Latest news with #Shirley-AnneSomerville
The National
a day ago
- Business
- The National
Will changes on disability benefit cuts affect Scotland?
But while there are rebels who have been appeased, others do not feel the Government have done enough to convince them to vote for the bill next week. But what exactly has changed about their proposals, and will they have any impact on Scotland? What has changed? In March, reforms to the welfare system – aimed at encouraging more people off sickness benefits and into work – were announced by Labour. The Government said the changes, including restricting access to the main disability benefit south of the Border, known as the Personal Independence Payment (PIP), and the sickness-related element of Universal Credit, were expected to make welfare savings of £4.8 billion by 2029/30. An impact assessment published alongside the bill included estimates that changes to PIP entitlement rules would see about 800,000 people lose out. READ MORE: Waspi women call for 'hat-trick of U-turns' amid welfare climbdown But amid huge discontent among their own MPs, Labour have been forced to make concessions. Now, only new claims from November 2026 will come under the tightened eligibility requirements. While this might sound like an improvement, Labour are now being accused of creating a 'two-tier' system, where new claimants will not get the same benefits as those before them. How does this affect Scotland? PIP does not exist in Scotland as it has been replaced by the devolved Adult Disability Payment (ADP), administered by Social Security Scotland. So while changes around PIP will not impact on benefit claimants in Scotland directly, the changes made south of the Border will hit Scotland financially due to the Barnett formula. Shirley-Anne Somerville (below) said back in March the impact on Holyrood's budget would be 'really quite severe' when Labour announced their initial package of reforms. (Image: Jane Barlow) The main concern in Scotland will be for those who in future will need to claim the sickness element of Universal Credit – a reserved benefit. READ MORE: Keir Starmer suggests he didn't check 'island of strangers' speech In a briefing to MPs, Trussell estimated that there are around 300,000 Scots in receipt of the health element of Universal Credit and associated benefits facing cuts. These people will now not be affected by changes to eligibility criteria, but new claimants of the UC health element will be impacted from November next year. Other questions still remain as to how new claimants in Scotland will prove their eligibility for this too. The UK Government announced from 2028/29 onwards, the Work Capability Assessment is set to be binned by DWP and instead people will be assessed for the health element of Universal Credit via the Personal Independence Payments (PIP). With PIP not existing in Scotland, the UK Government is yet to confirm whether the assessment criteria for ADP will be sufficient for proving eligibility. What are disability campaigners saying? Mikey Erhardt, from Disability Rights UK, accused the Government of 'playing politics with our lives', insisting the bill must still be pulled. He said the changes will mean 'a benefits system where future generations of disabled people receive less support than disabled people today' and added that, in making the original announcement of cuts, the Government had 'prioritised balancing its books over improving the lives of disabled citizens'. The MS Society said the Government was simply 'kicking the can down the road and delaying an inevitable disaster', and urged MPs 'not to be swayed by these last-ditch attempts to force through a harmful Bill with supposed concessions'. Food bank network Trussell welcomed the 'significant' concessions but said the proposals 'still present a bleak future for future claimants and still risk placing the Government's commitments to end the need for emergency food and tackle poverty in serious jeopardy'.
