Single parent families could lose more than £4000 a year in benefits cuts after welfare reforms made by the UK Government, a new report for the Scottish Government has found.

In recent years the Conservative government has frozen benefits payment rates and capped the total amount of welfare funding people can receive.

The report estimates recent changes to welfare policies mean an unemployed single parent with three children will be £4080 worse off a year by 2020/21, facing an 18% reduction in their income from £23,385 to £19,205.

Meanwhile, a working couple with two children face an estimated £1540 reduction (6%) in annual income to £24,300 by 2020/21 compared to having had no welfare cuts.

Researchers said the analysis does not take into account the impact of transitional protection payments which families may be entitled to and disregards entitlements to reclaim childcare costs under universal credit as they deem it to be "less relevant".

The Scottish Government's communities secretary Angela Constance accused those in power at Westminster of having "targeted" by the poorest people in society with the changes.