Tax, targeted support and tough budget choices will all need to be considered as part of bold measures to tackle poverty, First Minister Humza Yousaf said yesterday after meeting poverty campaigners.

The anti-poverty summit, convened by the First Minister, saw political leaders from across the Scottish Parliament meet with people who have direct experience of poverty, campaigners, and third sector organisations.

Speaking after the event, which was attended by around 90 delegates, the First Minister said: “I called the summit to listen to the views of a wide range of partners, particularly those at the sharp end of the cost of living crisis and with direct experience of poverty, about what they believe needs to be done.

“Everything I heard confirmed that poverty and the cost of living crisis is the biggest challenge facing this country – one that has been exacerbated by some of the UK Government’s actions and inactions.

“We have already acted to tackle the pressure on those most in need – for example, our game-changing £25 per week per child Scottish Child Payment, Carer’s Allowance Supplement, and Winter Heating Payment.

“But we must do more. We must be bold in considering future tax decisions. Tough choices will need to be made about existing budgets, and we need to consider whether targeting help is the way forward when money is so tight.

“It’s not enough to wish poverty away. We have to be hard-headed and realistic about what can be done – and then we have to focus on making it happen. That means the debate must now be about tax, targeting and tough choices. We are listening and will not shy away from the decisions needed to reduce poverty.”

COSLA President Councillor Shona Morrison said: “The initiative from the Scottish Government is a good one and one which Local Government can get fully behind. Tackling poverty is a core objective for Local Government working in partnership with the Scottish Government, the third sector and public and private sector partners.

“The cost- of-living crisis we are living through at present is being tackled head-on by Councils the length and breadth of Scotland and partnership working is vital to achieving positive outcomes for individuals, families and our communities across Scotland.”

Commenting on reports around the expansion of universal free school meals in Scotland, Poverty Alliance director Peter Kelly said: “The First Minister has to recognise the injustice that leaves so many children in Scotland hungry and without food they need.

“With figures from the Trussell Trust showing record numbers of families accessing food banks, this is not the time to roll back on commitments relating to free school meals.

“We know that many low-income families just miss out on qualifying for means-tested free school meals, and many others don’t claim because of shame or stigma.

“The best way to tackle this problem is through universal free school meals that benefit all of our children and young people.”

Peter Kelly was speaking just after attending yesterday’s anti-poverty summit, chaired by the First Minister.

He said: “The First Minister’s poverty summit was a timely opportunity to refocus on tackling the injustice of poverty in Scotland. Across all those who took part, there was a clear sense of urgency on the need to deliver real change.

“There was no shortage of ideas for action. We can expand funded childcare, use public contracts as a lever to improve pay and conditions in key sectors, and remove barriers to work for those people most affected by poverty – women, disabled people, people from Black and ethnic minority communities.

“Now is the time for the Scottish Government to turn those ideas into concrete action. We look forward to a follow up summit in the coming year to check where progress has been made.”

Positive anti-poverty summit soured by possible roll-back on Free School Meals

THE sCOTTISH Trades Union Congress (STUC) and the STUC Women’s Committee have warned of massive resistance to any reversal on the SNP free school meals pledge and called for an acceleration, not a roll-back of the programme.

STUC General Secretary Roz Foyer said: “We were enthusiastic participants in the summit today. Our key message is that better and fairer wages tied to redistributive taxation must lie at the heart of strategies to tackling poverty and inequality. Current levels of in-work poverty are totally unacceptable and place further pressure on our under-funded benefits system. We need to see real action coming out of this summit.

“Suggestions this morning that the Scottish Government might consider breaking pledges to extend free school meals is not what we are looking to hear. Investing in the health of all of our young people and removing stigma is a key priority and any roll-back will be fiercely resisted.”

Andrea Bradley, Chair of the STUC Women’s Committee and General Secretary of the Educational Institute of Scotland said: “The STUC Women’s Committee would be deeply concerned if the First Minster’s comments around a potential reversal of the Scottish Government’s progressive policy on universal free school meals expansion as reported today, were to be put into action.

“1 in 4 children in Scotland were living in poverty before the onset of the cost-of-living crisis, which the previous First Minister declared a humanitarian emergency. Now, food inflation of 20%, together with exorbitant energy costs, and stagnant wages is making life even harder and more miserable for hundreds of thousands of parents in Scotland and their children – many already missing out on a decent meal at school because of the stigma or the bureaucracy of means-testing.

“Now is the time to accelerate the roll-out of universal free school meals – not to roll back on what were essential promises.”