Leaked DWP Welfare Report Shows 'Shape of Things to Come'

A leaked document has revealed the UK Government’s controversial welfare reform is at risk because of the speed and depth of the cuts imposed on the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

The leaked internal review reveals Iain Duncan Smith’s department is struggling to meet "extremely challenging" demands of over £1bn of efficiency savings over the next two years and these pressures could disrupt plans to roll out benefits reforms.

The review does not include the Universal Credit scheme which a Parliament report had stated was so badly managed, it could write-off up to £425 million - £36 million of which reflects Scotland’s pro-rata share.

Commenting, Banff & Buchan MP and SNP Westminster spokesperson for Work & Pensions Dr Eilidh Whiteford said:

“This is deeply worrying- the review warns that these department cuts could jeopardise public-facing services.

“Following the damning Parliament report on the Universal Credit scheme, this is further evidence that the UK government cannot be trusted when it comes to reforming our pensions, child maintenance and disability benefits. We already knew the Tory- Lib Dem government’s welfare reforms were discriminatory, but we can also see the extent of how badly managed it all is.

“It doesn’t have to be this way. Scotland has already made its opposition to welfare cuts absolutely clear, and a very clear majority of Scots want the Scottish Parliament to be given full powers over taxation and welfare. It is becoming clear to increasing numbers of people that only a Yes vote will deliver the kind of powers they want and Scotland needs.”

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SNP Celebrate 40th Anniversary of Henderson's Historic Win

Over 100 SNP members and supporters gathered in the Palace Hotel, Peterhead, last Friday at a special event held by Peterhead Branch of the SNP commemorating the 40th anniversary of Douglas Henderson gaining the old East Aberdeenshire constituency from the Conservatives to become the area’s first ever SNP MP at the election on 28 February 1974.

Guest speakers at the event were First Minister Alex Salmond, local MSP Stewart Stevenson and Banff & Buchan MP Dr Eilidh Whiteford. Also attending the event was Alex Farquhar, who was the SNP candidate in the 1970 General Election who made the seat winnable by attracting 30% of the vote and over 9,000 votes in what was the SNP’s best showing in the North-east at that time.

Peterhead Branch SNP President, Bob Ritchie, who was the party’s election agent in the 1960s and 1970s regaled the audience with tales from those early elections, including one where a lost election deposit in 1964 had to be financed with a bank loan, backed up by twenty guarantors at the insistence of the bank. And all for the princely sum of £200!

Commenting, Eilidh Whiteford MP said:

“We owe a great debt to Bob Ritchie, Alex Farquhar and the late Douglas Henderson, who could see Scotland’s potential and worked so hard over decades to improve the prospects of people in this area.

“I still get constituents coming to me who remember Douglas Henderson fondly, not only as a hard-working constituency MP but also as a very genuine person. His loss, in 2006, was sorely felt but his legacy lives on and I know he would have been playing a full and active part in the current Referendum campaign had he still been with us.”

Stewart Stevenson MSP added:

“This was a very timely event with the Referendum only 200 days away. It was useful to pause and reflect on the support given by the people of the North-east over the past 40 years which has helped us get to this position in our nation’s history.

“If we are to make the country we all Scotland believe it can be, we need personal tax powers, business tax powers, social security powers, employment powers, powers over Scotland’s budget, powers over the minimum wage, immigration powers and the powers to represent Scotland internationally. In other words, the same toolbox of powers that other independent countries take for granted.”

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MP Welcomes Peterhead Carbon Capture Announcement

Commenting on today’s announcement from the Department for Energy & Climate Change, Banff & Buchan MP Eilidh Whiteford said:

“Today’s announcement is very welcome news indeed and is another step on the road to making Peterhead the centre of excellence for carbon-capture technology.

"I pressed Ed Davey during a Commons debate two years ago to set out a clear timetable for progressing the Peterhead project but I'm pleased he has now recognised the case for Peterhead is extremely strong not only in terms of location, but also the expertise and knowledge that has been built up over a long period.”

Scottish Government Energy Minister Fergus Ewing said:

“We welcome today’s announcement that the Peterhead CCS Project will now proceed to the FEED stage – an outcome we have been campaigning for since the inception of the UK Government’s CCS Commercialisation Competition.

“Indeed, we have been robust advocates of CCS for over a decade now, recognising the strong comparative advantages that Scotland has in academic expertise, industrial know-how and the unrivalled storage capacity in the North Sea – enough to store at least 50 years of current annual CO2 emissions from the European Union. There is also potential to store captured CO2 in depleted oil fields, further maximising oil production.

“To secure a wider CCS industry, it is important that the UK Government continues to encourage and incentivise other highly-innovative CCS projects such as the Captain Clean Energy Project.”

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People Stripped of Benefits Could be Charged for Challenging Decision

“POOREST IN SOCIETY BEING HIT THE HARDEST"

The Scottish National Party have condemned the UK government as it is revealed people who have been stripped of benefits could be charged £250 by the government for trying to appeal against the decision to an independent judge.

In a leaked document from the Department of Work and Pensions, officials say the “introduction of a charge for people making appeals against (DWP) decisions to social security tribunals" would raise money. Other suggestions include selling off child support debt to “the private sector to collect."

In the past year nearly 900,000 people have had their benefits stopped, the highest figure for any 12-month period since jobseeker’s allowance was introduced in 1996. In recent months, 58% of those who wanted to overturn DWP decisions in independent tribunals have been successful.

The latest revelation follows reports that the government is considering saving money by privatising the delivery of the state pension - despite 93% of pensioners being satisfied with the current model.

Commenting, SNP Work and Pensions spokesperson Dr Eilidh Whiteford said:

“This is yet another example of how the poorest people in society are being hit hardest by the Westminster government.

“It is ludicrous to suggest someone receiving benefits would be in a position to pay to appeal. The UK government seems to be absolutely ruthless when it comes to welfare cuts.

“Scotland generates massive wealth yet the Westminster system means we do not reap the rewards, and instead our most disadvantaged people are facing the brunt of government cuts through unfair measures such as this."

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