SNP: We'll never cut back £7bn bill for benefits

By TOM GORDON, SCOTTISH DAILY MAIL DEPUTY POLITICAL EDITOR Published: 19:54, 24 May 2026 | Updated: 19:54, 24 May 2026 The SNP will never slash Scotland’s runaway £7billion benefits bill, the finance secretary said yesterday. Jenny Gilruth was branded ‘out of touch’ after signalling she would rather slash all other areas of public spending before tackling the country’s bloated welfare bill. Ms Gilruth said that benefits is ‘the last place’ she would look to make cuts. The Scottish Conservatives said the ‘ludicrous’ comments would alarm Scots worried about even higher taxes being used to balance the books. Ms Gilruth, a former modern studies teacher, put in charge of a £68billion budget by John Swinney last week, was also accused of ‘keeping Scots in the dark’ about planned cuts. She said cuts would ‘undoubtedly’ be made but refused to say where. She and new public sector reform secretary Ivan McKee need to save £1 billion over the next five years and shed 11,000 public sector jobs. Without major changes, the Scottish budget faces a £5 billion black hole by 2031, as SNP spending pledges have massively outstripped revenues. In her first interview after being appointed finance secretary and deputy FM, Ms Gilruth denied welfare costs were ‘too high’, despite topping £7 billion this year. Jenny Gilruth's comments on Scotland's bloated welfare bill have been branded 'ludicrous' by the Scottish Conservatives  She had earlier said ‘public service reform’, which involves finding £1billion in savings and 11,000 public sector job cuts, would be ‘fundamental’ to the SNP’s fifth term. It led to claims the former education secretary was ‘out of her depth’ at finance. Appearing on BBC Scotland’s Sunday Show, Ms Gilruth doubled down on her claim. She said: ‘I don’t think it’s too high. I think when the public finances are stretched, the last place we should be looking at are the most vulnerable and the poor. ‘Looking in that direction is exactly where parties like Reform would like us to consider. ‘We won’t do that as a party, and I make no apology for that. ‘We have a welfare approach in Scotland that treats people with dignity and respect. ‘We’re talking about children, we’re talking about disabled people, we’re talking about poor people. ‘I’m not going to take benefits away from those people.’ The Scottish Fiscal Commission has forecast total welfare costs will rise from £7.4 billion this year to £9.2 billion by 2031, with 80 per cent of the spending on ‘disability payments’. Around £1.2billion of the bill is a direct result of Scotland’s generous system, and has to be found by taking money from other parts of the Scottish budget. On current trends, more than a million Scots will be on disability benefits by 2031, a 40 per cent surge from 720,000 in 2025. Scottish Tory finance spokesman Craig Hoy said: ‘Jenny Gilruth’s ludicrous comments will alarm hard-working Scots who are already forced to pay the highest taxes anywhere in the UK under the SNP. ‘It’s absurd that she believes the SNP’s ballooning benefits bill is acceptable, with no intention of addressing the £5 billion black hole in Scotland’s finances. Jenny Gilruth appeared on The Sunday Show for her first interview after being appointed finance secretary and deputy FM ‘Just days into the job, Jenny Gilruth has exposed how totally out of touch she really is. ‘Instead of focussing on growing our economy or fixing our broken public services, the SNP’s only interest is holding another divisive independence referendum.’ Admitting spending would ‘undoubtedly’ be cut, Ms Gilruth refused to say where the axe would fall. She said: ‘We need to look at efficiencies in the round. For example, in relation to sharing services. But we also need to look at portfolio savings, and more broadly at prevention.’ She said ‘a significant number’ of job cuts would ‘come from natural attrition’. Scottish Labour finance spokesman Michael Marra said: ‘The SNP has wreaked havoc with Scotland’s public finances and harsh cuts are looming as a result - but Scots still don’t have any answers about what lies ahead. ‘There is now a dedicated Minister for Cuts in this SNP government, but the Deputy First Minister still is still keeping Scots in the dark about where those cuts will fall. ‘This new term was a chance for a new approach, but we are hearing the same secrecy, the same spin and the same complacency from the SNP.’ Ends No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.