Social Security Scotland branded 'ghost ship' over low occupancy rates for staff

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Scotland’s new social security headquarters has an occupancy rate of less than 40pc due to staff working from home.This is in spite of annual running costs coming to nearly £1.5m.Labour MSP Paul O’Kane said: “Scotland’s social security system is in chaos and the cost of living crisis is causing misery for millions of Scotland – so it is more important than ever that every penny of public money is spent well.“The SNP has serious questions to answer about why they seem to be frittering away money running this ghost ship.“Our social security budget must be spent helping those who need it most, and the SNP must stop running costs spiralling out of control.”Social Security Scotland was set up to deliver a suite of benefits devolved to Holyrood after the independence referendum.Staff moved into a swanky new building, called Agnes Husband House, near Dundee’s waterfront in 2021.Between January and March this year, the average percentage of workstations being occupied stood at 38pc.Rent in 2022 cost the taxpayer £541,200, rates totalled £148,001, energy costs came to £251,895 while maintenance added another £506,795 to the taxpayer’s bill.The agency has previously attracted criticism for its performance in key areas.We reported earlier this year that Social Security Scotland had taken over half an hour to answer nearly 90,000 calls in a year.One claimant had to wait more than three hours before getting through to the hotline.Tory MSP Miles Briggs said: “At a time when they’re making swingeing cuts to public services, the SNP have a duty to keep government running costs and expenses to a minimum.“These findings suggest Social Security Scotland is not doing so, and could carry out its functions with a far smaller office space.”A