Chancellor Rishi Sunak challenged by Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton.
By Lucy Ashton
Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton has today called for cost-of-living support to be targeted towards those who are most in need.
Rishi Sunak has announced that the Treasury will offer people a £150 council tax rebate to support them in the face of rising energy costs. As a result, the Scottish Government has £290m in Barnett consequentials to spend.
Mr Cole-Hamilton said: “Instead of a windfall tax on the record profits of oil and gas companies to fund a package of support, Rishi Sunak is simply spreading the pain for families over the coming years.
“These plans are playing Russian roulette with taxpayers’ money, gambling that energy prices will fall instead of investing in keeping people’s bills down.
“Even before the price cap rises, people were facing soaring bills for food and travel. The Scottish Government will have to get this money out to those who need it most as swiftly as possible.
“Neither of Scotland’s governments are doing anything like enough. The Conservatives must deliver much more to help with the soaring costs of energy and scrap their unfair national insurance hike. The SNP/Green Government must rethink their own hike to rail fares and stop dawdling on retrofitting homes to insulate people from these energy costs.”