Tackling child poverty - progress report 2022 to 2023: annex d - cost of living focus report

Footnotes

i. In this dataset, an individual was said to have experienced some form of financial vulnerability if three or more of the following applied to them: unable to afford an unexpected, but necessary, expense of £850; borrowing more money or using more credit than usual, in the last month, compared to a year ago; being unable to save in the next 12 months; finding it very or somewhat difficult to afford energy bills.

ii. All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 1005 adults in Scotland. Fieldwork was undertaken between 9th - 11th May 2023. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all adults in Scotland (aged 18+).

iii. Scottish Government estimate.

iv. The latest economic context to the proposed extension to the emergency legislation as at 1 June 2023 is set out in section 4 of the Cost of Living (Tenant Protection) (Scotland) Act 2022 - 2nd proposed extension: statement of reasons Cost of Living (Tenant Protection) (Scotland) Act 2022 - 2nd proposed extension: statement of reasons - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

v. The Real Living Wage (rLW) is set independently – calculated by the Resolution Foundation and overseen by the Living Wage Foundation. The rLW rate is higher than the National Minimum Wage (NMW) and National Living Wage (NLW) as it is aimed at reflecting better the cost of living and meeting everyday needs. The rLW rate is paid on a voluntary basis and employers paying the rLW can become living wage employers through the Real Living Wage accreditation scheme.

vi. Insecure work does not have a single definition. The Work Foundation, in their research on insecure employments, defines it as forms of work that are precarious, unprotected or low-paid. However, the Resolution Foundation defines as risk of job loss, volatility in hours and pay and not being able to find enough hours.

vii. There are similar schemes across the UK. For example, the Household Support Fund in England, Discretionary Assistance Fund in Wales, and the Discretionary Support Scheme in Northern Ireland.

viii. A minimum income guarantee is a suite of interventions which includes: social security payments; reforms to employability and access to collective services. The interim report by the Minimum Income Guarantee Expert Group provides background to the work in this area to date.

ix. This included evidence from: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Scotland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Switzerland, Spain, Sweden, United States.