THE SNP have blasted the Tories for being "completely clueless" over the poverty crisis after recent comments from politicians.
Yesterday, Sir Peter Bottomley claimed MPs are paid "far too little nowadays" as the Tory government cuts Universal Credit for millions.
MPs are paid an annual salary of £81,932 and Bottomley, the MP for Worthing West, thinks that this should be increased to the same amount as a GP.
WATCH: Tory minister belts out 'I've had the time of my life' as she cuts benefits
The average salary for a GP in England is £100,700 and the average annual salary across the UK is around £28,000.
In an interview with the New Statesman Bottomley said: "Doctors are paid far too little nowadays. But if they would get roughly £100,000 a year, the equivalent for an MP to get the same standard of living would be £110-£115,000 a year – it’s never the right time, but if your MP isn’t worth the money, it’s better to change the MP than to change the money.”
While the Father of the House no longer suffers financial pressures himself, he claimed that it is "desperately difficult" for his new colleagues, adding: "I don’t know how they manage. It’s really grim.”
READ MORE: 'Out-of-touch' Tory claims MPs are not paid enough as Universal Credit slashed
And Therese Coffey has been labelled “callous” after she was filmed singing “I've had the time of my life” – just as she slashed benefits by £20 a week.
The £1040-a-year cut to Universal Credit came into force yesterday despite months of protestations from opposition politicians, charities, and campaigners.
Coffey, who heads up the Department of Work and Pensions, was filmed singing karaoke at a Tory conference event "just an hour" after these cuts took effect.
https://www.thenational.scot/news/19630053.tory-claims-mps-not-paid-enough-universal-credit-slashed/
David Linden, the SNP's welfare spokesman, said these incidents prove the Conservatives are "out-of-touch with reality".
He added: "This week, just hours after the UK government slashed the incomes of six million people by £1k overnight through welfare cuts, we’ve had the DWP Secretary singing I’ve Had the Time of My Life seemingly without a care in the world, and Peter Bottomley asking for more money as an MP because ‘living on £81k a year can be really grim’.
“Now we have a member of the Cabinet refusing to acknowledge that people will be plunged into poverty as a result of the Universal Credit cuts, despite the wealth of evidence by leading organisations like the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Trussell Trust, the Resolution Foundation and others showing that that is exactly what it will do.
“The Tories are completely clueless. They are so out-of-touch with reality that they have no idea of the damage they are inflicting on families across Scotland and the UK - and that is seriously concerning, and dangerous.
“Comments like this from Tory ministers are why Scotland must have the right to decide its own future.”
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