Kate Forbes says Labour have “driven a coach and horses through devolution”, after leaving Scottish ministers with “no practical choice” on keeping universal winter fuel payments. Earlier in the summer Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced winter fuel payments in England and Wales would no longer be universal, as part of a package of measures to plug a £22 billion black hole in public finances. However, winter fuel payments in Scotland are being devolved to Holyrood this year.
Following Ms Reeves’s statement, Scottish Public Finance Minister Ivan McKee warned £100 million would be needed to keep the payments universal north of the border. Now the government has confirmed it has been left with no choice but to mirror the cuts to universal winter fuel payments in Scotland. Social Justice Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said this is because the funding coming to the Scottish Government for these payments has now been cut by up to £160m, meaning they will now be restricted to pensioners receiving eligible benefits only .
Deputy First Minister Ms Forbes said it is “disrespectful to everybody involved in shaping the new Scottish policy” by cutting the budget by almost 90 per cent only weeks before the policy is devolved. She said: “Not only does it drive a coach and horses through the devolution settlement, it ignores the disproportionate importance of this payment to households in Scotland, who face harsher winters and higher fuel costs. “We and many others called for the UK Government to rethink this approach - or at least allow more time for a proper consultation - but they have not changed course.
” She also accused Scottish Labour MPs and MSPs of an “eerie silence”, saying they would be “the first and loudest to condemn the Scottish Government if the roles were reversed”. Ms Forbes, who is also Scotland’s economy secretary, added: “Given we are already facing the most challenging financial circumstances in the history of the Scottish parliament, Scotland has no choice but to bear the brunt of Labour’s cut to the winter fuel payment. “During the election we and many others warned that Labour were not being straight with people about the cuts they would have to make if they took power, given their insistence on sticking to the Tory fiscal rules.
“It should not be the case that pensioners in a country as energy-rich as Scotland are being forced to bear the brunt of spending decisions taken at Westminster. “People voted for a change of government at Westminster - but Labour’s approach to devolving the winter fuel payment without the original budget associated with it is disrespectful and damaging.” This comes as Finance Secretary Shona Robison puts a halt on all public spending that is not necessary to fund hundreds of millions of pounds worth of public sector pay deals.
She wrote to cabinet ministers to tell them money will only come to their departments if it is essential to meeting legal requirements or to prevent an economic crash. The announcement on winter fuel payments also comes on the day new figures revealed Scotland’s public spending deficit rose to £22.7bn amid a drop in revenue from North Sea oil and gas.
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