Chamber and committees

The pension age disability payment is opening for applications across the whole of Scotland this week, replacing the United Kingdom Government’s attendance allowance. What steps is the Scottish Government taking to ensure that older people in my constituency who are disabled, are terminally ill or have care needs get the money that they need to help them to look after themselves, stay safe and live with dignity?

I am grateful for the chance to speak in what is an important debate.

“Cruelty is becoming a hallmark of the UK Government ... It is simply indefensible ... They are choosing to penalise some of the poorest people in our society ... These are reforms that could well have been delivered with a blue rosette.”

Those are not my words or quotes from the Scottish Government; they are from the National Education Union, the STUC and the disability charity Scope.

Those organisations are not alone in that thinking. I thank all the organisations that provided briefings for the debate—including Sight Scotland, Scottish Action for Mental Health, Citizens Advice Scotland and Carers Scotland, to name just a few. All of them detailed their extreme concerns and urged that the reforms be reconsidered.

A recent freedom of information request revealed that almost 90 per cent of those who currently receive the standard daily living component of PIP will be impacted by the UK Government cuts. That is appalling.

On 6 March, I brought a debate to discuss the reported intention of the Labour Government to go ahead with its punitive welfare reforms. At the time, so-called Scottish Labour MSPs in the chamber said that the debate was premature and pointless. However, we now see that it was on the knuckle. Disabled people demonstrate outside the offices of Anas Sarwar, Pam Duncan-Glancy, Pauline McNeill and Paul Sweeney—but, for a change, there is silence from them. Instead of a change of direction, a Labour Government in Westminster is intent on making disabled people, children and pensioners pay for austerity.

The biggest lie of any election campaign is the one from Anas Sarwar, in June 2024, when he said:

“Read my lips—no austerity under Labour.”

What we see now is just austerity 2.0, and it is crystal clear that the Scottish Labour leader’s words count for absolutely nothing.

The UK Government’s impact analysis shows that 250,000 people, including 50,000 children, will be pushed into poverty under the plans. The cuts are inhumane and cruel. That has been recognised by the leading disability charity, Scope, which has described them as “catastrophic”.

It is not the only organisation to feel that way. Citizens Advice Scotland has stated:

“These reforms will result in a reduction of £5 billion in social security expenditure by 2030. This will have enormous consequences and push more disabled people into poverty.”

Across the board, Scotland’s charities recognise that the decision puts funding for Scotland’s social security system at risk. Less funding for the UK PIP will reduce the amount that is available to the Scottish Government to spend on social security, irrespective of demand for adult disability payment and differing demographics in Scotland.

We now know that the Scottish Government has had confirmation from HM Treasury that, from 2026-27, there will be cuts to Scotland’s block grant as a result of the welfare cuts. Initial indications are that the changes will reduce by £408 million the block grant funding that Scotland will receive for social security benefits in 2029-30.

The Labour MSPs who are here today should stand up and call out their UK bosses. First, Labour kept the two-child cap, then it removed the winter fuel payment and abandoned the WASPI women, and now it is targeting disabled people. Children, the elderly, the disabled and low-income families have been left out in the cold by the Labour Party.

While Labour imposes more damage and austerity and threatens the vulnerable, the SNP will stand up for those who need support, by investing a record £6.9 billion in devolved benefits in 2025-26, which will assist disabled people and help low-income families with living costs, and by reinstating winter heating support to pensioners.

By going even further than the Tories with devastating cuts to disabled people, Labour has embarked on a total betrayal of the promises that it made to voters. The Labour Party simply cannot be trusted. Will Anas Sarwar remain silent on this matter?

My colleagues in the SNP and I will stand up for the most vulnerable in our society, and the SNP will continue to prioritise dignity, fairness and respect, in contrast to the Labour Party, which pushes on with its values of humiliation, injustice and disrespect.

The issue that we are discussing is a matter of urgency, and the decision must be reversed now. As it is quite clear that Scotland continues to be an afterthought for successive Labour Governments, it is more urgent than ever that Scotland becomes an independent country, so that we have the full powers that are needed to tackle poverty and create a fairer and more equal society for Scotland.

I am grateful for the chance to speak in what is an important debate.

“cruelty is becoming a hallmark of this”

UK

“government. It is simply indefensible.”

“They are choosing to penalise some of the poorest people in our society.”

“These are reforms that could well have been delivered with a blue rosette.”

Those are not my words or quotes from the Scottish Government; they are from the National Education Union, the STUC and the disability charity Scope.

Those organisations are not alone in that thinking. I thank all the organisations that provided briefings for the debate—including Sight Scotland, Scottish Action for Mental Health, Citizens Advice Scotland and Carers Scotland, to name just a few. All of them detailed their extreme concerns and urged that the reforms be reconsidered.

A recent freedom of information request revealed that almost 90 per cent of those who currently receive the standard daily living component of PIP will be impacted by the UK Government cuts. That is appalling.

