John Swinney has defended the SNP’s ballooning welfare spending despite its benefits agency predicting that 750,000 Scots will be on Adult Disability Payment by 2030.
At First Minister’s Questions, Russell Findlay cited data published by Social Security Scotland this week showing the number of ADP claimants has risen by almost 15 per cent in the last year.
The Scottish Conservative leader said he’d been contacted by a Perthshire GP – and disillusioned SNP voter – who refuted Swinney’s claim that the benefits system was robust. She said that there were a “huge number” of fraudulent claims.
Findlay said the scale of welfare spending, which is on course to hit £10 billion per year, was unfair on hard-working Scots who are being hit with ever-rising tax bills to fund it.
Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay said: “The SNP’s benefits agency revealed this week that almost 500,000 people in Scotland now receive Adult Disability Payment.
“The numbers claiming it have gone up almost 15 per cent since last year.
“And Social Security Scotland predicts there will be 750,000 Scots getting ADP by 2030.
“Of course, many of these are completely valid, but we cannot ignore sustained and credible warnings of fraud and abuse.
“A GP in Perthshire, with decades of experience helping patients in genuine need of benefits told me: ‘John Swinney is completely wrong to state there is a robust process’.
“She says there’s a ‘huge number’ of fraudulent claims, and she identifies a ‘large group of people who believe they have genuine claims but in reality are capable of work’.
“John Swinney is out of step with the Scottish public on welfare spending. Two-thirds of people believe that spending on benefits in Scotland is too high.
“It’s now at £7billion – and it’s heading towards £10billion.
“The Institute for Fiscal Studies found that the average Scottish household is more than £500 worse off compared to those elsewhere in the UK, as a result of his tax and benefit policies.
“Yet John Swinney cannot see what everyone else can see – that his light-touch benefits system is out of control.”
Notes to editors
Almost 500,000 people are now on Adult Disability Payment. As of January 2026, 498,090 Scots are now on ADP, up from 492,010 in October 2025. (Social Security Scotland, 17 March 2026, link).
The ADP caseload has grown by 14.8% in the last year. In January 2025, 433,990 people were claiming ADP, but this has increased to 498,090 by January 2026. (Social Security Scotland, 17 March 2026, link).
At this rate, there will be over 750,000 Scots on ADP by 2030. If the current growth in ADP continues, there will be an additional 64,100 people claiming ADP each year, taking the total to 754,490 by January 2030. (Social Security Scotland, 17 March 2026, link).