Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government does not produce projections of poverty. However, changes to tax credits since 2012 are estimated to leave low income households in Scotland approximately £700 a year worse-off on average, with some losing all their tax credit entitlement. Similarly, changes to housing benefit will have further reduced the income of many households already living in poverty. The under-occupancy penalty in the social rented sector, for example, is estimated to affect 82,500 households in Scotland, with an average loss of around £570 per affected household per year, if they are unable to move due to the shortage of suitably sized accommodation. 15,500 of these are households with children.

The UK Government has not yet produced a robust assessment of the cumulative impacts of the welfare reforms it has introduced. The Scottish Government has requested such an assessment. However, no such assessment has been forthcoming to date. The Scottish Government has therefore undertaken its own welfare analysis, available via these links:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/People/welfarereform/analysis; http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Built-Environment/Housing/supply-demand/chma/Benefitchanges

Sources:http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Built-Environment/Housing/supply-demand/chma/Benefitchanges/underoccupancypenalty

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/People/welfarereform/analysis/wrimpactonfamilies