Chamber and committees

Yes.

The issue of having the right data is one that the committee has discussed before. As I have said to the committee, there is an on-going process within Social Security Scotland to ensure that more and more data is provided as the system grows. As you would expect, the system within Social Security Scotland is being updated on a regular basis, and that updating is not just about readiness for a new benefit, but about improving the data that can be collected.

We take the issue very seriously. We know that there is more to do, and the work is on-going. We all want Social Security Scotland to gather the correct data that will allow us to identify how the money is being spent and what impact it is having.

That takes me to your first part of your question. That sort of work sits not just with Social Security Scotland or, indeed, with the Scottish Government; there are a number of ways in which we can look at outcomes and impact. For example, Professor Linda Bauld has recently done a piece of work on exactly that type of thing.

Data collection is key, and it requires us to continually build on what we have at the moment. After all, all of us—the Government and the committee—would like more data, and the impacts are being covered not only in some of the analysis undertaken by the Government in its statistical publications, but in the areas that Professor Bauld has looked at. I am sure that the committee is already aware of that work, but we would be happy to provide some examples in due course.

We do not believe that the changes will make it significantly more likely that people will apply for support for funerals outwith their local area. The internal analysis that has been undertaken estimates the increased cost to be around £80,000 per annum, so the difference is minimal. We are introducing the change to ensure that people are, in effect, not disadvantaged and can choose the location that is most suitable, even if it is not the closest to where the deceased lived. My answer, then, is no, we do not think that there will be much of a change and we think that the cost increase will be minimal.

Currently, we do not intend to publish information on funerals outwith the local area, and that is because the data held by Social Security Scotland is not detailed enough to do so at this stage. However, the agency will continue to review the matter as it develops future publications. We will keep it under active consideration.

Clearly, although there will be guidance that will give Social Security Scotland case managers the ability to assess matters, it is very important that we do not start listing what would and would not be exceptional, because, by definition, such things would not be exceptional.

I can perhaps give you some examples. In my opening remarks, I talked about disruption due to extreme weather or war; in other cases, people might require a funeral to be held within a certain timeframe, say, for religious reasons. Those are the types of situations in which the case managers will be able to refer to guidance. Of course, there will be an escalation route in the agency to ensure that decisions are taken at the right level and with the degree of sensitivity that is required in such circumstances.

The number of awards made outwith the UK is exceptionally small; currently, it is less than 1 per cent of all applications. That, in essence, means that the numbers are too small for the agency to provide data that would be considered robust. Because of that lack of robustness, which is required for official statistics, we currently have no plans to publish it.

However, the data can, and will be, gathered for internal use, and officials have already engaged with Social Security Scotland to ensure that the relevant data can be captured. Clearly, there will be internal analysis to measure the impact of the changes, with the gathering of the first data scheduled six months after the regulations come into force. Although the data is not robust enough for external publication, it will certainly be used internally, where it is already gathered.

Thank you and good morning.

Since its launch in 2019, the funeral support payment has provided more than £51.1 million of support to more than 26,000 people on low incomes, at a time when they most needed it.

The improvements proposed in the regulations will provide further support to people who are struggling to pay funeral costs and will help to reduce the burden of debt that a person might face when paying for a loved one’s funeral.

The regulations before you are evidence of the Scottish Government’s commitment to the continuous improvement of our social security system. In developing the legislation, we have consulted a range of stakeholders, including third sector organisations and funeral industry experts.

We are extending the definition of “funeral” to include alkaline hydrolysis as an alternative to burial or cremation. The Scottish Government recently consulted on whether alkaline hydrolysis should be introduced as a regulated form of body disposal and found 84 per cent of respondents to be in favour. Introducing that amendment now will future proof the regulations to ensure that we can award funeral support payments for people who choose that method, should it become available in Scotland. It will also be brought into scope for people who are eligible for expenses assistance for funerals abroad.

In line with our values of dignity, fairness and respect, we are introducing an exceptional circumstance provision for funerals abroad. Doing so will allow us to award a funeral support payment in unique circumstances, such as when disruption due to war or extreme weather events prevents a body from being returned to the United Kingdom for a funeral. As recommended by the Scottish Commission on Social Security during its scrutiny of the regulations, Social Security Scotland will be equipped with robust guidance to support that provision.

The regulations also support our commitment to protect the rights given to European Union citizens under the withdrawal agreement. Although Social Security Scotland is not aware of anyone having missed out, the changes will clarify the regulations to ensure that people who, before Brexit, would have been entitled to assistance to pay for a funeral abroad will continue to be entitled to that.

To ensure that more people get the correct level of assistance, we are taking away the current restriction on costs for funerals that take place outwith the deceased’s local area. Social Security Scotland will continue to apply a test to ensure that costs are reasonable so that we retain value for money while removing any potential unfairness from the process. That means that we will provide help with costs based on what is reasonable rather than where people lived.

Finally, the regulations remove the provision to deny an application if funds to pay for a funeral are available in the estate. Instead, those available funds will be deducted from the award amount. That change means that all cases will be assessed in the same way.

We have engaged with the Scottish Fiscal Commission, which has confirmed that it anticipates no significant financial implications for the Scottish Government as a result of the regulations. That is particularly welcome in this challenging fiscal period, as it means that the regulations offer further improvements for the people of Scotland at minimal cost.

I extend my thanks to the Scottish Commission on Social Security for its formal scrutiny of the draft amendment regulations earlier this year and for its recommendations, which have strengthened the detail of the regulations that are before us today. I welcome the opportunity to assist the committee in its consideration.

I note your remarks, convener, and the work that has gone on in the area. I assure you that we will continue to work across Government and across the social justice and justice portfolios on these issues, but I am certainly delighted to play my part in assisting at least some of those families today.

Motion agreed to,

That the Social Justice and Social Security Committee recommends that the Funeral Expense Assistance (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2024 [draft] be approved.

I would just point to the £1.1 billion over the block grant adjustment that the Scottish Government invests in Social Security Scotland. Clearly, a large part of that—just under half a billion pounds—goes on the Scottish child payment; there is also the funding for the child and adult disability payments, which again is over and above the block grant adjustment, and the benefits that are available in Scotland but not in the rest of the UK such as the young carer grant and the other elements of the five family payments.

Liz Smith has pointed to a very important number—the £1.1 billion, which is expected to grow. We as a Government are conscious of that, because it needs to be accounted and paid for in every budgetary process, but it is important that the committee realises what the funding is for and its impact on low-income families, the disabled and carers.

I will certainly be able to provide further advice on that in writing.