The Government must not cut the £20-a-week uplift to Universal Credit payments, local London Assembly Member, Anne Clarke AM, has urged. This comes as the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Thérèse Coffey, announced that the boost will be “phased out” from October. Ms Clarke said that the additional £20 could make all the difference for low-income families struggling to “put food on the table, make their rent or put the heating on in the winter”.
The latest Government figures show that as of February, 18,160 Camden residents were claiming Universal Credit.
The £20 per-week increase in Universal Credit payments was originally introduced by the Government in March 2020 in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. It was then extended a year later to be reviewed again in October 2021.
Research from the Resolution Foundation has found that if the cut goes ahead, the incomes of the poorest families will decrease by 5% overnight
Alongside keeping the uplift in Universal Credit permanent, Ms Clarke also wants to see the benefit cap scrapped. The most recent Government data shows that as of February, 1,438 households in Camden were being impacted by the cap.
The Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) have said that families subject to the cap are on average £62 a week worse off.
Local London Assembly Member, Anne Clarke AM, said:
“The pandemic has put huge pressure on the finances of local people, and removing this lifeline will impact the poorest in our borough, the most.
“This extra £20 a week could make all the difference for some families struggling to put food on the table, make their rent or put the heating on in the winter.
“The Government shouldn’t be weakening the safety net at a time when we should be driving forward with an economic recovery that works for everyone.
“Universal Credit doesn’t need to be cut. What is does need is wholesale reform, including the scrapping of the benefit cap and the five-week wait for initial payments”.
Notes to editors
- On Wednesday 7th July, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Thérèse Coffey, told the Work and Pensions Committee that the £20-a-week uplift to Universal Credit payments would be scrapped in October;
- The latest Government figures show that as of February, 18,160 Camden residents were claiming Universal Credit;
- Research from the Resolution Foundation has found that if the cut goes ahead, the incomes of the poorest families will decrease by 5% overnight.
- The most recent Government data shows that as of February, 1,438 households in Camden were being impacted by the cap.
- The Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) have said that families subject to the cap are on average £62 a week worse- off;
- Anne Clarke AM is the London Assembly Member for Barnet and Camden