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May 3

Tax, targeted support and tough budget choices will all need to be considered as part of bold measures to tackle poverty, First Minister @HumzaYousaf said today. He was speaking after chairing a cross party anti-poverty summit in Edinburgh. Read more ow.ly/kg7850Oc2ue

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First Minister Humza Yousaf speaking at the anti-poverty summit in Edinburgh

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May 3

We're looking forward to attending this morning's

summit on poverty and inequality. We'll be represented by our Deputy Chair

@MoragTreanor

and our Experts by Experience Panel Member Danielle.

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First Minister

May 2

Tomorrow First Minister @HumzaYousaf will lead a summit on tackling poverty and inequality in Scotland. He will be joined by campaigners, partners, cross-party representatives and people with direct experience of poverty, to help inform Scotland's approach to tackling the issue.

“Nothing will be off the table and I look forward to hearing all contributions at the summit, which I hope will drive new momentum in the fight against poverty in Scotland.” Humza Yousaf, First Minister

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Improvement Service

@improvserv

May 1

Thanks to Bill Scott from

who spoke at our recent #ChildrensRights Conversations event on how #ChildPoverty affects children’s rights. “Poverty is a killer, just as surely as war and disease. It just takes longer.”

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Mar 30

We're pleased to see the publication of #SNAP2 today - Scotland's second National Human Rights Action Plan. The Commission and our Experts by Experience Panel members contributed to actions it contains on achieving a decent standard of living.

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Lucy Mulvagh FRSA MCIPR

@lkmulvagh

Mar 30

ICYMI (and please RT!) #SNAP2 is launched TODAY. 54 practical actions to help make #HumanRights real in everyday life in Scotland. snaprights.info

SNAP 2 At A Glance VISION • A Scotland where everyone can live with human dignity. PURPOSE • Carry out coordinated human rights activity by public bodies, civil society and rights holders. • Promote greater awareness of human rights. • Advance the realisation of human rights. PRINCIPLES • Participation and Collaboration. • Accountability. • Non-discrimination, Equality and Intersectionality. • Empowerment. • Legality. PRIORITIES • Achieve a decent standard of living. • Improve health, wellbeing and the environment. • Enhance education and work. • Protect private and family life. • Ensure justice. • Learn from COVID-19. • Realise a human rights culture. • Plan and support incorporation. 54 ACTIONS OUTCOMES • 7 medium term outcomes by 2026 and tailored outcomes for each action. • 7 long term outcomes by 2030.

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Bill's full statement can be read here:

Poverty and Inequality Commission Comment on Scottish Government Child Poverty Statistics - Poverty...

Commenting on today’s release of the Scottish Government’s Poverty and Income Inequality Statistics, Bill Scott, Chair of the Poverty and Inequality

Our Chair Bill Scott has commented on

@scotgov

's updated child poverty statistics published today.

Image of Bill Scott, Chair of the Poverty & Inequality Commission with the accompanying quote text: "Today’s statistics make clear the scale of the task ahead for the Scottish government to meet Scotland’s statutory child poverty targets. These figures do not give strong evidence of progress and I’m concerned that the gap between where we are and where we need to be remains large."

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We’re grateful to organisations in Scotland who have led the way on involving people with experience of poverty in shaping policy. Particularly

@PovertyAlliance

whose Community Activists Advisory Group worked with

@GCU_SPIRU

to create guidance for us.

Guidance for the Poverty and Inequality Commission – Involving Experts by Experience - Poverty &...

October 2020 The Poverty and Inequality Commission commissioned Poverty Alliance to co-produce guidance for how experts by experience should be involved

Prof Morag Treanor FRSA and 4 others

You can read more about our Panel and how they have shaped the Commission’s advice, scrutiny and advocacy here povertyinequality.scot/about/experts-

Image of silhouettes of people alongside the text: The Panel

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The ordinary Scots challenging poverty to shape policy

Our Experts by Experience Panel members Isla and Andrew spoke to

@BBCScotlandNews

about how they and their fellow Panel members have used their experiences to influence policy on #poverty

bbc.co.uk

A panel of people experiencing poverty are helping shape and inform policies to tackle inequality.

Joseph Rowntree Foundation

Feb 27

Important report from

@jrf_uk

. Shows that 90% of low-income households on Universal Credit are going without essentials & there is public support for an "Essentials Guarantee" to ensure this doesn't continue to happen.

