Cost of IT for new benefits system soars past £250m

Fresh disaster for SNP...and taxpayer

THE cost of IT for Scotland’s new benefits system has soared to a quarter of a billion pounds with opposition politicians demanding the SNP ‘get a grip’.

Parts of the social security system were devolved after the 2014 independence referendum but it has emerged that the costs for IT have now risen a further £39million to £251million, with no end date in sight.

Scottish Labour’s social security spokesman Pam Duncan-Glancy criticised the SNP Government for

‘Need to get a grip of this’

creating ‘spiralling costs’. She said: ‘The SNP’s lack of planning has led to costs soaring. The SNP need to get a grip of this – people can’t keep paying for their failure.

‘We need an IT system that is person-centred and fit for the future.

‘What we have got instead from the SNP is spiralling costs and a job half done.’

The sharp price rise was revealed in a letter from the Scottish Government to Holyrood’s Public Audit Committee, which was reported by the Daily Record.

The cost of the IT system had been listed at £212million but has since soared by more than 18 per cent.

The price could rise still further, as the end date of the project is unconfirmed.

Caron Lindsay, the social security spokesman for the Scottish Liberal Democrats, described the scheme as an ‘expensive disaster’.

She added: ‘Given how poorly the SNP have handled previous projects, this does not inspire confidence.

‘The Government must explain why there has been such a steep rise. The devolution of social security powers is a great opportunity for Scotland to craft a more humane system – but that will never get off the ground if the IT system underpinning it is an expensive disaster.’

After the 2014 independence referendum, a cross-party agreement was made devolving parts of social security to the Scottish Government.

This included lifeline payments for disabled people, carers, parents and the elderly. However, new IT systems are required to allow new claims to be made and transfer existing cases.

Conservative MSP for Lothian, Miles Briggs, said: ‘SNP ministers constantly talk up their welfare policies, but the costs of the IT system to deliver them cannot spiral out of control. We have seen previous examples of major IT management failures during the SNP’s time in office which resulted in payments not being received by those who urgently needed them.’

He added: ‘The SNP need to reassure those receiving many of the new benefits they have created that the infrastructure they have in place is robust and will deliver a fair deal to taxpayers.’

The Government has committed at least a further £3.9billion to benefit expenditure over the next year, which is set to support at least one million people.

In May, SNP ministers announced that they would increase the devolved benefits by 6 per cent in response to surging inflation and pledged to increase the Scottish Child Payment by £25 a week.

A spokeman for the Scottish Government said: ‘The most recently published development costs reflect costs associated with delivery of social security payments, including the creation of our significant anti-poverty intervention the Scottish Child Payment, as well as additional essential support provided to people during the pandemic.

‘Our pace of delivery is remarkable given the scale and complexity of what we are doing.’

‘Spiral out of control’