The Daily Record has a proud history of campaigning against the inhumane practices inflicted by Westminster on those who claim benefits.
The title has consistently shed light on the worst inequities faced by some of the most vulnerable people in society simply for having the audacity to claim benefits to which they are entitled.
And it is partly because of that campaigning vigour the Scottish Government has taken an entirely different approach with a bespoke social security system to administer and deliver benefits.
Having witnessed the callous and distressing way people are treated by Westminster’s DWP - where the aim seems to be to refuse as many benefits as possible - our system has been designed and developed with fairness, dignity, and respect as its founding mission.
This includes the essential IT system. Remember, if the system stopped working, benefits would not be paid, and the hardship inflicted on claimants would be immeasurable.
When the overriding consideration is continuity of payments, shortcuts are not an option. This is a massive and complex system and development has been going on for six years and already delivers 12 distinct benefits.
Value for money comes in many forms. The Scottish Child Payment provides £20 a week for each child under 6 and will rise to £25 a week and include all children up to the age of 16 before the end of the year.
It is hard to overstate the value of this alone in helping families cope with the cost-of-living crisis.
So, to see some opposition politicians lining up to rubbish the system is misleading and disappointing. While we expect that sort of political opportunism from the Tories, Labour and the LibDems really should be better than this.
And just for context, this week we learned the divorce bill for Brexit – which all three opposition parties now back - has increased by another £5billion to and eye-popping £42.5billion.
The Scottish Government is investing to deliver a social security system which is streets ahead of the UK system it replaces. And it is built by a government truly committed to tackling and eliminating inequality.
We should be proud that Scotland provides for people in time of need while ensuring they are treated with dignity, fairness and respect.
Go to www.socialsecurity.gov.scot/benefits for further information about claiming any benefits you are entitled to
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