Axe is another blow to businesses
This week is Challenge Poverty Week and it has been good to see local groups and charities highlighting this extremely important matter.
Over a million people in Scotland are currently living in the harsh reality of poverty, including almost one-in-four children.
These statistics are from before the Covid-19 pandemic, so we can expect these figures to have increased significantly since then.
The key driver of poverty in Scotland is the UK Government’s welfare policies.
A report published earlier this week by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation set out how the UK Government must do more to match the Scottish Government efforts in tackling poverty – including maintaining the temporary £20 increase to Universal Credit beyond April 2021, this increase has been a lifeline for millions.
The benefit cap also stands as a particularly shocking policy that is driving poverty in Scotland.
In March of this year 3,700 households in Scotland were impacted by the benefit cap.
As of the latest statistics, this has increased to over 6,000 (a 62 per cent increase). Two thirds of these households, 4,000, are lone parent families who are already more likely to be living in the grip of poverty.
Earlier this year at Prime Minister’s Questions, I asked Boris Johnson why ESA and other legacy benefits are not seeing a payment increase in line with Universal Credit.
This move would improve people’s standard of life, even if only a little.
As expected, I got a non-answer from Boris Johnson and no logical explanation was forthcoming.
Increasing legacy benefit payments would be a good first step in rebuilding the social security net but far more needs to be done if the Tories are to make up for the damage caused by ten years of brutal austerity cuts – including scrapping the five week wait, the benefit cap, the two-child cap and the sanctions regime.
All of these policy decisions made by politicians that Renfrewshire didn’t vote for are exacerbating child poverty.
Unemployment is rising, people’s working hours and incomes are being cut back, Chancellor Rishi Sunak refuses to extend furlough and millions have been excluded from support since March.
All of these people are being dragged into poverty with no support available.
It is more pressing than ever that the proper financial support is forthcoming from Westminster.
If the Tories fail to act, the inequality gap will continue to widen, people will fall into further debt and hardship and millions of children will face or continue to live in poverty.
I was also disappointed to receive the news that TSB have decided to close the Johnstone and Renfrew bank branches.
Renfrewshire has lost over half of its bank branches in the last decade.
This is yet another blow to local businesses and people who need to access bank branches.
It is a horrible decision as the banks continue to make profit while cutting jobs and leaving our most vulnerable people and elderly residents with no service.
This is also an issue for those in our villages and rural areas.
The bus services are already absolutely terrible and unreliable, this move will mean that many of my constituents will have to take several buses to access their bank.
I have written to TSB’s chief executive expressing my disappointment at these proposed closures and requested a meeting.