Humza Yousaf’s proposal for a new tax band could raise enough money to lift 20,000 children out of poverty, a think tank has said. The Institute for Public Policy Research’s analysis said thousands of families could benefit if the money went towards increasing the Scottish Child Payment.
During the SNP leadership campaign, Mr Yousaf proposed a new tax band for those earning more than £43,662. The IPPR modelled a similar proposal and found it generated an additional £257 million for the public purse.
The think tank said this would be enough to fund increasing the Scottish Child Payment to £40 per week, which could lift 20,000 children out of poverty. So far 40,000 children are thought to have benefited from the new social security payment.
