New YouGov polling by StepChange Debt Charity for Debt Awareness Week (March 20-26) suggests that the dire state of households finances is worsening, with people imminently facing increased Council Tax, less support with energy bills and higher rent or mortgage payments.
The GB-wide representative survey examines the toll that the cost of living crisis has had on household incomes. It reveals that among the 190 Scottish adults included in the poll, one in seven (14%), equivalent to over 600,000 people, has £20 or less left over each month after paying for essentials, with seven per cent having no disposable income at all. This chimes with StepChange Scotland’s own client data which shows over a quarter (27%) of clients are in a negative budget, meaning that, after a debt advice session and budget counselling, their expenses exceed their income.
The polling also reveals the impact of nine consecutive interest rate rises on mortgage holders and renters alike, almost two-thirds (60%) of whom expect their housing payments to rise within the next 12 months.
