Scots in debt to ‘increase by a fifth’

CITIZENS Advice Scotland said it is “bracing itself” for a flood of debt cases in the coming years with the numbers of Scots in debt increasing by more than a fifth.

The independent Money Advice Trust has predicted a 21 per cent increase in the number of people in debt because of public-sector unemployment.

Currently more than a quarter (26 per cent) of all cases dealt with by Citizens Advice Scotland are related to debt.

Susan McPhee, head of policy at CAS, said: “The Scottish CAB service is already in the forefront of helping those who are drowning in debt.

“Of every four cases we see, more than one will be a debt case. And that rate has been growing steadily for the last few years.

“We now have 120 expert advisers in Scotland who deal only with debt cases.”