MSPs need to start delivering for children

As Holyrood and civil servants return to work, the process to scrutinise, approve and implement the spending choices of the Scottish Government’s 19 December budget is getting under way.

But it wasn’t the only important political milestone - this budget comes just weeks after the parliament showed its cross party and unanimous support once again to incorporate the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) into Scots law, so it’s timely to examine if the budget fits the bill.   

This budget’s back drop was challenging - despite ambitious child poverty targets, 24% of Scotland’s children live in poverty. That’s 250,000 children.

Recent analysis by Action for Children of UK government statistics also found an estimated 140,000 children in Scotland (14%) are materially deprived right now.

That’s a tough reality – one support worker in Inverness this Christmas heard a nine-year-old tell her mum that she knew the family didn’t have any money and that she shouldn’t get a present at Christmas or have Christmas dinner. Saying, "Christmas is now just another ordinary day".

Angela, a mother of two we support, added that her current household budget means “I have no disposable income whatsoever. Things that were £1 are now £1.25 – that’s a 25% increase so now imagine that for a whole food shop. It was a struggle anyway, but now things are so much worse.

“There's no way we can survive like this, it's just impossible. We literally can’t live. And my kids can’t do anything fun – I can’t afford to take them on special treats”, she explained.  

At present can we say Scotland’s economy truly meets children’s rights? The simple answer is no.

For nearly a quarter of children the economy is failing their rights under the UNCRC, including Article 6; that governments must do all they can to ensure children develop to their full potential and Article 27; every child’s right to a standard of living that is good enough to meet their physical and social needs and support their development.

The key question for the children’s sector is, does the Scottish Government’s budget offer some hope of changing that? Well, there are some positives to recognise.

It’s good to see the commitment to continued free school meals for P1-5 schoolchildren, and the announcement P6-7s who receive the Scottish Child Payment will receive free school meals from February 2025. We also welcomed the signalled £22 million investment for provision of holiday meals for some children.

While this will make a real different to families it’s sad the provision won’t go further, especially given the recent roll back in the Programme for Government on a commitment to universal free meals for all.

Having said that the most transformative strand to the Scottish Government’s journey to end child poverty, and delivering on children’s most basic rights, is the Scottish Child Payment (SCP).

The Scottish Government has taken big steps by establishing the payment. Its choices are set to lift 50,000 children out of poverty in the current financial year, which I’m wholeheartedly pleased to see.

While featuring a raise in the SCP from £25 to £26.70, this budget was not the bold policy making we need. 

To ensure child poverty rate falls below 18% (the interim statutory child poverty target), an Institute for Public Policy Research report shows a £40 Scottish Child Payment is needed, which is not what the government delivered.

In the debate which ensues in the coming weeks, its important our politicians stay true to their word on children’s rights and delivering a happy childhood for all.

Despite the positives, it’s extremely concerning the cost of living crisis will continue to unfold into a catastrophe for the many of the children and families we support, care for and love.

The current economic model sees too many children living in poverty and not having their rights fulfilled. This can change with correct, brave policy decisions. Having made a commitment to children’s rights we need MSPs to deliver it.

Fiona Steel is national director for Scotland at Action for Children.