THE Conservative Government appears to “be expecting that women will terminate pregnancies” in response to the two-child cap for tax credits and the so-called rape clause, MSPs have been told.

Giving evidence to Holyrood’s Social Security Committee, Emma Ritch, executive director of the equalities charity Engender, said there was no clear evidence that proper research into the impact of the policy had been carried out.

“It seems to us without a clear equality impact of assessment...on the part of the UK Government that they are indeed expecting that women will terminate pregnancies that arise when they already have two children,” she added.

The cap limits families claiming tax credits to the first two children, but has a number of exemptions including the so-called rape clause, which requires women to prove a third or subsequent child was conceived through rape.

During the meeting Scottish Women’s Aid policy worker Jo Ozga said her organisation was setting up emergency funds to offset the impact of welfare reforms.

“We know Women’s Aid groups are having to try and cobble together destitution funds to be able to supplement women coming in who can’t afford to buy nappies for their child or formula milk,” she said.

Tory MSP Adam Tomkins questioned if the organisations planned to take legal action against the policy, saying their objections made it sound “illegal” and asked what they were doing to make the Scottish Government use its powers over welfare to mitigate the impact.

SNP MSP George Adam said the focus should not be “litigate or mitigate”, but on getting the policy right.

Alison Johnstone, social security spokeswoman for the Scottish Greens, also urged the UK Government to scrap the policy after being told by John Dickie of the Child Poverty Action Group that it would push an extra 200,000 children into poverty in the UK.

After the meeting Johnstone said: “While the rape clause aspect of this policy has been singled out and rightly condemned from virtually every quarter, it’s worth remembering that the overall two-child limit will have a terrible impact on families and children across Scotland.

“The UK Government’s approach breaks the link with what should be a needs-based system. It callously recognises children whose families need financial support and then ignores them.

“Evidence to the social security committee has shown that the two-child cap risks increased separation of families, and it has prompted some pregnant women to ask for benefit entitlement checks to help them decide whether to continue with their pregnancy. The Tories should be ashamed of the impact their policy is going to have on people’s lives.

“I can understand Scottish ministers’ reluctance to use new devolved powers to mop up a mess created by Westminster, but if the UK Government is unwilling to listen to the overwhelming consensus of policy experts like CPAG that this will put many thousands more Scottish children in poverty, then the Scottish Government will need to look at what it can do through the new Child Poverty Bill and the new social security powers to offset the impact.”

A DWP spokesman said: “We consulted widely on exemptions to this policy and have ensured the right protections are in place, including for women who face these very difficult circumstances.”