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PRESS RELEASE

New figures show Benefit Cap punishing worse off

Independence only way to get rid of callous policy

The SNP has said independence is a necessity to escape from 'callous' Tory policy after new figures revealed the amount of people affected by the benefit cap.

The latest numbers from the Department of Work and Pensions showed around 120,000 households across the UK were subject to the cap as of August 2022.

The stats also showed:

  • 18,000 households (UC and HB) were newly capped in the latest quarter.
  • 87% of households (HB and UC) that are currently capped include children.
  • 70% of households that have their benefits capped are single-parent families.
  • Households had their benefits capped by an average of £51 a week at August 2022.

The SNP Scottish Government is spending £86.6 million on mitigating the UK Government's bedroom tax and benefit cap for people affected in Scotland and to support them through the Tory made cost of living crisis.

Commenting, the SNP's Social Justice spokesperson, David Linden MP said:

"This policy represents the absolute worst of callous Conservative austerity and demonstrates exactly why households in Scotland need an escape from Westminster with the full powers of independence.

"Ever since its introduction in 2013 the benefit cap has done nothing but punish the most vulnerable and severely limit their ability to provide for themselves and their families, and now couldn't be a worse time for its effects to be felt as we're well into a particularly challenging and cold winter.

"As a Tory-made cost of living crisis ravages households across the country, it is important we look at ways of supporting people financially, instead the Tories have constructed more and more barriers - it's long past time this disgraceful policy went.

"In Scotland, the Scottish Government is taking the steps it can to help families affected by these policies, but it shouldn't have to mitigate damaging Tory austerity, nor should its efforts in tackling poverty be dragged backwards.

"With independence the Scottish Government can get on with the job of supporting Scottish people through tough times without the need to continually clean up after the Tories and their dangerous pursuit of an ideology-driven austerity agenda.

"Time and time again, amidst pandemics and crises, we've seen the Tories turn their backs on the most vulnerable people by refusing to reverse this policy - making it clear that only with independence can Scots be free of the worst of Tory rule."


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