Read the latest news on poverty in Scotland.
45,600 workers in Scotland set to benefit from vital pay boost Almost £240 million in extra wages has gone to low-paid workers in Scotland thanks to the Living Wage movement, including over £42 million since the start of lockdown. Over 34,000people in key worker industries in Scotland have benefitted from over £192 million in extra wages since … Read more
In a decent and just society, we should all be able to receive the support we need through a safe system of social protection. But right now, the UK’s social security system is failing to support people with mental health problems. With rising levels of mental ill health as a result of Covid-19, there is … Read more
As Challenge Poverty Week draws to a close, Scotland’s faith leaders have issued a joint statement calling on the UK and Scottish Governments to make changes to the social security system to stem the rising tide of poverty. In the statement, issued today, senior representatives from Scotland’s major faith groups urged both Westminster and Holyrood … Read more
Never the Same Again? Addressing Poverty After the Pandemic Poverty Alliance Annual Conference, 9 October 2020 (online) The coronavirus pandemic has shone a light on many of aspects of social injustice in our society. It has highlighted the importance of our social security system in providing a lifeline when we need it most, but the … Read more
A coalition of anti-poverty organisations and children’s charities have today said that the decision not to bring forward an urgent cash boost to families living in poverty in the Scottish Government’s Programme for Government, “fails to adequately respond” to rising levels of poverty that risk overwhelming Scotland’s communities in the coming months as a result … Read more
Campaigners have repeated their calls for the Scottish Government to provide an urgent cash boost to low income families struggling amid the pandemic. It comes as a new Scottish Government report detailing progress against Scotland’s child poverty targets – including cutting child poverty to less than 10% – reveals a worrying outlook for families. The … Read more
The Poverty Alliance have today responded to new statistics from the Department for Work and Pensions, which show that between February 2020 and May 2020 there was a 93% increase in the number of households impacted by the benefit cap. Peter Kelly, Director of the Poverty Alliance, said: “Covid-19 has underlined how important our social … Read more
The Poverty Alliance have responded to today’s economic update statement from Rishi Sunak MP, Chancellor of the Exchequer. Peter Kelly, Director of the Poverty Alliance, said: “Young workers have been hard hit by Covid-19 job disruption, so the Chancellor’s announcement of a kickstart jobs scheme is welcome. But as the pandemic has highlighted, for too … Read more
In this blog Peter Kelly, Director of the Poverty Alliance, urges the Chancellor of the Exchequer to use his economic update statement to commit to scrapping the benefit cap, as the first step toward a more just social security system and a more just economic recovery. Today we expect to hear more from the Chancellor, … Read more
Ahead of a statement today by Rishi Sunak, Chancellor of the Exchequer, on the UK’s economic recovery, the Poverty Alliance have written to him calling for the statement to be used to end the benefit cap, as a first step toward a more just social security system and a more just economic recovery. The letter … Read more
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