Scottish Government Abolishes Two-Child Benefit Cap March 2

The Scottish Government has announced that it will remove the two-child benefit cap starting March 2, 2026, just weeks before the Scottish Parliament election. This policy, introduced by the previous Conservative UK government, limits access to certain means-tested benefits to only the first two children in a family. The SNP's mitigation scheme is expected to lift around 20,000 children out of relative poverty and provide payments amounting to nearly £3,500 for affected children. Social Justice Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville emphasized that Scotland cannot wait for the UK government, led by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, who has so far refused to end the cap, citing economic reasons. The Scottish Government highlighted that this is the fastest delivery of a social security benefit in Scotland, building on other child poverty measures such as the Scottish Child Payment and support for school meal debts. They also criticized austerity decisions by the UK government, stating that decisive UK action could potentially remove 100,000 children from poverty annually.