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Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

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Question reference: S6W-19900

Asked by: Collette Stevenson, MSP for East Kilbride, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 28 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what estimate it has made of the costs of mitigating any UK Government policy decisions, insofar as those decisions impact on people in Scotland, in (a) each of the last five financial years and (b) the current financial year.

More than £711 million has been spent in the last five financial years to mitigate the effects of UK Government policy. It included investment in Discretionary Housing Payments, the Scottish Welfare Fund, money advice services, and Universal Credit Scottish choices.

The Scottish Government uses Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) to fully mitigate the bedroom tax and we have recently provided funding to mitigate the benefit cap as far as is possible within devolved powers. DHPs are also used to support those affected by the ongoing freeze to local housing allowance rates.

In 2023-24 we are making £83.7 million available to local authorities to spend on DHPs. Since 2018 (including 2023-24) we have invested over £452 million in DHPs, and a further £8.7 million to assist local authorities with the administration of the scheme.

The Scottish Welfare Fund (SWF) is an essential source of occasional support for those most in need. In 2023-24 we are investing £35.5 million in the SWF. Since 2018 (including 2023-24) we have invested over £210 million in the fund and a further £32 million to assist local authorities with the administration of the scheme.

From 2018 to late 2022, the Scottish Government allocated funding from its overall welfare and debt advice budget for advice relating to UK Government welfare reforms. From October 2022, this funding stream was brought together with previously separate funding streams to support the Money Talk Team service delivered by Citizens Advice Scotland. Since 2018, £6.58 million has been invested in money advice services specifically relating to UK Government welfare reforms.

Since 2017, the Scottish Government has been giving people in Scotland the choice to receive their Universal Credit award either monthly or twice monthly and to have the housing costs in their Universal Credit award paid directly to their landlord. Since 2018, the cost to the Scottish Government of providing these choices has been £0.8 million.

A breakdown of spend on Discretionary Housing Payments, the Scottish Welfare Fund, money advice services, and universal credit Scottish choices in the last five financial years and the current financial year is provided in the following table.

Year	2018-19	2019-20	2020-21	2021-22	2022-23	2023-24	Total
DHP, Bedroom tax budget	£50.1m	£52.3m	£59.7m	£71.0m	£68.1m	£69.7m	£370.9m
DHP, Benefit cap budget						£6.2m 1	£6.2m
DHP “Other”	£10.9m	£10.9m	£18.9m 2	£10.9m	£16.0m 3	£7.9m	£75.5m
DHP Admin funding	£1.2m	£1.2m	£1.2m	£1.2m	£1.7m 4	£2.2m	£8.7m
Scottish Welfare Fund	£33.0m	£33.0m	£35.5m	£35.5m	£38.0m 5	£35.5m	£210.5m
Scottish Welfare Fund admin funding	£5.0m	£5.0m	£5.5m	£5.5m	£5.5m	£5.5m 6	£32.0m
Money advice services 7	£1.5m	£1.5m	£1.5m	£1.5m	£0.7m	See note 7, below	£6.6m
Universal credit Scottish choices	£0.2m	£0.2m	£0.2m	£0.1m	£0.1m	No forecast available	£0.8m
Total cost of mitigating UK Government welfare reform	£101.8m	£104.0m	£122.5m	£125.7m	£130.1m	£127.0m	£711.1m

1. Prior to 2023-24 benefit cap funding was included in the DHP ”Other” line

2. Figure includes additional £8m of Covid-support funds

3. Figure includes additional £2.6m for benefit cap support and £2.5m cost of living support

4. Figure includes £0.5m additional admin funding paid for benefit cap policy roll-out preparation

5. Figure includes £2.5m to support delivery of the Scottish Welfare Fund in 2022-23

6. Forecast

7. From 2018 to late 2022, The Scottish Government allocated funding from their overall welfare and debt advice budget for specific advice relating to UKG Welfare Reforms. From October 2022, this funding stream was brought together with other previously separate funding streams to support the new, streamlined Money Talk Team service delivered by Citizens Advice Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-19939

Asked by: Collette Stevenson, MSP for East Kilbride, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 13 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 28 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how may children and young people in the East Kilbride constituency it estimates are, in the current financial year, (a) eligible for, (b) receiving and (c) forecast to receive payments for the (i) Scottish Child Payment and (ii) Best Start Grant, broken down by each of the Best Start payments.

