A Renfrewshire Councillor has welcomed an increase in support from the Scottish Government for young people at risk of being pushed into homelessness.
SNP Councillor Mags MacLaren, who represents Paisley North West said this is due to UK Government changes to housing benefit.
The changes, due to take effect from 1st April, will remove the entitlement to housing support for 18 to 21 year-olds in receipt of Universal Credit who do not have a specific exemption, such as disability or childcare.
The Scottish Welfare Fund will now be extended on an interim basis to ensure those young people who will be excluded from financial support by the UK Government will still be able to receive assistance with housing costs.
MacLaren told Renfrewshire News the move by the Scottish Government fund was put in place after the SNP called on the UK Government to halt the roll-out of the full service of Universal Credit until problems with its implementation are fully resolved.
Councillor Mags MacLaren Said: “This is a good move by the SNP Scottish Government but, yet again, highlights how Scotland’s limited budget is being used to offset Tory cuts.”
“It is very disappointing, yet unsurprising, that the UK government has insisted on pushing through these shameful changes to housing benefit. This is hugely dismissive of the difficulties young people in Scotland face in obtaining and keeping a tenancy.
“The SNP Scottish Government has been steadfast in its commitment to retain housing benefit for 18 to 21-year-olds and despite repeated attempts to agree a solution with the Department for Work and Pensions and calls for a delay, the UK Government’s change in policy will clearly lead to a rise in the level of homelessness among that age group.
“Although our strong homelessness legislation in Scotland means that a young person who is assessed as homeless will be entitled to a minimum of temporary accommodation and, therefore, will become eligible for the housing element of universal credit, they will not be able to move into settled accommodation without losing that entitlement.”