Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:46 pm on 22 May 2018.
Well, I have to say, I find it extraordinary to be accused, as a progressive politician—and all of us are on these benches—that we are choosing not to address child poverty. That is a profoundly— [Interruption.]—a profoundly unfair allegation to make, but that is the allegation that she has made. I have to say, the suggestion that this is entirely within the hands of Welsh Government is simply fallacious. We know the UK Government has substantial levers in terms of welfare, in terms of the benefits system, in terms of employment law, in terms of the setting of the real living wage. Yes, we can do it, in terms of the reach that we have to the public sector and to the third sector, to an extent, but not to the private sector. What she is doing is absolving the UK Government of its responsibility, and that's where responsibility must lie. Now, it's one thing to say, 'Let's administer benefits', but there are two problems with that. First of all, the Scots are spending money on bureaucracy—on bureaucracy. They are actually spending money on administration that could be going to recipients. That is clearly an issue that we have had to consider. Secondly, administering the benefits system is no good if you can't control the flow of money; you just get the blame, in those circumstances. People will then say, 'Well, you're the ones administering the benefits system; why don't you put more money into it, why don't you do this, why don't you do that?' when, actually, you can't. So, I've always been very, very reluctant to take on board the administration of something when I think it's a trap set by the UK Government.