Questions and answers

Question reference: S5W-26252

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 November 2019
Current Status: Answered by Aileen Campbell on 21 November 2019

To ask the Scottish Government how many people have used the Money Talk Team service to date.

Question reference: S5W-26344

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 11 November 2019
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 19 November 2019

To ask the Scottish Government how many cases of fraud interest it has (a) received from and (b) communicated to the DWP under paragraph 9.2 of the Best Start Grant service level agreement.

Question reference: S5W-26142

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 04 November 2019
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 18 November 2019

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the analysis in its paper, A Consultation on Disability Assistance in Scotland, Scottish Government response, how much it calculated the cost would have been of introducing a mobility component for disability allowance to people aged (a) 65, (b) 66, (c) 67, (d) 68, (e) 69, (f) 70 to 74, (g) 75 to 79, (h) 80 to 84, (i) 85 to 89 and (j) 90 or older, broken down by the (i) standard and (ii) enhanced component.

Scottish Government analysis of the inclusion of a mobility component in Disability Assistance for Older People (DAOP) estimated the annual cost of mobility payments in five year age bands for ages 65-69 to 80-84, and the cost for all people aged 85 and over.

Age	Cost
65-69	£26m
70-74	£80m
75-79	£107m
80-84	£132m
85+	£235m
Total	£580m

Note, totals may not sum due to rounding.

This analysis uses the existing Disability Living Allowance (DLA) 65+ client group as the best comparison to DAOP and generates client numbers for a DAOP mobility component as if it followed the same claiming patterns as DLA 65+ for each age group. These estimates are based on the forecasted DAOP client group in 2020/21.

Question reference: S5W-26253

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 November 2019
Current Status: Answered by Aileen Campbell on 15 November 2019

To ask the Scottish Government how much of the Money Talk Team service budget has been spent, and whether this is in line with the grant funding schedule.

Question reference: S5W-26170

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 04 November 2019
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 13 November 2019

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-24058 by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 31 July 2019, how many (a) children under the age of six and (b) families in each (i) local authority area and Scottish Parliamentary (ii) constituency and (iii) region will receive support (A) from the Scottish Child Payment and (B) for the duration of the under-six payment as a proportion of all children and families in those areas.

In response to part (a)(i) of the question, the following table presents our current illustrative estimates of the number of children under 6 eligible for the Scottish Child Payment, by local authority, as a proportion of all children under 6 in each local authority, in 2020-21. We expect the caseload to be relatively constant until the increase in age limit to 16, so the figures below are applicable across the duration of the under-six payment.

Local Authority	Children under 6 receiving Scottish Child Payment as a proportion of all children under 6
Aberdeen City	30.6%
Aberdeenshire	26.9%
Angus	51.4%
Argyll & Bute	53.9%
Clackmannanshire	57.7%
Dumfries & Galloway	64.7%
Dundee City	61.0%
East Ayrshire	57.3%
East Dunbartonshire	34.7%
East Lothian	46.2%
East Renfrewshire	32.4%
Edinburgh, City of	38.2%
Eileanan an Iar	48.4%
Falkirk	50.7%
Fife	56.1%
Glasgow City	62.2%
Highland	52.0%
Inverclyde	65.7%
Midlothian	44.7%
Moray	46.1%
North Ayrshire	67.6%
North Lanarkshire	59.5%
Orkney Islands	52.7%
Perth & Kinross	48.5%
Renfrewshire	53.6%
Scottish Borders	52.3%
Shetland Islands	26.7%
South Ayrshire	55.2%
South Lanarkshire	52.1%
Stirling	43.4%
West Dunbartonshire	64.5%
West Lothian	52.8%

The qualifying benefits for the Scottish Child Payment include Universal Credit and all the legacy benefits it is replacing, as well as Pension Credit. Universal Credit is in the process of being rolled out and current caseloads across local authorities are not representative of the long-term steady state. We also have limited information on the number of children in families on Universal Credit.

Given these limitations, we have estimated the above figures by applying proportions from HMRC data on the number of children receiving Tax Credits in each local authority prior to the rollout of Universal Credit Full Service. To avoid double counting and because most families with children in receipt of legacy benefits receive tax credits we have not factored in other legacy benefits.

We have used the HMRC geographical analysis of finalised annual awards 2015-16. The Tax Credits geographical data on local authority do not break down by age of child, meaning the distribution of children and families across local authorities is based on all children and families, not just those with children under 6.

The above caveats mean that the figures should be treated with caution and could overestimate or underestimate the numbers eligible in individual local authorities.

We have not been able to answer the remaining part of the question, namely providing proportions of children under 6 in each constituency or region, or proportions of families. This is because data are not available for these breakdowns for 2020 and beyond, the period when the Scottish Child Payment will be delivered.