The National
a day ago
- Business
- The National
Scotland reacts as Labour announce 'two-tier' benefits U-turn
The Labour UK Government has been forced into a partial U-turn on its welfare reform bill after more than 120 party MPs threatened to rebel against the government in a vote next week. As part of the concessions, people who currently receive Personal Independence Payments (PIP), or the health element of Universal Credit, will continue to do so. But planned cuts to these payments will still hit future claimants, with the fresh package of measures now being branded as a 'two-tier system' that will see the 'young treated worse than the old'. The new plan still keeps in place proposals to change the eligibility criteria for PIP for future claimants. READ MORE: No changes to council tax 'in this decade', says Scottish Government Shirley-Anne Somerville, Scotland's Social Justice Secretary, has criticised the 'backroom late night deal', highlighting disabled people had still not been consulted on the plans. And she has stressed such measures will not be implemented in Scotland. She posted on Twitter/X: 'A two-tier system cannot be a fair system. 'That's what disabled people would have told the Labour Government if they had actually asked them rather than making a backroom late night deal with their own MPs. 'And this half U-turn still does not scrap the 4+ points rule which will prevent support for 100,000s with diffuse disabilities in the future. @scotgov will not follow Labour's lead on any of these changes.' Scotland does not have PIP and instead has a separate devolved payment known as the Adult Disability Payment, but decisions made in London on disability benefits will still impact on Scotland financially. The concessions have gone down well with some of the Labour rebels including ringleader Meg Hillier (below), who is now expected to withdraw her reasoned amendment that had been signed by nearly 130 Labour MPs, including 12 Scottish ones. (Image: House of Commons/UK Parliament/PA Wire) But others have stressed the plan remains inadequate, with Labour MP Nadia Whittome saying the revised proposals are 'nowhere near good enough'. She BBC Radio 4's Today programme that cutting disability benefits will 'in the long-term mean more spending because it has knock-on consequences'. 'Voting for this bill would mean pulling up the ladder and baking in poverty for future disabled people,' she went on. Peter Lamb, Labour MP for Crawley, also wrote on social media that he would still not support the bill, calling the changes "insufficient" and accusing ministers of ignoring better options. Scottish Labour MP Brian Leishman said the concessions were "not enough because disabled people will still become poorer". SNP MP Pete Wishart said he hoped the rebels would stand firm and continue to oppose the bill. Sharing news of the changes, he tweeted: 'Not nearly good enough. A two-tier system which will depend on when you claim for your support. Let's hope the 'rebellion' won't settle for this.' Former Labour MSP Neil Findlay also said that MPs 'need to stand firm and see off Government attempts to divide those opposed to their dreadful cuts.' READ MORE: Question Time called out as Reform councillor on St Andrews panel SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn said Keir Starmer is 'on the brink of creating a two-tier disability system where the young will be treated worse than the old'. He added: 'The message from the Labour Party is clear – if you have an accident that causes a disability, develop a disability over time or if you have a child with a disability you will receive less support than those who have come before you." If the legislation passes on Tuesday, it will then face a few hours' examination by all MPs the following week, rather than days or weeks in front of a committee.
The National
a day ago
- Business
- The National
Scotland reacts to Labour's 'two-tier' benefits U-turn
The Labour UK Government has been forced into a partial U-turn on its welfare reform bill after more than 120 party MPs threatened to rebel against the government in a vote next week. As part of the concessions, people who currently receive Personal Independence Payments (PIP), or the health element of Universal Credit, will continue to do so. But planned cuts to these payments will still hit future claimants, with the fresh package of measures now being branded as a 'two-tier system' that will see the 'young treated worse than the old'. The new plan still keeps in place proposals to change the eligibility criteria for PIP for future claimants. READ MORE: No changes to council tax 'in this decade', says Scottish Government Shirley-Anne Somerville, Scotland's Social Justice Secretary, has criticised the 'backroom late night deal', highlighting disabled people had still not been consulted on the plans. And she has stressed such measures will not be implemented in Scotland. She posted on Twitter/X: 'A two-tier system cannot be a fair system. 'That's what disabled people would have told the Labour Government if they had actually asked them rather than making a backroom late night deal with their own MPs. 