I attended a drop-in event on Wednesday 31 May 2023 in Holyrood to discuss the need to tackle financial hardship in later life.
The event was held by Independent Age, the national older people’s charity, as latest figures show that 1 in 7 older people now live in poverty in Scotland, a 25% rise in the last decade. Earlier in the year, the organisation launched its research report “Not Enough to Live On”: Pensioner Poverty in Scotland, calling for the government to introduce a long-term strategy to reduce pensioner poverty.
The report, which was shared at the event, included interviews from 40 older people on their experience of living on a low income and detailed the toll that the cost of living crisis has taken on both their physical and mental health. Many reported skipping meals, not turning the heating on or being forced to stay in the house because they can’t afford to leave their home.
I also heard about Independent Age’s call, supported by over 30 organisations who work across Scotland, for the establishment of an Older People’s Commissioner to act as an independent champion for older people across all government departments. With a predicted 1 in 4 expected to be over 65 by 2040, the charity says that the Government should embrace and plan for this demographic shift by establishing a commissioner.
In Mid Scotland and Fife there are more than 137,000 people aged 66 and over. An estimated 20,600 older people in Mid Scotland and Fife are in poverty.
Scotland should be one of the best places in the world to grow old but sadly that isn’t the reality for many of older people.
I have been contacted by numerous pensioners telling me of how they are struggling. The cost-of-living crisis is a major factor but the affordability of heating has been a long-standing issue for many older people for a long-time.
Whether it is fuel poverty, or the spiralling cost of basic food-stuffs, it is shocking that 1 in 7 older people now live in poverty in Scotland. We as a country need to do more to address this, and a dedicated Older People’s Commissioner would be a good start.
Debbie Horne, Scotland Policy and Public Affairs Manager for Independent Age said:
“We’re really pleased that Alex Rowley MSP came along to find out more about the issues older people in financial hardship are facing in Scotland.
“With Scotland’s rapidly ageing population, older people’s issues should be front and centre of the government’s agenda, yet we hear from older people on low incomes every day who tell us they feel invisible and like their views don’t matter.”
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Scottish Older People’s Commissioner consensus statement – https://www.independentage.org/campaigning/Scotland-consensus-statement
“Not enough to live on”: Pensioner poverty in Scotland research report – https://www.independentage.org/pensioner-poverty-scotland-report
About Independent Age
We offer regular friendly contact, a strong campaigning voice and free, impartial advice on the issues that matter to older people: care and support, money and benefits, health and mobility. A charity founded over 150 years ago, we are independent so older people can be too.
For more information, visit our website www.independentage.org.
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