Committees

Welfare policy in Scotland

Inquiry

The inquiry will examine the effect of welfare policies on the lives of claimants and poverty and inequality levels more broadly in Scotland.

It will:

  • assess the effectiveness of Scottish Choices which provide a unique degree of flexibility for those on Universal Credit in Scotland
  • explore the consequences of Universal Credit policies specific to Scotland, including; inaccessibility in rural areas, and the issue of debt spiralling for those taking advanced payments
  • understand how effective cooperation has been between the UK and Scottish Governments on the devolution of new welfare powers to Scotland
  • evaluate the likely long-term impacts of coronavirus on the devolution of welfare

Read the call for evidence for more detail about the inquiry

Read a summary of our key recommendations

Upcoming events

View all events

No upcoming events scheduled

Past events

Thursday 17 June 2021
9:00am Private
11:45am Public
Renewable energy in Scotland - Oral evidence 17 June 2021
11:45am
  • Claire Mack (Chief Executive at Scottish Renewables)
  • Matthieu Hue (Chief Executive Officer at EDF Renewables)
  • Lucy Whitford (Managing Director for UK & Ireland at RES)
12:45pm
  • Steven McMahon (Deputy Director, Electricity Distribution and Cross Sector Policy at Ofgem)
  • Bless Kuri (Head of System Planning at Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks)
Room 8, Palace of Westminster
Wednesday 21 April 2021
9:30am Private
Private meeting 21 April 2021
Virtual meeting
Thursday 18 March 2021
11:00am Private
11:30am Public
Welfare policy in Scotland - Oral evidence 18 March 2021
11:30am
  • Justin Tomlinson (Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work at Department for Work & Pensions)
  • Will Quince (Minister for Welfare Delivery at Department for Work & Pensions)
  • Andrew Latto (Deputy Director, Devolution, Pensioner Benefits and Carer's Allowance, Policy Group at Department for Work & Pensions)
  • Margarita Morrison (Area Director, Work and Health Services Scotland at Department for Work & Pensions)
Virtual meeting
Thursday 11 March 2021
11:00am Private
11:30am Public
Welfare policy in Scotland - Oral evidence 11 March 2021
11:30am
  • Shirley-Anne Somerville MSP (Cabinet Secretary for Social Security and Older People at Scottish Government)
  • Callum Smith (Reserved and Working Age Benefits Team Leader at Scottish Government)
  • Catherine Reeves (Social Security Programme Management Office at Scottish Government)
Virtual meeting

Related information

Contact us

We receive a significant number of emails each day. All requests and invitations are considered but we do not respond directly to everyone. Please be aware, the committee does not look at individual cases or specific complaints.