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Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves MP recently unveiled the UK Government’s tax and spending plans from April 2025 onwards. As the first female Chancellor of the Exchequer in Britain’s history, Reeves’ message to young women and girls everywhere is, “let there be no ceiling on your ambition, your hopes and your dreams.”
At The Young Women’s Movement, we are reflecting on what the UK Autumn Budget means for young women and girls across Scotland, particularly in relation to reducing poverty, tackling gender inequality and investing in local communities.
The budget statement included many important and promising announcements, pledging additional funding for the NHS, schools, local government and social care. We know that women and girls tend to rely more on these services, so we are pleased to hear that the Chancellor has committed to investing in our public services after years of real-term cuts and tight budgets. Scotland will also receive an additional £3.4bn in Treasury funding. But exactly how will Reeves’ economic decisions affect young women and girls in Scotland?
Young women across Scotland are feeling trapped and financially strained due to the cost-of-living crisis, which significantly limits their opportunities and future aspirations. They are frustrated over not being able to live independently or own a home, even with steady employment or higher education. The rising cost of essential items such as housing, utilities, and food leaves them with little to no disposable income, resulting in a compromised quality of life.
In her budget statement, the Chancellor pledged to reduce the level of debt repayments that can be taken from Universal Credit from each household from 25% to 15%. From our latest report we know that young women on Universal Credit find themselves pushed further into poverty and destitution when they are chased for debt by public bodies, so we are pleased that the Chancellor has made the decision to reduce the maximum amount of benefit that can be taken from them. However, much more needs to be done to tackle the cost-of-living crisis and the impact it is having on young women and girls across the UK, including increasing Universal Credit basic rate to cover the rising cost of essentials.
The Chancellor promised to “put more money in peoples’ pockets” by announcing the rise of the national minimum wage from £11.44 to £12.21 per hour in April 2025. Boosting the minimum wage is welcome news, especially as young women tend to work in lower paid jobs and on average earn less than young men. In our latest report, nearly two-thirds of young women told us that their financial situation has worsened in the past year, with many asking for an increase in wages to help them navigate rising costs. Raising the national minimum wage is a step forward in the right direction, but young women aged 18-20 deserve to be paid the same rate as older workers. It is also vital that the Scottish Government continues to support delivery of a real living wage to workers in Scotland as part of the process of ensuring fair work that pays.
In her pledge to provide extra money for local government, the Chancellor has ring-fenced £600m for investment in social care and increased the NHS’s day-to-day budget by £22.6bn to tackle waiting lists and improve productivity. We welcome this correction to years of underspending in the NHS, particularly the commitment to tackle long waiting lists and finally invest in our social care infrastructure. However, we want the UK Government to ensure a sustained level of investment in the health and social care sector, ensuring efficacy of public spending in the long-term. With a further £3.4bn coming to next year’s Scottish budget, investment must be made in improving NHS services in Scotland to facilitate timely access to healthcare for young women and girls.
The Chancellor announced that employers will pay National Insurance at a rate of 15% on employee’s earnings above £5,000 per year from April 2025. Like many third sector organisations across Scotland we are concerned that increases to employer National Insurance will hit charities and community groups the hardest, many of whom rely on the labour of young women. The support and advice provided by these organisations is vital for young women and girls who are struggling with the cost-of-living crisis, but too many are already struggling through a lack of fair funding.
The UK budget appears promising, particularly after a decade of austerity and numerous economic crises. But there is clearly still some way to go. We are disappointed that the two-child benefit system was not scrapped and that the benefits cap remains in place. In our recent report, young women across Scotland told us that they are delaying motherhood because they are simply unable to afford childcare.
We are also disappointed that single women were not taken into account, with repeated reference to women in relation to “working families” throughout the budget statement. Our latest report shows that single young women and young women living alone are struggling to afford housing costs and bills without the support of a partner or flat mate. The challenges of poverty and gender inequality clearly remain, particularly for young women and girls from marginalized backgrounds.
The outcome of the Scottish Government’s decisions will be set out next month on 4 December when the proposed Budget for 2025-26 is presented to the Scottish Parliament. That will likely commence a period of deliberation between the political parties, as the minority Government seeks the votes it requires to get its budget agreed by Parliament.
We ask the Scottish Government to use powers available to raise further revenue in Scotland and work constructively with the Scottish Parliament to tackle poverty and gender inequality as much as possible through devolved competence.
The cost-of-living crisis continues to deepen for young women and girls across Scotland. To mark Challenge Poverty Week 2024, The Young Women’s Movement and Scottish Women’s Budget Group are delighted to co-launch our report exploring the impact of the cost-of-living crisis on young women in Scotland.
As the Scottish Government outlines its priorities for the coming year, we welcome the recognition and inclusion of some key issues that affect young women across Scotland.
Ahead of the UK General Election, The Young Women’s Movement have launched a campaign to encourage young women to use their voice and exercise their democratic right to vote. We hope that candidates will implement the demands to improve the lives of young women and girls across Scotland and the UK.
In this post, Guest Blogger Maria Onatt discusses how current Green New Deals do not consider the gendered effects of climate change, and why they must take an intersectional feminist approach in order to create a sustainable future for all women.