'And this half U-turn still does not scrap the 4+ points rule which will prevent support for 100,000s with diffuse disabilities in the future. @scotgov will not follow Labour's lead on any of these changes.' Scotland does not have PIP and instead has a separate devolved payment known as the Adult Disability Payment, but decisions made in London on disability benefits will still impact on Scotland financially. The concessions have gone down well with some of the Labour rebels including ringleader Meg Hillier (below), who is now expected to withdraw her reasoned amendment that had been signed by nearly 130 Labour MPs, including 12 Scottish ones. (Image: House of Commons/UK Parliament/PA Wire) But others have stressed the plan remains inadequate, with Labour MP Nadia Whittome saying the revised proposals are 'nowhere near good enough'. She BBC Radio 4's Today programme that cutting disability benefits will 'in the long-term mean more spending because it has knock-on consequences'. 'Voting for this bill would mean pulling up the ladder and baking in poverty for future disabled people,' she went on. Peter Lamb, Labour MP for Crawley, also wrote on social media that he would still not support the bill, calling the changes "insufficient" and accusing ministers of ignoring better options. Scottish Labour MP Brian Leishman said the concessions were "not enough because disabled people will still become poorer". SNP MP Pete Wishart said he hoped the rebels would stand firm and continue to oppose the bill. Sharing news of the changes, he tweeted: 'Not nearly good enough. A two-tier system which will depend on when you claim for your support. Let's hope the 'rebellion' won't settle for this.' Former Labour MSP Neil Findlay also said that MPs 'need to stand firm and see off Government attempts to divide those opposed to their dreadful cuts.' READ MORE: Question Time called out as Reform councillor on St Andrews panel SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn said Keir Starmer is 'on the brink of creating a two-tier disability system where the young will be treated worse than the old'. He added: 'The message from the Labour Party is clear – if you have an accident that causes a disability, develop a disability over time or if you have a child with a disability you will receive less support than those who have come before you." If the legislation passes on Tuesday, it will then face a few hours' examination by all MPs the following week, rather than days or weeks in front of a committee.
The National
a day ago
- Politics
- The National
Lesley Riddoch slams Labour benefits cuts on Question Time
Appearing on Thursday's programme in St Andrews, the journalist and broadcaster said that society has become more "precarious" and "adversarial" as she hit back at Labour's "unnecessary" plans to make it harder for people with disabilities to access benefits. Riddoch appeared on the programme alongside Social Justice Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar, Scottish Conservative MP Andrew Bowie and Reform UK councillor Thomas Kerr. READ MORE: 'Bizarre': Question Time called out as Reform councillor joins Scottish panel Shortly after the programme was broadcast, the UK Government announced it had partially U-turned on its proposals in a bid to win over more than 100 Labour rebels who were set to block the bill from passing. In a late-night letter to MPs, Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall confirmed that people who currently receive the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) disability benefit would be exempt from planned cuts to eligibility, while all current recipients of the Universal Credit health element – and any new applicants meeting the "severe conditions criteria" – will have their incomes protected in real terms. However, new claimants from November 2026 will still be subject to these changes in eligibility requirements, leading critics to condemn the decision as creating a "two-tier" welfare system. During a segment of the programme debating why Labour is cutting welfare and increasing defence spending, Riddoch told the Question Time audience: "There's been a 25% increase in the number of people committing suicide, dying of alcohol, of, of drugs since before Covid. "This is not like a snowflake generation. This is serious, serious mental health issues which I think are also related to a dog-eat-dog adversarial society where people are in precarious renting situations, precarious jobs. Everything's precarious that for my generation was not. "So you put that all together and you get, if you're unfortunate enough to be on Universal Credit, £100 a week. I'd like to see people managing on this. "For sure, this all needs to be looked at again, but in terms of the kind of benefits that Britain gives compared to other countries across Europe, we're still bumping along at the bottom." Riddoch added: "This seems to me to be a completely unnecessary attack on people who have got no capacity to come back and argue about this. "It's demeaning to end up being allocated points according to whether or not you can basically wash your undercarriage or not, because that's what it's coming down to. READ MORE: John Swinney rejects Reform UK coalition but leaves door open for Scottish Labour "I cannot believe that anybody who stood in any way as a socialist could possibly be looking at this as a viable solution to anything." Meanwhile, Somerville hit out at the Scottish Labour leader's continued support for the welfare cuts, even with one third of Scottish Labour MPs expressing their opposition. Addressing Sarwar directly, she said: "You can try and make this up as you go along, but you have for months, for months talked about your support for Keir Starmer on this issue. "Labour's own policies, which Anas in the past has defended, has meant that 250,000 people will get put into poverty, a Labour Government pushing 