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@jrf_uk

Feb 27

From April, Universal Credit will be set at £85 a week for a single adult, but there’s a significant gap between this and living costs. Our research shows that in order to cover the essentials, it must be increased to at least £120 a week. jrf.org.uk/report/guarant

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Social Security Scotland

@SocSecScot

Feb 17

People are urged to check their Best Start Foods card for unspent money. Best Start Foods is one of five family payments that provide financial support to families with children under the age of 16. Read more at bit.ly/BestStartFoods

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Feb 8

In their response, Panel members highlight the cost of living challenges faced by rural communities in Scotland, and propose solutions. We've also published the full response at

Response by Experts by Experience Panel - Cost of Living Impact on Rural Communities in Scotland -...

February 2023 A working group of the Experts by Experience Panel of the Poverty and Inequality Commission responded to the UK Parliament Scottish Affairs

Feb 8

We've blogged on a response by members of our Experts by Experience Panel to

@CommonsScotAffs

inquiry into the rising cost of living's impact on rural Scottish communities. ✏️povertyinequality.scot/experts-by-exp

Quote text bubble from a member of the Commission's Experts by Experience Panel that reads: "I have been struggling recently with the cost of food ... it's the cost of oil, the cost of petrol. There are three buses per day into town where I am and I need a car."

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... & 2. Ideas on new taxation policies for Scotland that have the potential to reduce poverty and inequality. More information on the Commission's tax working group and the call for evidence at

Working groups - Poverty & Inequality Commission

The core Poverty and Inequality Commission represents a broad range of experience and knowledge, however in order to provide robust advice it is sometimes

The working group is particularly keen to hear about: 1. Research (particularly quantitative analysis) on how existing taxes could more effectively reduce poverty and inequality...

Shona Stephen and 2 others

Do you have research or ideas about how #tax in Scotland could better reduce #poverty and #inequality? The Commission's working group on tax has an open call for evidence at povertyinequality.scot/about/our-work

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Tax Working Group. Call for evidence. The Commission's tax working group is inviting submissions on how taxes in Scotland could more effectively reduce poverty and inequality.

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Thanks to

@CAPscot

who hosted our Chair Bill Scott at their Edinburgh West Debt Centre last week. We heard about the work they do and the challenges they face due to the #CostOfLivingCrises

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CAP Scotland

@CAPscot

Jan 27

We were honoured to host the @povinequalscot at our Edinburgh West Debt Centre yesterday. Thank you to the Chair of the Commission, Bill Scott, who took the time to meet with us and hear first-hand from our experts by experience.

The Scottish Fuel Poverty Advisory Panel

Dec 5, 2022

Good to see

@scotfuelpov

join twitter. 👇

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@scotfuelpov

Dec 1, 2022

The Scottish Fuel Poverty Advisory Panel has been established to contribute to policy development to tackle fuel poverty and extreme fuel poverty in Scotland. Here, Chair Matthew Cole explains why scrutiny and collaboration are vital in preventing and alleviating fuel poverty.

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Scot Gov Fairer

@ScotGovFairer

Dec 4, 2022

Children registered for free school meals because of low family income will qualify for the final Bridging Payment of £260 this winter. Payments will be made automatically to those who have registered for free school meals before the Christmas holidays. bit.ly/Bridging-Payme

Social Justice Secretary Shona Robison with the quote: “I urge anyone who is eligible for free school meals to register through their local authority as soon as possible to ensure they receive the winter Bridging Payment."

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Aberlour Children's Charity

Our Commissioner

worked with

on this new report showing the levels of debt low-income families in Scotland face to public bodies. 👇

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@AberlourCCT

Nov 28, 2022

Our report reveals that low-income families in Scotland are facing worrying levels of debt to public bodies. More than half of families with children in receipt of Universal Credit are having their incomes reduced by the @DWP to pay off these debts.

aberlour.org.uk/news-item/new-

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Nov 18, 2022

Our Commissioners

@LindsayGrahamUK

and Yvonne Blake were at

@LarderTraining

's #emergencyfoodsummit in Blackburn today to discuss solutions to ensure no-one in Scotland goes hungry this winter.

Nov 16, 2022

As we wait for the UK Government's Autumn Statement tomorrow, the Commission is calling on

@RishiSunak

@10DowningStreet

to uprate benefits by inflation now. 👇

Image of chair of the Poverty and Inequality Commission Bill Scott, accompanied by the following quote from Bill:

"People on low incomes are struggling with the rising cost of food, fuel and housing. Despite being experts in budgeting, they can’t make their money stretch any further. We are calling on the Prime Minister to honour his commitment to uprate benefits by inflation but to do it right now rather than next April, and to provide further support to households in the greatest need."

