Chamber and committees

Good morning, minister and officials. I have to say that the issue that the convener has just raised is deeply concerning, because there seems to be no flexibility. From what we have heard, Scots living in some of the coldest communities in Scotland will lose out. Braemar recorded -15°C this week; today, as we speak, it is -2°C. Minister, do you accept that those rural communities are going to lose out and that the payments will not be in their bank account potentially until February? The DWP can pay within 14 days, which means that the money can be put out now, so why is there not the same flexibility here?

Perhaps you can liaise with the councils, then.

My questions follow on from Jeremy Balfour’s line of questioning. The minister is, I am sure, aware of Marie Curie’s campaign to get the Scottish Government to look at extending eligibility for the assistance to terminally ill people and to make sure that it also includes people under the age of 65. Where is the Scottish Government on that? Given what the minister has outlined to the committee about potential reforms and changes, is the Government of a mind to take that forward?

Thank you, minister. That would be very helpful. This week, I met Carolynne Hunter, of whom the minister will be aware. She very much highlighted the 5,000 families across Scotland who have seen their energy bills go up because of the equipment used at home for their children. I know that that is not directly related to this assistance, but I am quite keen to progress on that. I will look to do a cross-party round table on that next year. I am happy to take up the offer of that meeting with the minister, and, hopefully, those things can be discussed. Given energy costs, it is an important issue on which to try to look for a solution as well.

I take that point on board, minister, but it seems to be an argument about process rather than about the people who are living in these conditions. That is concerning.

It is reality.

We are talking about people living in the coldest communities in Scotland. Maybe there could have been more flexibility to take that into account now rather than in future years. The Scottish Government told SCOSS that it might take a few weeks in February to process the payments. Will the eligible recipients receive their payments before the end of February? Is that now guaranteed?

Just before I hand back to you, convener, I suggest that it might be important for the minister, once he leaves this meeting, to write to the communities, specifically with that information. People might not be aware of what is going on, so it would be useful, especially in the four postcode areas that we are talking about, to make sure that households are aware.

I will pick up on the point that James Dornan has just made. The Government said that there would not be losers, but there clearly will be. As has been reflected in our discussions on the issue, I am concerned that the new scheme will leave behind many parts of rural Scotland that benefit from the current system because of the extra cold weather that they experience, and it will make them financially worse off. That is not a system that should have been developed, and it could have been corrected before now. I am concerned about what that means for some low-income families living in communities such as Braemar, Aviemore and across rural Scotland, especially given the recent weather. That is a problem that should have been fixed.

Minister, I think that the committee has expressed frustration today that we are putting in place a system that moves us towards a universal payment system for people—I accept that—but that does not take into account the previous targeted support that was based on the coldest weather that communities across Scotland often experience. That is not acceptable. I hope that the minister takes on board the debate that we have had this morning on the changes, so that support will be provided and people will be made aware of the additional support—many will not know where and how to apply for it. I hope that the Government commits to coming back as soon as possible to try to fix it and put in place a better system, because all of us on the committee hoped for and wanted a better system to be put in place, and it does not feel as though this has lived up to that expectation. Like Jeremy Balfour, I will not vote against the regulations, but I will abstain, because I do not think that we should approve the system as it stands.

The member represents a very rural part of Scotland. Payments have not necessarily been triggered there to the same extent as they have in communities in the north. Does he want his communities to lose out, in a way? We have no Aberdeenshire members, for example, on the committee. We were led to believe that no one would lose out, but this will result in communities losing out. Why has the Government not taken that on board?