'Poorest Scots will suffer most' under Tories' reforms, says SNP

Published on Saturday 17 July 2010 13:51

THE SNP government cranks up the pressure on David Cameron today, publishing a new government report which claims that the poorest families in Scotland will bear the brunt of the coalition's cuts. The paper, by the Scottish Government's chief economic adviser, predicts that the VAT increase will cost families an average of £380 a year, with the worst off hit the hardest.

Around 1.6 million Scots on benefits will also see increases in their income suppressed by changes to the way they are calculated. A further 30,000 people on disability living allowance will no longer be able to apply for the benefit as a result of reforms, it adds.

It also claims that around 621,000 families north of the Border will have their income cut as a result of the three-year freeze in child benefit.

All of these changes will have a disproportionately large impact on the poor, it warns

The paper is published today as finance secretary John Swinney continues to hold private meetings on the cuts he is likely to have to make over coming weeks as spending is reigned in.

An independent report laying out the options for next year is set to be published at the end of the month, offering options on where the axe might fall. Ministers hope to demonstrate that the need for cuts under the current system underlines the case for Scotland getting responsibility for its own finances.

A spokesman for Swinney said: "This is only the start of a financial consolidation programme from Westminster, the likes of which we have never known."