CAS submitted a briefing for the Work & Pensions Committee for their evidence session taking place the 20th October, on the changes to Housing Benefit announced in the June 2010 budget. The evidence based briefing presents the Scottish perspective on the proposed changes.
In November 2010 Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) published Banking on the Basics1, a report on the accessibility of basic bank accounts in Scotland. CAB across Scotland report of clients who have been unable to access a basic bank account because of an undischarged bankruptcy, a poor credit history, for having no credit history, because of set ID requirements and for having debt with a bank. A public survey conducted for CAS’s research on the issue found that one in 10 respondents did not have a bank account though two thirds of these had tried to access one. This number increases to one in 5 for those living in the 15% most deprived areas in Scotland. The inaccessibility of basic bank accounts affects those who are vulnerable, those who need the service the most. Subsequently, CAS calls for the establishment of a universal right to a bank account for all.