Local MSP, Fiona Hyslop has blasted the Westminster Tory Government’s decision to strip 13,689 families in West Lothian of the £20 Universal Credit uplift as “a crime against decency”.
New research from the Scottish Parliament’s independent information service SPICe reveals 176,935 working households, 104,536 single parent households, 33,143 carer households, 11,887 households with disabled kids and a further 66,143 households with disabilities across Scotland will lose more than £1000 a year.
And the figures expose the appalling scale of misery that this callous Tory decision will inflict on 13,689 hard-pressed households in West Lothian.
Local MSP, for the Linlithgow Constituency, Fiona Hyslop commented;
“This Tory government’s choice to inflict the biggest overnight cut to social security since World War II – hammering people both in and out of work – is a crime against decency.
“The sheer scale of misery they will inflict on 13,689 households in West Lothian is horrific and will have a devastating impact on working families, single parent families and many others in my constituency and across Scotland.
“This policy will strip many of the ability to put food on the table or keep their homes warm as we head into winter and energy costs rise.
“The Tory decision to press ahead with this – with the support of their Scottish MPs – will also take much needed money out of the West Lothian economy when it is trying to recover from Covid. The Tories must rethink this inhumane policy.
“While the Scottish Government tries to combat deprivation with game-changing policies like the Scottish Child Payment, these efforts are being cancelled out by constant waves of Tory austerity.
“It is another clear demonstration of the tale of two governments in Scotland – with one at Westminster which cuts social security support during a global pandemic regardless of the consequences, and one at Holyrood which is tackling poverty head on through a range of actions including the Scottish Child Payment.”