Child poverty in Scotland is predicted to fall by 2029, according
to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation's annual poverty barometer –
the only part of the UK where it is predicted to fall.
Social Justice Secretary has welcomed the
report's highlighting of the progress being made in Scotland –
while recommitting to doing everything in the Scottish
Government's power to eradicate child poverty entirely.
The Joseph Rowntree Foundation has said that “child poverty rates
are already much higher in England (30%) and Wales (29%) compared
to Scotland (24%)” and that by 2029 “the gap between child
poverty rates in Scotland compared to England and Wales will have
grown, with Scotland moving from being seven to 10 percentage
points below the rest of the UK” which it says is “in large part
due to Scotland-specific policies”.
They also point to evidence which “suggests that welfare
policies, such as the Scottish Child Payment and mitigating the
two-child limit from 2026, which boost the incomes of the parents
of who receive them, are behind Scotland bucking the trend of
rising child poverty rates elsewhere in the UK.”
Social Justice Secretary said:
“It is very welcome to see that child poverty rates in Scotland
are expected to fall in the years ahead, thanks in part to
measures like our Scottish Child Payment, but we are clear that
no child should live in poverty in a country as prosperous as
Scotland.
“This report should act as a wake-up call for the UK Government
and shows them exactly what they need to do to support our
efforts to end child poverty – including abolishing the two-child
limit and delivering progress toward an Essentials Guarantee,
which the Scottish Government has repeatedly called on them to
do.
“The draft Scottish Budget for 2025-26 prioritises action to
eradicate child poverty, including through investment in
breakfast clubs, employability and by developing the systems to
mitigate the two-child limit – with estimates that scrapping the
cap could lift around 15,000 children out of poverty.
“The report shows that Scotland is bucking the trend on child
poverty rates elsewhere in the UK. However, we are in no doubt
that there is still much more to do and we will leave no stone
unturned across government as we seek to eradicate child
poverty.”