50,000 children into poverty. "That's why we've taken the decision not to do this in Scotland, because let's be very clear – this has nothing to do with helping people into work. "Adult Disability Payment, or PIP as it is in the rest of the UK, is a benefit that's there to ensure that the additional costs you have from being disabled or having a long term condition are assisted with. That's what it's about. "And actually, what the disabled people's organisations say, is if you cut that you're going to hamper people from getting to work. "The irony is we're going to have a Labour Government cutting money from disabled people, and what will happen? They'll struggle more to get into work, the pressure will build on our NHS, pressure will build on social care. "This will not deliver £5 billion worth of savings, even if (Keir) Starmer, with Anas's support, goes ahead with it." READ MORE: Scottish Labour lose by-election as minority administration under threat When asked by host Fiona Bruce if she was "happy" to see the welfare bill also increasing north of the Border, Somerville said: "Well what we've said up in Scotland all along is you have to have a robust social security system, but it is an important safety net for people." Bruce interrupted: "Ok, but that's not answering the question. Would you like to see reforms and cuts to the size of the welfare bill here in Scotland?" Somerville responded: "Well, with respect, it is answering that question, because we have to have a system that supports people who need it, so I will not support cuts if it takes away from the vulnerable. "I am happy that we have a Government that has the backs of disabled people, unlike Labour."
Scotsman
2 days ago
- Politics
- Scotsman
Housing crisis will only get worse unless we act now
A year after Scottish Government declared a housing emergency, little has been done to end it, writes DJ Alexander Sign up to our Scotsman Money newsletter, covering all you need to know to help manage your money. Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... It's just over a year since the Scottish Government declared a housing emergency. At the time – May 2024 – Social Justice Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville declared that she would use all the powers at her disposal to try to address the housing situation which she described as 'one of the defining issues of a generation.' Move forward one year to the publication of the latest Scottish quarterly housing statistics. The figures highlight the continuing failure of the Scottish Government to address the country's current housing emergency. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad All sector newbuild starts are down by 11.2 per cent between financial year 23/24 to 24/25; private sector newbuild starts down 11.5 per cent; social sector newbuild starts down 10.1 per cent; and affordable housing supply starts down 21.3 per cent. At every level in housebuilding there is retreat, says David J Alexander At every level in housebuilding there is retreat. There is only contraction and not growth and yet we are expected to believe that 'one of the defining issues of a generation' is being tackled by this inaction, indifference, lack of engagement and an inability to focus funds, energy and commitment on an area which is central to the lives of all Scottish people. There needs to be a sense of real urgency in this to deliver more money, more financial and strategic encouragement to private housing, to social housing, and to affordable housing if this emergency is not to drag on for the next five to ten years. It is true that more finance has been provided for affordable housing and the overall budgets are higher, but this is barely touching the sides. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad There needs to be much greater assistance for the private homebuilding sector, much more movement to generate more social housing and an approach which sets serious targets for the next five years. SNP Minister Shirley-Anne Somerville hoped to sort housing emergency (Picture: Jeff) When there are hundreds of thousands of people on social housing waiting lists; when the private rented sector is experiencing unprecedented demand; and when house prices are soaring because the number of newbuilds is declining, then action is required immediately on all fronts. These latest statistics show all newbuild housing starts to be back at their lowest level since 2013, we need to see a return to the housebuilding peaks of the recent past. Just four years ago in 2020-21 there were 20,902 all sector newbuild starts while six years ago that figure was at 25,324. We need a return to those levels of housebuilding immediately if we are going to address the enormous housing needs which Scotland currently faces. This is a decision not for next year or the year after but for today and it needs coordination between the private and social sector, the housebuilders, the landlords and property investors, the agents and the tenants to create a housing market that is fit for purpose. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad This current situation cannot be allowed to go on. With fewer and fewer houses being started each year, we are creating a greater and greater emergency in the years to come. Without immediate action house prices will continue to rise; rents will continue to increase; waiting lists will continue to grow; and individuals and families will continue to be unable to find a suitable home in Scotland now or in the future.
