The Scottish Government controls a number of passported benefits such as free school lunches and concessionary travel which people are eligible for if they receive one or more UK welfare benefits.
With the UK Government introducing major changes in the welfare system through the Welfare Reform Act, the Scottish Government needs to review the criteria it sets for access to support. We want to ensure, as far as possible, that we continue to support low-income or disabled people as intended through passported benefits.
The Scottish Government is determined to take whatever steps are necessary to ensure access to passported benefits is maintained for the same groups of people who receive them now.
On 28 June 2012 the Scottish Government launched a consultation to look at ways of ensuring people in Scotland continue to receive passported benefits – those which are devolved - once the welfare reforms being pursued by the UK government take effect.
We conducted a series of stakeholder events in October 2012 to discuss the immediate changes required to maintain eligibility to passported benefits.
The analysis of the Scottish Passported Benefits Consultation on changes required as a result of the introduction of Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment was published on 21 December 2012.