On 6 March, I brought a debate to discuss the reported intention of the Labour Government to go ahead with its punitive welfare reforms. At the time, so-called Scottish Labour MSPs in the chamber said that the debate was premature and pointless. However, we now see that it was on the knuckle. Disabled people demonstrate outside the offices of Anas Sarwar, Pam Duncan-Glancy, Pauline McNeill and Paul Sweeney—but, for a change, there is silence from them. Instead of a change of direction, a Labour Government in Westminster is intent on making disabled people, children and pensioners pay for austerity.

The biggest lie of any election campaign is the one from Anas Sarwar, in June 2024, when he said:

“Read my lips—no austerity under Labour.”

What we see now is just austerity 2.0, and it is crystal clear that the Scottish Labour leader’s words count for absolutely nothing.

The UK Government’s impact analysis shows that 250,000 people, including 50,000 children, will be pushed into poverty under the plans. The cuts are inhumane and cruel. That has been recognised by the leading disability charity, Scope, which has described them as “catastrophic”.

It is not the only organisation to feel that way. Citizens Advice Scotland has stated:

“These reforms will result in a reduction of £5 billion in social security expenditure by 2030. This will have enormous consequences and push more disabled people into poverty.”

Across the board, Scotland’s charities recognise that the decision puts funding for Scotland’s social security system at risk. Less funding for the UK PIP will reduce the amount that is available to the Scottish Government to spend on social security, irrespective of demand for adult disability payment and differing demographics in Scotland.

We now know that the Scottish Government has had confirmation from HM Treasury that, from 2026-27, there will be cuts to Scotland’s block grant as a result of the welfare cuts. Initial indications are that the changes will reduce by £408 million the block grant funding that Scotland will receive for social security benefits in 2029-30.

The Labour MSPs who are here today should stand up and call out their UK bosses. First, Labour kept the two-child cap, then it removed the winter fuel payment and abandoned the WASPI women, and now it is targeting disabled people. Children, the elderly, the disabled and low-income families have been left out in the cold by the Labour Party.

While Labour imposes more damage and austerity and threatens the vulnerable, the SNP will stand up for those who need support, by investing a record £6.9 billion in devolved benefits in 2025-26, which will assist disabled people and help low-income families with living costs, and by reinstating winter heating support to pensioners.

By going even further than the Tories with devastating cuts to disabled people, Labour has embarked on a total betrayal of the promises that it made to voters. The Labour Party simply cannot be trusted. Will Anas Sarwar remain silent on this matter?

My colleagues in the SNP and I will stand up for the most vulnerable in our society, and the SNP will continue to prioritise dignity, fairness and respect, in contrast to the Labour Party, which pushes on with its values of humiliation, injustice and disrespect.

The issue that we are discussing is a matter of urgency, and the decision must be reversed now. As it is quite clear that Scotland continues to be an afterthought for successive Labour Governments, it is more urgent than ever that Scotland becomes an independent country, so that we have the full powers that are needed to tackle poverty and create a fairer and more equal society for Scotland.

I speak as a member of the Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee. I thank the many organisations for the helpful briefings that they provided.

It was a welcome opportunity for the committee to take evidence from environmental and legal professionals and from the Minister for Victims and Community Safety. As has been mentioned, the Aarhus convention is a UN treaty that requires states to provide access to justice to allow challenges in court of breaches of environmental law. The convention consists of three pillars: access to environmental information for any citizen, the right to public participation in decision making and access to justice in environmental matters. Progress has been made, but we all recognise that much more needs to be done to ensure that Scotland and the rest of the UK are compliant with the convention.

The minister noted that the Aarhus convention compliance committee previously welcomed Scotland’s significant progress in 2018, and that work is on-going to strengthen compliance in the areas of concern that the ACCC identified in its most recent decision. One point of concern relates to whether the Scottish Government will repeal regulation 15 of the Civil Legal Aid (Scotland) Regulations 2002, in particular because the joint interest test that is specified under the regulation makes it difficult to obtain legal aid for environmental cases, given that such cases usually impact more than one person. However, as recognised by Denise Swanson, Scottish Government head of civil courts and inquiries, regulation 15

“is a necessary control mechanism for the proper and consistent use of the legal aid fund. Repealing it in its entirety could well have consequences across other elements of legal aid provision.”

It was acknowledged that

“There is a problem to do with the juxtaposition of how the legal aid system, including regulation 15, operates at the moment, and how we meet the needs of environmental issues and environmental actions.”—[Official Report, Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee, 12 November 2024; c 25, 26.]

However, there needs to be greater discussion about the correct way forward.

The Scottish Government recognises that reform is needed, and it is welcome to note that action has already been taken to address some of the concerns that were noted in the report.

Although we rightly acknowledge today that more can be done, it is important to speak about the significant steps that the Scottish Government has taken in relation to climate change, nature restoration and reaching net zero. In the 2025-26 budget, it is investing more than £90 million to protect, maintain and increase woodlands and peatlands. Additionally, by deploying capital funding of £150 million to continue to anchor our offshore wind supply chain in Scotland, we support jobs and push closer towards our net zero goals.

