£210m child tax credits unclaimed, Labour say

Child tax credits worth £210 million were unclaimed by an estimated 50,000 families in Scotland, Scottish Labour have said.

The party described families missing out on the unclaimed tax credits as “scandalous” after figures were published by HM Revenue and Customs.

Calling on both the UK and Scottish Government to do more to make sure families get the tax credits they were entitled to, Mark Griffin MSP said getting the money “could have a transformative effect in the battle against child poverty.”

The Scottish Labour social security spokesman Mark Griffin said: “With one in four children living in poverty, it is simply scandalous that families have missed out on over £200 million in child tax credits.

“At a time of soaring child poverty and falling wages, both the SNP and Tory governments should be doing more to make sure that 50,000 households are getting what they are entitled to.

“With an average payment of over £6,000, getting this money to them could be transformative.

“Labour forced the SNP government to write the principle of income maximisation into law with requiring the new Social Security Agency Scotland to make sure that people are aware of what they are entitled to and can claim it – we now need to see real action on that.

“Families across the country are facing a cost of living crisis – ensuring they don’t miss out on child tax credits, this vital support they are entitled to, should form a cornerstone of any serious anti-poverty strategy from Holyrood and Westminster.”

Scottish Government Communities Secretary Aileen Campbell said: “Too many people are not accessing everything they could be, and we want to ensure the right support is there to help people make the most of their financial situation.

“Last November, we launched the Financial Health Check service, which will give families on low incomes access to the information they need. A campaign to highlight the service starts this month.

“The Financial Health Check is a key part of our work to tackle child poverty and will cover issues such as access to free school meals, benefit uptake, council tax reduction and cheaper deals on utilities to reduce household costs.

“Some benefits are reserved to the UK Government so we would urge them to follow our lead and do the same and ensure everyone is encouraged to claim for the benefits and support they are entitled to.”