SNP Government announces changes to attendance allowance for elderly
A new benefit will be replacing attendance allowance for state pension age Sutherland residents living with disabilities or long-term health issues.
The Scottish Government today opened applications for the Pension Age Disability Payment (PADP) in five local authority areas across Scotland, including Highland.
The new benefit, which will replace attendance allowance in Scotland, will be rolled out in Argyll and Bute, Highland, Aberdeen City, Orkney, and Shetland, with a nationwide rollout expected by April 22 next year.
The SNP Government says that PADP takes a “more humane approach” than the existing UK-wide attendance allowance, which only classes people as terminally ill if they are expected to live for 12 months or less.
The PADP automatically entitles the terminally ill to the highest level of payment, regardless of how long they are expected to live. The payment, which is not means-tested, will be worth between £290 and £434 a month, depending on the needs of the recipient.
This will be the fifteenth payment to be issued by Social Security Scotland, remaining consistent with its founding principles of “dignity, fairness, and respect”.
Commenting, Caithness, Sutherland and Ross MSP, Maree Todd said: “While the UK Labour Government removes the Winter Fuel Payment from 900,000 Scottish pensioners and proceeds with the Tories’ plans to cut the benefits of 400,000 sick and disabled people across the UK, the SNP Scottish Government is delivering the financial support that our older disabled people deserve.
“I welcome the pilot of the Pension Age Disability Payment here in Highland, along with four other local authorities.
“This new benefit was shaped by listening to the needs of older disabled people, which is why it automatically entitles the terminally ill to the highest level of payment, regardless of life expectancy. This is a significant improvement compared to Westminster's Attendance Allowance, which unfairly limits the classification of terminal illness to those expected to live for less than 12 months.
“This new benefit marks another step forward in the SNP Government’s commitment to creating a fairer, more compassionate social security system tailored to the needs of the people of Scotland, with the principles of dignity, fairness, and respect at its heart.”
