Current status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 6 January 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what funding has been allocated in its draft Budget 2025-26 to mitigate any negative impact in Scotland of the UK Government's policy decisions.
On 4 December 2024, the Cabinet Secretary for Finance & Local Government announced a draft Scottish Budget for 2025-26. Included in the draft Budget was the commitment to continue mitigating some of the negative impacts of UK Government policy decisions, including the bedroom tax and benefit cap, and a new commitment to develop the systems necessary to effectively scrap the impact of the two-child limit in 2026. The Child Poverty Action Group has estimated that the change could lift 15,000 children in Scotland out of poverty.
Subject to the approval of Parliament, the Scottish Government will invest over £97 million in Discretionary Housing Payments in 2025-26 to mitigate the bedroom tax and benefit cap and provide additional housing support. This is an increase of nearly £7 million over 2024-25 and more per person than any other UK nation.
In addition to the above support, an additional £20 million was recently added to the Scottish Welfare Fund to enable councils to provide more vital support to people in crisis, bringing the total investment for 2024-25 up to £61 million. Shortfalls in the UK social security system have contributed to an increased demand on the fund, and we will continue to closely monitor spend and demand trends as we look ahead to the next financial year.