Welfare isn't working

Hungry families are seeking help from Citizens Advice Bureau after being without food for several days, while others are unable to afford basics such as electricity or gas, a damning report into the state of poverty in Scotland has revealed. Citizens Advice Scotland warned that the state support network is failing vulnerable people, forcing them into extreme poverty.

Experts say that recent changes to the social security system, benefit rates not keeping pace with inflation, low pay, insecure work and rising costs of living have all contributed to people’s decreasing resilience to income shocks. John Finch, right, an advisor at the Citizens Advice Bureau in Leith, said he had witnessed a notable increase in people living in dire conditions before seeking help.

Susan McPhee, head of policy and public affairs at Citizens Advice Scotland, warned that the social security system is “simply not working” for vulnerable people.

The social security system is no longer providing an effective safety net for Scots in poverty and in many cases is actually causing people to become destitute. Huge numbers of inquiries at Citizen's Advice Bureaux from people in need of foodbanks and hardship payments prove the system is failing. Almost two thirds of clients surveyed said periods without income had forced them to cut down on gas and electricity use (63 per cent), and 71 per cent said they went without food. More than half (56 per cent) said money worries were affecting their physical health and 64 per cent said such worries affected their mental health.