The Westminster benefits cuts will hurt Scottish claimants too, even though personal independence payment (PIP) has been replaced by adult disability payment (ADP) in Scotland. Westminster will be cutting payments for ADP and carers allowance - carer support payment in Scotland - by 11% by 2029-30.
PIP and carers allowance are devolved benefits in Scotland, meaning that the Scottish government decides the criteria for getting them and the rate at which they are paid.
However, the money for Scottish benefits is supported by block grant adjustment funding from Westminster.
It has now been confirmed that this will be cut as a result of the Pathways to Work Green Paper changes.
According to a letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government:
“Both PIP and Carers Allowance have a BGA which is added to the Scottish Budget, meaning that UKG [UK government] reforms which reduce spending on this benefit will reduce our funding. Annex B shows that the forecast BGA for PIP will reduce to £4,270 million from £4,650 million by 2029-30, since the UKG Autumn Budget 2024. The Carers Allowance BGA will reduce to £480 million from £529 million by 2029-30.”
The Cabinet Secretary went on to say that:
“While these forecasts don’t impact on funding for the Scottish Budget 2025-26, they indicate a difficult fiscal position in future years as a result of UKG welfare reforms.”
What this means is that the Scottish government will either have to find £429 million from its own resources to make up the shortfall or it will have to find ways of cutting benefits in Scotland on a similar scale to the cuts to PIP and carers allowance made by Westminster.
