THE SNP is keen to ban the word 'benefits' from Scotland's first social security agency.

Ministers believe the move could have an impact on the culture in the new organisation and affect the way claimants are viewed by society.

It emerged that the radical step is being considered at the launch of a three-month consultation into how new welfare powers being devolved to Holyrood should be delivered.

The Scottish Parliament is to gain control of aspects of the welfare system such including disability benefits, carer's allowance, discretionary housing payments and some powers related to universal credit.

Only months ago, in a Scottish Government press release announcing a "new benefits agency" to deliver the £2.7 billion of annual payments, the word benefits was used no fewer than eight times.

However, Jeane Freeman, the minister for social security, is understood to be keen on the idea of a move away from the term, believing it can be seen to stigmatise those who receive financial help from the state.

She said: "We don't have an answer to this yet, and it a discussion to be had. But I do believe there is value in looking at whether or not we continue to use the word benefit, because there is an implication in there that the rest of us are doing something nice for somebody else.

"Actually, what we have said consistently as a Government is social security is an investment we make collectively in ourselves and in each other. So part of how we actually make dignity, fairness and respect real, as opposed to just fine words, is about the culture that the organisation that will deliver those benefits embraces, and how people receive that in their dealings with that organisation.

"There are some things you can do to effect quite quick, cultural change and part of that is around language and thinking. So, there is value in looking at whether or not we simply call these 'payments' as opposed to benefits or some other word.

"I don't want us to get overly caught up in that, I don't want us to spend 12 weeks in some kind of interesting but very erudite discussion about a word, but it's about the thinking and the mindset. Therefore it has a value, I think, in saying 'are we sure we want to keep calling these things benefits?'"