TORY WAR ON WOMEN
WOMEN are bearing the brunt of brutal Tory cuts, the Scottish Government warned last night.
Equalities Secretary Angela Constance said the rape clause was one example of the UK Government showing an “an alarming lack of understanding” about the damage their welfare changes can have.
Research from the Fawcett Society last year revealed 20 per cent of women’s income comes from benefits and child tax credits, compared to 10 per cent of men’s.
Meanwhile, HMRC say 94 per cent of in-work single parents receiving child-tax credits are female.
The rape clause requires rape victims claiming tax credits for a third child to prove they became pregnant as a result of an attack or while in a coercive relationship to qualify.
By 2020-21 it is estimated that 50,000 Scottish households will be affected by the changes to child tax credits, which will be capped at two children.
And new families will lose £545 a year with the removal of the “family element” – an additional payment that applies to the birth of a first child.
Constance said: “The latest welfare cuts are having a hugely damaging and disproportionate impact on women.
“It is all the more concerning because in many households women are the primary, or even sole, carers of children.”
But Tory MSP Annie Wells defended the rape clause, saying: “Women will not be required to report their rape as a crime or report it directly to HMRC.”