MORE than half a million children could be lifted out of poverty if Westminster’s Labour government matched the Scottish child payment, the SNP has suggested.

Ahead of October’s Budget — Labour’s first in 15 years — the SNP has challenged Chancellor Rachel Reeves to boost the child element of universal credit by £26.70 per week, matching the Scottish government payment to Scotland’s lowest-income families.

House of Commons Library research suggests such a move could boost the incomes of more than 2.6 million of the poorest households by £1,390, lifting 563,000 children out of poverty.