Gift cards worth £105 for low income households in Glasgow

Glasgow City Council is to distribute gift cards worth £105 to about 85,000 low income households across the city as part of its Covid recovery strategy.

The cards, funded by a Scottish government grant of almost £9.5m, can be used at more than 700 registered businesses in the city.

The initiative was approved by the council on Wednesday.

Data from the council tax system will be used to identify eligible households.

The initiative is linked to the Scotland Loves Local campaign, which encourages people to support businesses on their local high streets.

Council leader Susan Aitken said she hoped more small and medium-sized companies would sign up for the scheme as it goes live.

She added: "The gift cards will give city businesses a much-needed lift following two years of the pandemic and the resulting impact on trade.

"But they also allow us to support tens of thousands of low-income households and individuals with practical assistance, something we hope can make a positive difference to them during the worst cost of living crisis in decades."

The plan has been financed by the council's share of the Scottish government's £80m Covid Recovery Fund.

The council will spend £8.85m to allocate the gift cards while a further £423,110 will be used as discretionary funding to support groups affected by soaring prices.

It is expected that the cards will be sent out directly to eligible households throughout July.

There is no application process and, to reduce the risk of theft, the cards will require activation.