1. Smith Commission Analysis
To what extent did Cyrenians (& Service Users) benefit from recent Smith
Commission recommendations & UK Government Command paper?
David Fulton
2/3/2015
This paper briefly examines what powers were recommended be devolved under the Smith Commission and recent Command Paper by UK Government. It
analyses to what extent, if any, the Cyrenians have benefited from potential increase in powers as based upon their submission to the Smith Commission.

2. 1
1. Overview
The Smith Commission was announced by David Cameron in the wake of Scotland’s decision to remain in the UK on 19 September 2014. Lord Smith
was provided with the task to "convene cross-party talks and facilitate an inclusive engagement process across Scotland to produce, by 30 November
2014, Heads of Agreement with recommendations for further devolution of powers to the Scottish Parliament".1
The commission invited submissions from individuals and organisations before a deadline of 31 October. 2Approximately 14,000 emails and letters
were received from the public, with a further 250 contributions from groups.3
On 22 January the UK Government delivered a Command Paper, containing 44 draft clauses many of which could take years to become statute law.4
This paper examines what, if anything was delivered by the Smith Commission and accompanying Command Paper by UK Government and whether
the Cyrenians have benefited from anything they recommended in their submission to the Smith Commission.
2. Submission by Cyrenians to Smith Commission5
The Cyrenians called for further subsidiarity of powers to smaller organisations in the following areas of policy:
Welfare Benefits (excluding pensions): an end to the “one size fits all” policy to a more localised, responsive-to-needs approach. This included an
ability to:
 Enable discretion on the funding ceiling for Discretionary Housing Payment (DHP) instead of required Westminster authorisation to raise the
ceiling
 Abolish so-called ‘bedroom tax’ by awarding DHP to all tenants affected by the bedroom tax to pay for the rent shortfall. Allow Scotland more
control over Housing Benefits
 Allow Scotland full/further control over the Scottish Welfare Fund
1 https://ww-w.smith-commission.scot/news/
2 http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-29857267
3 Ibid.,
4 http://www.scotsman.com/news/politics/top-stories/smith-commission-more-powers-vow-delivered-pm-1-3669009
5 https://www.smith-commission.scot/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/B00230.pdf

3. 2
 Adjust Universal Credit (UC) so that vulnerable clients may opt-out of direct housing payments from the beginning, to avoid falling further into
rent arrears.
 More control over the rate of increase for benefits and decision over whether to remove the cap on welfare spending in any given year
Employability and job support: This includes an ability to:
 Increased powers in areas of employment and training to enable localised decisions to be made tailored to geographic and individual need.
 A more joined up approach and greater decision-making for Scottish Parliament over its education and skills remit and employment and job
training.
 Work Programme and Employability Fund – amend policies to eradicate ‘time based trigger decisions’ which have a negative impact upon
young people aged 16-24 years old following 6 months of unemployment on Job Seekers Allowance.
Consumer rights: Cyrenians believes that Scotland should be provided with devolution of consumer rights regulation to enable it to influence
changes at a local level.
Tax raising powers:
 Full tax raising powers to Scotland (including budgets and fiscal accountability)
Any other devolution of powers which allows for improvements on inequality and poverty within Scotland.

4. 3
3. Smith Commission (and Command Paper of UK Government)
What has been included that provides for further powers relevant to Cyrenians?
1. Taxation
 The Scottish Government will receive all Income Tax paid by Scottish taxpayers on their non-savings and non-dividend income with a
corresponding adjustment in the block grant received from the UK Government. There will be no restrictions on the thresholds or rates the
Scottish Parliament can set.
 The receipts raised in Scotland by the first 10 percentage points of the standard rate of VAT will be assigned to the Scottish government's
budget.
2. Welfare benefits and employment
 Universal Credit (UC) will remain a reserved benefit administered and delivered by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
However Scotland will have the power to wary frequency of payments, vary existing plans for single households and pay landlords direct
and variation in housing cost elements of the UC. But all other elements of UC and earning taper will remain reserved as will conditionality
and sanctions.
 The Scottish parliament to have control over a number of benefits including Disability Living Allowance, Personal Independence
Payment, winter fuel payments and the housing elements of Universal Credit, including the under-occupancy charge (popularly known as
the bedroom tax). Discretionary Housing Payments.
 The Scottish parliament to have new powers to make discretionary payments in any area of welfare without the need to obtain prior
permission from the Department for Work and Pensions.

5. 4
 The Scottish parliament to have all powers of support for unemployed people through employment programmes, mainly delivered at
present through the Work Programme (until end of contract with suppliers of the programme).
3. Others
 Consumer advice and advocacy to be devolved with powers to help prevent proliferation of payday lenders.
4. Table showing areas of policy Cyrenians(and service users)benefited or otherwise
Core Policy
Area
Did Cyrenians benefit
from further powers
via SC?
[Yes/No/Somewhat]
Comments
Welfare
benefits
Somewhat Although Scotland will have powers to vary frequency of payments of benefits
such as UC & other benefits, the fundamentals of the UK welfare system
remain. i.e.) conditionality, sanctions etc…
Employability
& job support
Somewhat Although the Scottish Parliament will have be given powers to decide how it
operates core employment support services, this won’t happen until the
current contract for Work Programme expires. The Jobcentre Plus will remain
reserved & will mean no end to principal framework
Consumer
rights
Yes Consumer advice and advocacy will be devolved to Scottish Parliament with
powers to prevent proliferation of payday lenders.
Tax raising
powers
Somewhat The Scottish Parliament should be more accountable and responsible for
under plans to devolve income tax with ability to set rates and thresholds at
which these are paid. However much will remain reserved under the UK
Government and as income tax will remain a shared tax the budget will
continue to be remain reserved as will the rate of income tax. Thus income
tax powers will remain limited.
David Fulton 03/02/2015