The Scottish Government is also building on the Circular Economy (Scotland) Act 2024 by delivering £39.6 million to help Scotland’s transition to a circular economy, reduce waste and promote sustainable consumption. That includes funding for the banning of single-use vapes and funding for Zero Waste Scotland.

That is maybe something that the minister can cover later; I do not have that figure to hand. I am sorry about that—the member is laughing, but I do not have it.

The environmental challenges that we face are urgent—there is no denying that. That was made very clear to me this week, when the Kilpatrick hills in my constituency saw a second wildfire in two weeks, and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service issued its third wildfire warning this year due to dry weather.

The damage that such fires can cause is significant, and they can harm wildlife, impact farms and pose a risk to the public. Those issues are, naturally, very worrying, so we must push for more action and ensure that we have strong legal protections and frameworks.

This is an extremely important matter, and we must work together to ensure that all levers are available to protect our environment.

Community link workers in my constituency provide a vital service to the most deprived communities. However, the Labour-led West Dunbartonshire Council has cut that service despite the council receiving the highest per-head-of-population settlement of any mainland local authority. The decision has, rightly, been criticised by many, including the GMB trade union. Will the cabinet secretary join me in condemning these Labour cuts and call for them to be reversed?

Good morning. Going back to the comments from Maggie Chapman, I totally agree that it is of paramount importance that disabled people are at the heart of shaping policies. We need to make sure that that happens if we are to bring about the change that is required.

Jan, can you talk us through what the response has been from the Scottish Government to the recommendations?

That is certainly something that we will take back when we approach the Scottish Government. It is really important that we move on this as quickly as possible.

Convener, I do not have any more questions. What I was going to cover has already been covered, so I hand back to you in the interests of time.

I congratulate Maggie Chapman on securing this important debate. I also take the opportunity to thank Homeless Network Scotland and Heriot-Watt University for their briefings, and the Scottish Refugee Council for everything that it does.

In the 21st century, no one should be living in destitution, but the Home Office hostile environment continues to result in destitution thriving. The no recourse to public funds system needlessly prevents people from accessing welfare support, which results in there being no safety net should they face difficulty. It leaves people homeless, hungry and at risk of exploitation, and those people might have already fled horrific situations.

The Labour Government promised change, but, instead, people continue to be denied basic rights. New research from I-SPHERE has found that the average income of those who are impacted is exceptionally low, at just £40 per week. I-SPHERE also found that, of those who were surveyed,

“A third reported no income at all in the last month”.

It found that

“Hunger and skipping meals were the norm”

and that the use of charities for essentials such as food, toiletries and clothing was exceptionally high.

To put that in perspective, I want to tell members about Kunal’s story. Kunal arrived in the UK at the age of 26 as a student, fleeing homophobic persecution. He claimed asylum without success and was evicted from his accommodation. Kunal was forced to sleep rough, he was attacked and threatened with a knife, and he went hungry and took exploitative cash-in-hand work just to eat.

A turning point came when Kunal contacted the Scottish Refugee Council, which helped him to secure support to submit a fresh application. He was granted Home Office accommodation, but he was afraid of being declined again. Kunal knows that returning to his country of origin is too dangerous, but, then again, he says, “I’m not safe here.”

That is one of many heartbreaking stories, and it is a matter of justice, compassion and humanity that no one should be put in that situation. I am therefore grateful for, and welcome, the positive steps that the Scottish Government and COSLA have taken to reduce destitution. The “Ending Destitution Together” strategy, which was developed by the Scottish Government and COSLA in 2021, aims to ensure that people living in communities across Scotland do not experience destitution associated with their immigration status. A crucial part of that is the fair way Scotland partnership, which has been a lifeline for so many. I thank everybody who is involved in it for everything that they do.

I also welcome the Scottish Government’s and COSLA’s current review of the “Ending Destitution Together” strategy, the aim of which is to identify a refreshed delivery plan. As Homeless Network Scotland stated in its briefing,

“there is no credible evidence that hostile environment policies, including NRPF, have achieved the aims set out by the UK Government.”

A change to that UK Government policy could remedy the situation overnight. Furthermore, as an independent country, we could finally have control over our own immigration policy and be able to introduce a system that values and respects people.

I was interested to read in the report about possible actions that could be taken now to tackle destitution. One example is widening access to universal services and welfare benefits for people with no recourse to public funds. I am keen to hear the minister outline the Scottish Government’s position on those recommendations.

Destitution is the result of injustice and of policies that entrench hardship. Therefore, it is up to us to call out such policies and push for action. We must stand with those who face destitution and ensure that no one is left behind.

Is the minister able to provide an update on the work to establish a comprehensive cladding assurance register for Scotland, as set out in the Housing (Cladding Remediation) (Scotland) Act 2024?