Programme for Government: Humza Yousaf pledges to tackle ‘scourge of poverty’, but faces criticism from campaigners

The First Minister put fighting poverty at the heart of his Programme for Government

Humza Yousaf pledged to tackle the "scourge of poverty" as he unveiled his priorities for the year ahead, but faced immediate criticism from campaigners that he had missed a crucial chance to take meaningful action.

The First Minister put fighting poverty at the heart of his Programme for Government, while also making a pitch to families by announcing a package of measures to boost childcare provision.

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar dismissed Mr Yousaf’s plans as “tired and rehashed”, while Conservative leader Douglas Ross accused him of offering “a poor Nicola Sturgeon tribute act”. The Tories also pointed to “very clear hints that further income tax rises are in the pipeline”.

First Minister Humza Yousaf has announced his Programme for Government. Picture: PA

Mr Yousaf said tackling poverty was “deeply personal”, adding: “Growing up in the Islamic faith, I was always taught that you are not a true Muslim if you have a full stomach while your neighbour goes to bed hungry.” He insisted his Government would “maximise every lever at our disposal to tackle the scourge of poverty in our country”.

In a wide-ranging speech in Holyrood, the First Minister promised a consultation on banning the sale of single use vapes, as well as more help for those who suffer the “loss and trauma” of miscarriage. He said staff working in both childcare and social care would receive a minimum of £12 an hour from April next year.

He also pledged more than £400 million would be invested in the Scottish Child Payment – a benefit paid out to low-income families north of the border. However, there was no commitment to increase the payment from its current level of £25 a week per child, as campaigners such as the Child Poverty Action Group have called for.

Elsewhere, Mr Yousaf said his Government would work with councils to roll out free school meals to all children in P6 and P7, but the Programme for Government document revealed this will not happen until 2026.

The First Minister promised to remove the income threshold for the Best Start Foods programme, which provides some pregnant women and families with prepaid cards they can use to buy healthy foods, such as fruit and milk. This change will benefit about 20,000 mothers-to-be and children, Mr Yousaf said.

He pledged to “accelerate” the expansion of free childcare to two-year-olds. Funding will be provided to six “early adopter” council areas, so they can provide childcare from nine months of age through to the end of primary school.

Mr Yousaf described the provision of childcare as being “a perfect example of a policy that is both anti-poverty and pro-growth”.

He said a Housing Bill would be introduced at Holyrood to “introduce long-term rent controls and new tenants rights”. Second home owners, meanwhile, face the prospect of higher council tax charges, with Mr Yousaf saying local authorities would be allowed to “apply a premium on council tax rates” for such properties.

David Reilly, acting director of the Poverty Alliance, said the Programme for Government was “a critical missed opportunity to turn our shared values of justice and compassion into meaningful action”.

He said: “We are bitterly disappointed with the scope of today’s actions. Right now the Scottish Government are not on track to meet their legally binding child poverty targets. If we want to make poverty a thing of the past, we need the Scottish Government to go further and faster.”

On childcare, he said the extension of funded provision “should have far reaching positive benefits for low-income families, but we remain too focused on limited extensions and pilots”.

Fiona King, the policy and public affairs manager at Save the Children, said: “The stark reality is that right now there are 240,000 children living in poverty across Scotland and today’s announcements represent only a timid step forward to addressing that devastating injustice.”

Ms King praised moves to expand the provision of the Best Start Foods programme as well as attempts to see more children in childcare. But she added: “We know that flexible, affordable, accessible childcare is a top priority for parents we work alongside, but it is unclear how today’s announcements on childcare will address the needs of those families, and if the ambition is great enough, we need to see the detail.

“Tackling childcare is a key element in sustainably driving down poverty, so we welcome the emphasis. But without decisive action to address the workplace barriers faced by parents – especially mothers – this will do little to support parents back into work.”

John Dickie, director of the Child Poverty Action Group, said the First Minister was right to prioritise childcare, but added the announcement needed to be the first step in a transformation of the system. He said it was “really disappointing not to hear any further detail on the First Minister’s commitment to look to increase the Scottish Child Payment”.

Mr Yousaf’s statement in Holyrood also sought to position his Government as pro-business. He announced a £15m plan to support innovation and entrepreneurship, as well as measures to speed up the consent process for new onshore windfarms.

The First Minister said Scotland will “continue to show global leadership in international climate discussions”, adding: “The terrifying impacts of climate change are not something to worry about in the distant future – they are here today.”

However, Mike Robinson, chair of Stop Climate Chaos Scotland, said the Programme for Government “offered few, if any, new measures to deliver emissions’ reductions”.

Friends of the Earth Scotland climate and energy campaigner, Caroline Rance, said: “This is an underwhelming programme for more of the same when what is needed is a radical change that can speed Scotland away from the damage being wrought by fossil fuel companies. The First Minister talked a good game about the importance of climate action and a just transition to net zero, but warm words won’t stop a warming planet.”

Mr Yousaf said his Government would dual the A9 from Inverness to Perth, but was unable to provide a timetable when asked by the Tories.

In a letter to his deputy, Shona Robison, which was published alongside the Programme for Government, Mr Yousaf said she would “use our tax powers in the setting of the 2024/25 Budget to further progress delivery of the most progressive tax system in the UK by making tax policy choices that are informed by public and stakeholder views”.

Opposition parties interpreted such comments as an indication of future income tax rises. The Tories warned against this, insisting: “The reality is that the SNP has already made Scotland the highest taxed part of the UK.”

Speaking in Holyrood, Mr Ross, the Scottish Tory leader, said he had previously urged the First Minister to “be his own man”, adding: “Yet what we’ve heard today is very much the same as before. Far from the bold programme for Scotland we were promised, we’re getting the same tinkering around the edges on our public services – consultations and trials rather than promises and delivery, extreme Green policies that will devastate our economy and rural communities, and, of course, very predictably, the overwhelming focus on the SNP’s obsession with independence.”

Mr Sarwar, the Scottish Labour leader, said the Government has “lost its way, has no clear direction, no sense of purpose and no central mission”. He said: “It is just another tired and rehashed programme from a party that has clearly run out of ideas.”