THE Kirk has urged Philip Hammond to rethink a series of welfare reforms and promote greener policies in tomorrow’s budget.
In a letter to the Chancellor, the Church of Scotland called for an end to the benefits freeze, a halt to Universal Credit, more generous funeral benefits and more investment in renewables.
Rev Dr Richard Frazer, Convener of the Kirk’s Church and Society Council, said the church was raising concerns because it had a “responsibility for our neighbour and for our planet”.
He said the cash freeze in working age and children’s benefits was a “major catalyst for a rise in poverty”, and cost 700,000 families in Scotland an average of £450 a year.
He said: “Poverty, and the life altering consequences that it brings, has significant and long-term impacts on communities. In considering the budget, we would encourage you to ensure that the poorest communities do not suffer disproportionately and are not made to bear a greater burden than was originally intended.”
Rev Frazer also said Universal Credit, while good in principle, remained flawed in practice, with failings “forcing significant numbers of individuals and families into increased poverty”.
Calling for more help for those pushed into debt by the cost of burying a loved one, he called for an increase in the Social Fund Funeral Payment.
He also said it was “imperative” that the UK cut its dependence on fossil fuels and moved to a low carbon, low emission economy and switched resources into renewable energy.
The Scottish Greens are also urging the SNP government to spend more on low-carbon infrastructure, such as rail electrification, rather than high-carbon road building.
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