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Nov 11, 2022

Our Chair Bill Scott told

@SP_PublicAudit

yesterday about the transformation that is needed in Scotland if we want to prevent children falling into poverty in the first place. 👇

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Public Audit Committee

@SP_PublicAudit

Nov 10, 2022

Today's session shone a light on the devastating impact poverty has on children in Scotland Thank you @Bruce_Adamson @CPAGScotland @PaulJScotGov @hanna_mcculloch @Actn4ChildrScot @povinequalscot @COSLA @AuditorGenScot for your valuable contribution A compilation of your views

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Nov 10, 2022

Our Chair, Bill Scott, will be giving evidence to the Public Audit Committee this morning at 9am on tackling child poverty

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Public Audit Committee

@SP_PublicAudit

Nov 9, 2022

Tomorrow, we hold an evidence session on the joint @AuditorGenScot & @AccCommScot briefing on 'Tackling child poverty'. We'll hear from @Bruce_Adamson @CPAGScotland @ShirleyGLaing @hanna_mcculloch @Actn4ChildrScot @povinequalscot @COSLA 9am

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Oct 13, 2022

At today’s

@SLF_Forum

Conference Panel member, Kim, reminded Scottish Leaders that changing circumstances could pull most people into poverty, and challenged them to design solutions to poverty that work for our most marginalised communities. #SLFLeadingTogether2022

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Scottish Leaders Forum

@SLF_Forum

Oct 13, 2022

Moving & powerful accounts from those with lived experience of some of today’s biggest challenges, inc poverty, & fleeing war. How do we ensure our services meet their needs? #SLFLeadingTogether2022

Poverty and stigma – the elephants in the room for lone parents

Oct 10, 2022

Our Deputy Chair,

@MoragTreanor

, will be giving the first Julie-Ann Macqueen lecture at

@EdinburghUni

and will focus on how poverty and stigma affect lone parents. This will be an in-person event on November 3rd, 2:30 - 5pm. For tickets and further info:

eventbrite.co.uk

This event is rescheduled to 21 March with registration re-opening shortly.

Oct 10, 2022

In our cost of living advice to

@ScotGov

, we recommended that Scottish Child Payment bridging payments should be increased. We warmly welcome today's announcement from

that the final bridging payment will be doubled from £130 to £260.

The Work Foundation

@WorkFoundation

🏆 This week, #ResearchOfTheWeek goes to

for their latest briefing exploring how the cost of living crisis is impacting communities and organisations that provide services and support. (1/6) povertyinequality.scot/publication/po

Glasgow Buchanan Street on a rainy day busy with people. pink 'people make Glasgow' banners are visible, hanging from a lamppost at the far right hand side of the image

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Linda Bamford (she/her)

and 6 others

Today’s #ChallengePoverty Week theme is ‘Our Communities’. #TurnTheTide

Image of quote from Panel member. Quote reads ‘First Covid, now the cost of living crisis and it seems like things are just getting worse for people in poverty. Now more than ever we need organisations that are properly supported and funded so they can support their communities when they most need it.

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Experts by Experience Panel member, Darren, has made a word search for #ChallengePoverty Week with words he associates with poverty. Lots of these represent issues that come up often in discussions with our Panel. Can you find the words hidden in the grid? 🧐 #TurnTheTide

Image of a word search, a grid containing letters. There is a list of words next to the grid. These words can be found in the grid. The words in the list that are hidden in the grid are:
'CHILDREN
DEPRESSION
DEPRIVED
DESTITUTION
EMBARRASSMENT
ESCAPE
EVICTION
HUMANBEINGS
HUNGER
IMPOVERISHED
MISERY
NECESSITY
MORTGAGE
PENNILESS
POVERTY
REDLETTER
SADNESS
SUPPORT
UNPAID BILLS'

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Day 5 of #ChallengePoverty Week 2022. Our Communities. Commissioners and panel members visited community organisations to hear how the cost of living crisis has impacted them and their communities. Read the full blog here: povertyinequality.scot/poverty-inequa #TurnTheTide

Poverty & Inequality Commission Cost of Living Project - Poverty & Inequality Commission

In this blog we report on the Commission’s Cost of Living project, outlining the purpose of the project, the groups and organisations the Commission has

Oct 6, 2022

Experts by Experience Panel member, Hussein, has written a blog for Day 4 of #ChallengePoverty Week 2022. The theme for the day is ‘Energy and the Environment’. You can read the full blog here: povertyinequality.scot/panel-member-b #TurnTheTide

Panel Member Blog: Energy and the Environment - Poverty & Inequality Commission

During Challenge Poverty Week 2022, we are using our blog and social media to give a platform to members of the Commission’s Experts by Experience Panel

Oct 6, 2022

On Day 4 of #ChallengePoverty Week 2022, here are some thoughts from our Experts by Experience Panel members on the theme of 'Energy and the Environment'. #Turnthetide

Experts by Experience Panel member quote reads "People who live in poverty, we are all experts at making things work, trying to cut corners and finding bargains, but it has gone beyond that. You can’t find more ways to save. It’s almost an impossible challenge you’re facing. No matter what you do you will lose."

