Commission calls for urgent action on child poverty targets
/This article was featured in the SCDC Weekly - 5th November
The Poverty and Inequality Commission has published its recommendations for how the Scottish Government can meet its legally binding child poverty targets.
The report outlines the "bold, coordinated action" that needs to be taken in Scotland to reduce the child poverty rate by 12 percentage points by 2030. Currently, around 1 in 4 children live in poverty in Scotland.
As part of its recommendations, the Commission has urged the Scottish Government to commit to introducing a minimum income guarantee to ensure nobody falls below a decent standard of living.
It has also underlined the impact the Scottish Child Payment is having by helping thousands of families, but calls for increasing the payment amount and extending its eligibility.
It has made a number of other recommendations that would reduce child poverty, including investment in the third and community sector organisations through multi-year funding and other measures.
"Scotland stands at a crossroads," the report concludes, "The vision of a country free from child poverty is within reach – but only if we act with urgency, ambition and compassion."
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