NEW analysis from the SNP has revealed the areas of Scotland hit hardest by the two-child benefit cap as the fallout from Keir Starmer’s stance on the issue continues.
The research comes after Humza Yousaf told the Labour leader to look to Scotland for inspiration on how to deal with child poverty.
Analysis conducted by the SNP using data from the UK Government's Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) reveals Glasgow is the worst hit local authority in Scotland.
Figures show 3990 households (54%) in receipt of Universal Credit or Child Tax Credits were not in receipt of financial support for at least one child in April 2023.
Glasgow is followed by Fife with 1860 families hit, while 1830 have been impacted in North Lanarkshire.
In Edinburgh, 1530 families have been affected while in South Lanarkshire the figure stands at 1420 households.
The map below shows how every local authority is affected by the two-child cap. The darker the colour, the more families in the area are impacted.
Taken as a percentage of households hit, East Ayrshire comes off worse with three in five households (59%) not receiving support for at least one child.
This is closely followed by Stirling (58%), Aberdeen City (57%), Midlothian (57%) and West Dunbartonshire (57%).
Commenting, the SNP’s social justice spokesperson at Westminster, David Linden (below), said: “Sir Keir Starmer has abandoned thousands of families in Scotland to poverty by making the political choice to keep the Tory two child cap – demonstrating that independence is the only way to secure real change and a fairer future for Scotland.
“Politics is about priorities. The SNP government has prioritised tackling poverty by introducing progressive policies like the Scottish Child Payment but the damaging policies of the Tories and pro-Brexit Labour Party are pushing children back into poverty and undermining progress.
“The SNP is the only party offering real change with independence – and real help with the cost of living. In contrast, Sunak and Starmer have clearly decided tackling poverty and helping families is not a priority for them.
“With the full powers of independence, Scotland can scrap the two-child cap and go further to eradicate poverty for good.
“At the next election, voting SNP is the only way to secure independence and get rid of damaging Westminster governments for good.”