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Experts by Experience Panel member quote reads "‘The reality is there are solutions out there but people are reluctant to put them in place because of conflicts of interest. A prime example is the four major retailers who dominate the fuel market. The French have nationalised their energy so they can pass on savings to their citizens and what are we doing here? We’re sitting here with our fingers crossed hoping things will work out, but there are long term solutions to these problems if we’re looking for them."

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Experts by Experience Panel member quote reads: "My two kids are at uni but it’s all still online and will be next year too. If it was just me at home, I might just put on a blanket, put another layer. If I wasn’t feeling well, I’d go and lie down with an extra blanket on. But my kids, they’re studying and are saying ‘mum, can I put the heating on?’ and I’m looking at the clock as they go in to the kitchen to turn it on, counting down ‘til I can turn it off again."

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Oct 5, 2022

Panel member, Heike has written a poem for #ChallengePoverty Week 2022 which combines 'the beauty of nature with death and human indifference.' You will also find the poem on our website here: povertyinequality.scot/panel-member-a #TurntheTide

Crow's Final Lament, by Heike.
Perched on top of the church steeple
Crow noisily proclaims the arrival of Fall
a flash of purple feather glints
in the weakening sun.
Crow observes his territory below
a patchwork quilt of russet and green
humans the size of ants rushing from A to B
malevolence penetrates the chilly air.
Crow shivers, not troubled by the autumnal decay
nor the arrival of honking geese
Crow shivers sensing an invisible veil of doom
has engulfed the land.
as conkers fall from trees
and squirrels squabble
as golden sorrows warm the roots of trees
and mist and ice bring calm.
time is running out,
faster and faster slipping between the cracks.
Crow gathers feathery friends
church bells ring out in anger
together they sing a eulogy to the rising sun
dawn trembles.
Crow sweeps down and lands between the graves of stone
the dead they slumber
yet things are not what they seem
humanity hangs her head in shame
Crow sings his final lament
about poverty and human indifference.

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Oct 5, 2022

On Day 3 of #ChallengePoverty Week, we are sharing artwork from two of our Experts by Experience Panel members, Heike and Sasha. Sasha has created some collages and has written a blog to accompany one of the pieces. You will find the collages & blog here: povertyinequality.scot/panel-member-a

Collage including images of a portrait of a woman wearing an Elizabethan clothing. There are lilies surrounding the woman and covering some of her face. There is a swan beside the woman wearing a pearl drop earring.

Text around the edge of the collage reads 'How terrible it is to love something that death can touch.'

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Oct 4, 2022

Work should be a route out of #poverty but many of our Panel members are unable to access employment and those in work are still experiencing poverty. To #TurnTheTide we need to remove the barriers to good jobs.

Quote from Experts by Experience Panel member. Quote reads: "It’s very much like a hurdle race that you are running when you are poor and on benefits. And you manage to clear one hurdle, be it the transport to a job or the childcare, and then straight away there’s another hurdle in your way that’s even higher than the one you’ve just cleared. It’s that unrelenting difficulty of life.

And people say ‘just get a job, you’ve got free childcare hours’, but they don’t meet your needs and you end up bending yourself out of shape to squeeze into a box that people say you can fit into."

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Oct 4, 2022

How can we #TurnTheTide on poverty? Make sure people with lived experience are involved in decision-making. #CostOfLivingCrisis

Image of quote from Panel member. Quote reads 'The people making the decisions are not living our lives. It should be ordinary people like us that should be involved in the decision making but it’s these rich millionaires.

What do they care about the price of petrol, the price of bread or if their gas and electricity has gone up by a couple of hundred per month? Some of us are on benefits, some of us are working – and sometimes worse off than people living on benefits.'

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Challenge Poverty Week and 9 others

Oct 4, 2022

Day 2 of #ChallengePoverty Week 2022: Work & the Economy. One of the Commission's Experts by Experience Panel members has written a blog about their experiences of employability support as a disabled person. Read the full blog here: povertyinequality.scot/panel-member-b #TurnTheTide

Image of a quote from one of the Commission's Experts by Experience Panel members. The quote reads 'Society values people who are in work and demonises those that are not. How can we judge a person's worth by whether or not they are part of the workforce? Why is it easier to judge those on benefits rather than judge those in jobs of power who abuse their position frequently? How do we start to tackle the misconceptions people have?'

The image includes logos of the Poverty and Inequality Commission and the Commission's Experts by Experience Panel.

The image includes details of the Commission's webpage www.povertyinequality.scot and the Commission's twitter handle @povinequalscot

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