-age benefits should be an immediate priority for change in an
independent Scotland to ensure the welfare system protects the most vulnerable
members of Scottish society and supports those who can work with a route into
sustained employment.
Ms
Sturgeon said:
“The only way to guarantee social justice in
Scotland is to have control of the powers needed to deliver it.“When UK spending cuts are reducing the welfare benefits of some of the
most vulnerable members in our communities, with a further £210 million set to
be taken from the pockets of individuals, families and communities, leaving
welfare to Westminster is more worrying than ever."
“Where
the Scottish Government has responsibility at the moment, we are investing to
mitigate the impact of UK cuts to communities. We are providing, with our
partners in local government, £40 million in 2013/14 to ensure that over
560,000 people in Scotland are protected from the UK Government’s 10 per cent
cut to Council Tax Benefit funding."
“We will
provide an extra £9.2m for the Scottish Welfare Fund which means an additional
5,600 Community Care Grants, and over 100,000 Crisis Grants for those groups
who need help most."
The
Welfare Uprating Bill was introduced to the Westminster Parliament on 20
December, and will limit the uprating of various benefit payments to 1 per
cent, rather than an inflation-linked rise.
The
Department for Work and Pensions announced on 21 December that the Benefit Cap,
which places an absolute ceiling on benefit payments, will not be implemented
nationally from April 2013 as planned.
The
members of the group:
·
Darra Singh OBE is currently a director within Ernst & Young’s
Government and Public Sector team, and a former Chief Executive of Jobcentre
Plus.
·
Martyn Evans is Chief Executive of the Carnegie Trust and a former Chief
Executive of Citizens Advice Scotland.
·
Douglas Griffin is former Director of Finance, NHS Greater Glasgow &
Clyde.
·
Professor Mike Brewer is currently a Research Fellow at the Institute
for Fiscal Studies and Professor of Economics at the University of Essex.
Article taken from The Scottish Government
website – 9th January 2013
