THE Scottish government will need to work “harder and smarter” to deliver for the people in the face of Westminster cuts, First Minister John Swinney told SNP members today.

Speaking to the party’s annual conference in Edinburgh, Mr Swinney said that ending child poverty is one of his key priorities and said his government will “tailor support better to families” so they can “get the help they need.”

While this will not have the same “immediate impact” as ending the two-child cap on some benefits — something Labour has said it does not have the money to do — Mr Swinney described the move as an “an example of the sustained, smarter policy-making we are delivering in government.”