SCOTTISH government ministers are being urged to keep a pledge to double the payment made to needy parents as soon as possible.

Think tank the Joseph Rowntree Foundation made the call at the same time as it urged the Westminster government to “do the right thing” and commit to keeping the £20 uplift to universal credit (UC).

UC payments were increased when the Covid-19 pandemic hit Britain, but Westminster now plans to reverse this measure at the end of September, a move already branded “indefensible” by the government in Edinburgh.

Joseph Rowntree Foundation deputy director for Scotland Chris Birt warned that withdrawing the extra money would leave millions of families across Britain “seriously unable to meet their needs.”

The Scottish government has already introduced the £10-a-week Scottish child payment to help low-income families with children and ministers plan to expand it in 2022.

Mr Birt said: “In the face of this financial risk to low-income families, it is vital the Scottish government doubles this payment as soon as possible to help us reach our child poverty targets.”