The Scottish Fiscal Commission publish estimates and forecasts of eligibility and payments for Scottish Child Payment and Best Start Grant but only for Scotland. There are no estimates or forecasts of eligibility and take-up (the proportion of eligible children that receive payments) by area within Scotland. Their figures cannot be used to inform eligibility or take-up rates for East Kilbride specifically.

Social Security Scotland publish statistics for applications and payments for Scottish Child Payment and Best Start Grant by local authority areas (including South Lanarkshire) but not at constituency level and statistics for 2023-24 are not yet available.

However, internal Scottish Government analysis suggests around 5500 children in East Kilbride are eligible for Scottish Child Payment in 2023-24 and around 1000 for Best Start Grant. Of those, it is estimated around 4500 children will receive Scottish Child Payment and around 1000 children will receive Best Start Grant.

These figures have been rounded to the nearest five hundred to reflect the fact they are approximate estimates and use national level eligibility and take-up rates. We have not provided specific estimates for each Best Start Grant payment due to the uncertainty associated with such small numbers however the number of children eligible for Best Start Grant are expected to be roughly spread evenly across the three different payment types. Since Early Learning Payment and School Age Payment are paid automatically to eligible clients already receiving Scottish Child Payment but Pregnancy and Baby Payment is not, we would expect slightly fewer children to receive this payment than the other Best Start Grants. See Table 1:

Table 1: Estimated number of children in East Kilbride constituency forecast to be eligible for and receive Scottish Child Payment and Best Start Grant, 2023-24.

2023-24

Eligible

Receiving

Scottish Child Payment

5500

4500

All Best Start Grant

1000

Source: Internal Scottish Government estimates.

Question reference: S6W-18889

Asked by: Collette Stevenson, MSP for East Kilbride, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 02 June 2023
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 5 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its draft plan on ending the need for food banks.

The Scottish Government has today published Cash-First: Towards Ending the Need for Food Banks in Scotland. This sets out our human rights approach to tackling food insecurity and details nine actions that we will take in collaboration with partners over the next three years to improve the response to financial hardship and reduce the need for emergency food parcels.

Scotland is the first nation in the UK to have such a plan and the actions will help to identify measures that move us closer towards our longer term ambition of a Scotland without the need for food banks.

Question reference: S6O-02305

Asked by: Collette Stevenson, MSP for East Kilbride, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 May 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 31 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government when it last met with NHS Lanarkshire and what was discussed.

Question reference: S6O-02286

Asked by: Collette Stevenson, MSP for East Kilbride, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 May 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 25 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government when it last met with South Lanarkshire Health and Social Care Partnership, and what was discussed.

Question reference: S6F-02064

Asked by: Collette Stevenson, MSP for East Kilbride, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 May 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 May 2023

To ask the First Minister whether he will provide an update on the anti-poverty summit that took place on Wednesday 3 May.

Question reference: S6O-02153

Asked by: Collette Stevenson, MSP for East Kilbride, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 April 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 27 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its work to keep The Promise to those who are care experienced.

Question reference: S6O-02072

Asked by: Collette Stevenson, MSP for East Kilbride, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 March 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the UK Government following the announcement of the UK Spring Budget.

Question reference: S6W-14548

Asked by: Collette Stevenson, MSP for East Kilbride, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 31 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 22 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how many people were employed by the (a) Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, (b) Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service and (c) Scottish Prison Service in (i) 2006-07 and (ii) 2021-22.

Question reference: S6W-14231

Asked by: Collette Stevenson, MSP for East Kilbride, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 23 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 1 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what estimate it has made of the (a) total spend to date on, (b) costs in the financial year 2021-22 for and (c) expected costs in the financial year (i) 2022-23 and (ii) 2023-24 for, the repayment of Private Finance Initiative/Public Private Partnership (PFI/PPP) debts, including the (A) overall cost to (1) the NHS, (2) local government, (3) justice portfolio bodies, (4) net zero, energy and transport portfolio bodies and (5) any other public sector organisations in Scotland and (B) cost to each individual (aa) NHS board, (bb) local authority and (cc) other regional authority.

	Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service	Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service	Scottish Prison Service
2006-07	1525.8	1,184	4,119
2021-22	2220.7	1,922	4,589