The National Records of Scotland (NRS) do not have readily available population projections of children in Scottish Parliamentary constituency and region nor population projections of families with children in local authority and Scottish Parliamentary constituency and region. This is because a suite of assumptions around future levels of fertility, mortality and migration would need to be made in order to provide these breakdowns.

When UC completes its rollout, and if more comprehensive NRS data become available, we will be able to provide more robust local authority, constituency or regional analysis of the Scottish Child Payment.

Question reference: S5W-26171

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 04 November 2019
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 13 November 2019

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-24058 by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 31 July 2019, how many (a) children under the age of six and (b) families in each (i) local authority area and Scottish Parliamentary (ii) constituency and (iii) region will receive support from the Scottish Child Payment for the duration of the under-six payment.

The following tables present our current illustrative estimates of the number of children under 6 and families eligible for the Scottish Child Payment in 2020-21. We expect the caseload to be relatively constant until the increase in age limit to 16, so the figures below are applicable across the duration of the under-six payment.

Table 1: Eligible Children Under 6 and Families by Local Authority

Local Authority	Children Under 6	Families
Aberdeen City	4,400	3,800
Aberdeenshire	4,900	3,900
Angus	3,500	2,700
Argyll & Bute	2,400	1,900
Clackmannanshire	1,900	1,500
Dumfries & Galloway	5,100	4,000
Dundee City	5,700	4,700
East Ayrshire	4,500	3,700
East Dunbartonshire	2,300	1,800
East Lothian	3,200	2,500
East Renfrewshire	2,100	1,700
Edinburgh, City of	11,900	10,100
Eileanan an Iar	700	500
Falkirk	5,100	4,200
Fife	13,000	10,400
Glasgow City	25,500	21,200
Highland	7,100	5,500
Inverclyde	2,900	2,500
Midlothian	3,100	2,500
Moray	2,600	2,100
North Ayrshire	5,400	4,500
North Lanarkshire	13,200	10,800
Orkney Islands	600	400
Perth & Kinross	4,100	3,300
Renfrewshire	5,800	4,900
Scottish Borders	3,500	2,800
Shetland Islands	400	300
South Ayrshire	3,400	2,900
South Lanarkshire	10,400	8,600
Stirling	2,300	1,900
West Dunbartonshire	3,700	3,000
West Lothian	6,600	5,300
Total	170,000	140,000

* please note that figures may not add up due to rounding

Table 2: Eligible Children Under 6 and Families by Scottish Parliamentary Constituency

Constituency	Children Under 6	Families
Airdrie and Shotts	1,300	1,100
Coatbridge and Chryston	2,800	2,400
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth	2,100	1,700
East Kilbride	2,400	1,900
Falkirk East	2,500	2,200
Falkirk West	2,500	2,000
Hamilton North and Bellshill	3,200	2,900
Hamilton South	3,300	2,400
Kilmarnock and Loudoun	2,700	2,200
Motherwell and Wishaw	2,900	2,400

Glasgow Anniesland	2,000	1,700
Glasgow Baillieston	700	600
Glasgow Cathcart	2,200	1,800
Glasgow Govan	2,500	2,100
Glasgow Kelvin	2,600	2,200
Glasgow Maryhill	2,800	2,200
Glasgow Pollok	3,200	2,700
Glasgow Rutherglen	3,000	2,500
Glasgow Shettleston	1,400	1,200
Glasgow Springburn	3,500	3,100

Argyll and Bute	2,800	2,400
Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross	2,100	1,700
Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber	2,800	2,400
Moray	2,800	2,300
Orkney Islands	1,600	1,300
Ross, Skye and Inverness West	2,100	1,800
Shetland Islands	2,500	2,100
Western Isles	2,900	2,400

Edinburgh Central	2,300	1,900
Edinburgh East and Musselburgh	2,300	1,900
Edinburgh North and Leith	2,300	1,800
Edinburgh Pentlands	1,200	900
Edinburgh South	800	700
Edinburgh West	3,100	2,700
Linlithgow	2,900	2,400
Livingston	3,400	2,800
Midlothian	3,200	2,600

Central Fife	2,200	1,900
Dunfermline East	3,000	2,500
Dunfermline West	2,300	1,900
Kirkcaldy	2,700	2,200
North East Fife	2,400	1,900
North Tayside	2,200	1,800
Ochil	2,900	2,500
Perth	1,900	1,500
Stirling	2,900	2,500

Aberdeen Central	1,200	1,200
Aberdeen North	2,000	1,700
Aberdeen South	1,300	1,100
Angus	1,200	1,000
Banff and Buchan	1,800	1,400
Dundee East	2,300	1,900
Dundee West	2,400	2,000
Gordon	4,200	3,500
West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine	2,100	1,800

