GOVERNMENT welfare reforms are being attacked by one of the largest coalitions of voluntary organisations ever assembled in Scotland.
The coalition, made up of more than 30 organisations working in the fields of social exclusion and poverty, believes the proposed reforms could force vulnerable people deeper into poverty.
In a letter sent to every Scottish MP, the group expressed concerns about the “threat of greater compulsion and the adequacy of current benefit levels”.
Called The Scottish Campaign on Welfare Reform, the group includes Citizens Advice Scotland, Capability Scotland and the Scottish Association for Mental Health.
It warned that the planned reforms could alienate people who genuinely wished to return to work.
The letter stated: “Compulsion and sanctions risk alienating people who genuinely wish to return to work and could force them into unsuitable and unsustainable jobs.”
The group also said the government’s Green Paper had failed to address the responsibilities of employers to provide greater job opportunities for claimants.
It said: “Employers are often reluctant to take on lone parents, older people, disabled people or people with long-term health problems.
“Yet there is little mention of how they will be encouraged to change their attitude and practice as part of these reforms.”
Coming from such a high-profile platform of bodies, it is believed that the concerns will create a real hurdle for ministers in achieving consensus in parliament. 
The charities also criticise the Green Paper for failing to address what they insist is the current inadequacy of benefit levels, which leave too many households on poverty incomes. “Whilst there is a welcome proposal to increase income for people with “severe health problems and disabilities” who cannot work, we are disappointed that the Green Paper does not quantify this increase.” says the letter.
However, a DWP spokeswoman said: “The welfare reform green paper isn’t about compulsion it’s about striking a balance between those who can’t work and need financial help, and those who can get back into work by retraining and supporting them.
“The current benefit system is inadequate and doesn’t work as it should and that is the whole point of the welfare reform.”
Over 2.7 million people are currently claiming benefit. Work and Pensions Secretary John Hutton has confirmed plans to cut benefits for people who refuse to take part in back-to-work projects.
But he insisted that the most seriously disabled, who were unable to work, would be exempt from the changes.
Meanwhile, plans to cull 30,000 jobs across the Department for Welfare and Pensions, alongside the closure of some JobCentre Plus offices in Scotland, is expected leave the government hard-pushed to deliver the substantial additional staff and resources required to help more people move from benefits into work.
The £360m pencilled-in to roll out the Pathways to Work initiative is also likely to prove inadequate, the consortium says.  “If current spending levels within Pathways to Work pilots were rolled out nationally, the cost would be nearer £500 million,” said a spokesman.. “As it is, we are concerned that these pilots may have engaged easier to help groups, and that if all new claimants are involved costs will be higher.”