Government slammed as food bank use in North Lanarkshire increases 26 per cent

Motherwell and Wishaw MSP Clare AdamsonMotherwell and Wishaw MSP Clare Adamson
Motherwell and Wishaw MSP Clare Adamson
Motherwell and Wishaw MSP Clare Adamson has slammed the UK Government's cuts to welfare, after new figures revealed food bank use in North Lanarkshire has risen by 26 per cent since last year.

Food bank use in Scotland has risen by 15 per cent between April and September compared to the same period in 2017.

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Food bank providers believe the rise is largely due to the in-built minimum wait of five weeks for a first payment for those migrated to Universal Credit – with many more people forced to wait even longer.

Britain’s biggest food bank provider, the Trussell Trust, has called for ‘urgent changes’ to Universal Credit – while the SNP have consistently called for a halt to the roll-out of the scheme.

Ms Adamson said: “These are truly heart-breaking figures for North Lanarkshire, which bring into sharp focus the devastating impact the Tory government is having on our local community.

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“The fact that food bank use is growing across Scotland is a clearly damning indictment of UK Government cuts to welfare, and the botched roll-out of Universal Credit.

“While sustained Tory cuts have created this problem, we can see that where Universal Credit has rolled out it has made things worse – which is why the roll out of UC must be halted, so the fundamental flaws can be addressed.

“Only with full powers over social security can we begin to mitigate the effects of this disaster, in order to make Scotland an equal country with a dignified and fair welfare system.”