Ayr	3,500	2,700
Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley	1,800	1,500
Clydesdale	2,200	1,700
Cunninghame South	2,100	1,700
Dumfries	2,800	2,300
East Lothian	2,900	2,500
Galloway and Upper Nithsdale	1,000	900
Roxburgh and Berwickshire	1,800	1,600
Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale	2,100	1,700

Clydebank and Milngavie	2,200	1,800
Cunninghame North	2,400	2,000
Dumbarton	2,700	2,300
Eastwood	2,800	2,300
Greenock and Inverclyde	3,700	3,200
Paisley North	600	400
Paisley South	2,400	2,100
Strathkelvin and Bearsden	400	400
West Renfrewshire	1,900	1,500

Total	170,000	140,000

* please note that figures may not add up due to rounding

Table 3: Eligible Children Under 6 and Families by Scottish Parliamentary Region

Region	Children Under 6	Families
Central Scotland	25,700	21,000
Glasgow	23,800	19,700
Highlands and Islands	19,700	16,100
Lothians	21,400	17,500
Mid Scotland and Fife	22,700	18,600
North East Scotland	18,600	15,400
South of Scotland	20,300	16,200
West of Scotland	19,000	15,800
Total	170,000	140,000

* please note that figures may not add up due to rounding

The qualifying benefits for the Scottish Child Payment include Universal Credit and all the legacy benefits it is replacing, as well as Pension Credit. Universal Credit is in the process of being rolled out and current caseloads across local authorities, constituencies and regions are not representative of the long-term steady state. We also have limited information on the number of children in families on Universal Credit.

Given these limitations, we have estimated the above figures by applying proportions from HMRC data on the number of children and families receiving Tax Credits in each local authority, constituency and region prior to the rollout of Universal Credit Full Service. To avoid double counting and because most families with children in receipt of legacy benefits receive tax credits we have not factored in other legacy benefits.

We have used the HMRC geographical analysis of finalised annual awards 2015-16. The Tax Credits geographical data on local authority, constituency and region do not break down by age of child, meaning the distribution of children and families across local authorities, constituencies or regions is based on all children and families, not just those with children under 6.

The above caveats mean that the figures should be treated with caution and could overestimate or underestimate the numbers eligible in individual local authorities, constituencies and regions. When UC completes its rollout, and if more comprehensive data become available, we will be able to provide more robust local authority, constituency or regional analysis of the Scottish Child Payment.

Question reference: S5W-26144

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 04 November 2019
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 12 November 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what the estimated additional cost will be of increasing the qualifying age of disability assistance for working-age people in line with the state pension age, as proposed in its paper, A Consultation on Disability Assistance in Scotland, Scottish Government response, and what the estimated costs are of a mobility component to this change.

Question reference: S5W-26143

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 04 November 2019
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 12 November 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what response it has received from the social security experience panels to its decision not to proceed with a mobility component in disability assistance for older people.

Question reference: S5W-25647

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 04 October 2019
Current Status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 7 November 2019

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on progress with its replacement of the DWP Specialised Employment Support schemes, and when the delivery of this will commence.

The Scottish Government remains committed to ensuring that everybody who can and wants to work has the opportunity to find fulfilling and sustainable employment, and that those facing barriers to employment, including many disabled people, can access any additional support they need.

We are continuing with our preparations to develop a new provision to replace DWP’s Specialist Employability Support scheme. This includes Scottish Government officials engaging with key stakeholders to ensure we understand the needs of individuals, including the specific needs of disabled people in Scotland for whom more mainstream employment support is not appropriate.

As stated within A Fairer Scotland for Disabled People: Employment Action Plan the creation of a bespoke Scottish support service is subject to clarification of the UK Government funding settlement. This funding has still to be confirmed and we are in ongoing discussions with the DWP on the level of funding to be transferred to Scotland as part of the devolution settlement.

Our devolved employability service, Fair Start Scotland, offers tailored specific support for individuals, recognising their skills and helping them to realise their employment aspirations. In considering DWP’s Intensive Personalised Employment Support (IPES) offer we have identified some key similarities with the current support provided under Fair Start Scotland, which we are therefore keen to explore further with stakeholders. Our intention remains to ensure that there is support in place from January 2020 that meets the specific needs of disabled people in Scotland for whom more mainstream employment support is not appropriate.

Question reference: S5W-25650

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 04 October 2019
Current Status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 7 November 2019

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish the letter of 20 June 2019 from the Minster for Business Fair Work and Skills to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions regarding the devolution of Specialised Employment Support.

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