The cost of living in London and the UK has reached a 30-year high with inflation at 5.4 per cent.
The London Assembly has today called for the government to bring Londoners out of poverty immediately by reinstating the £20 a week Universal Credit uplift and removing the benefit cap.
Marina Ahmad AM, who proposed the motion said:
“Inflation is at a 30-year high and expected to rise. The massive increase to fuel bills and the National Insurance contribution increase, which the Government refuses to postpone, will hit families hard.
“There are potentially disastrous consequences for Londoners and their families struggling to keep afloat amidst the cost of living crisis.
“No one should ever have to choose between heating and eating but this is what Londoners, especially those who are hardest hit and least able to cope with the cost of living increase, are already having to do.”
The full text of the motion is:
This Assembly notes that the cost of living in London and the UK has reached a 30-year high with inflation at 5.4% per cent. This Assembly further notes that the Treasury Committee in the House of Commons found that Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s latest Budget has contributed to a rise in UK inflation.
This Assembly notes that the Office for National Statistics (ONS) have recognised that whilst the annual inflation rate was an average for all households, every person has their own inflation rate. This Assembly welcomes that the ONS is changing the way it collects and reports on the cost of food prices and inflation to take into consideration a wider range of income levels and household circumstances, which will be called the Vimes Boots index.
This Assembly notes that there are a number of actions that the Government could take which would bring Londoners out of poverty immediately such as reinstating the £20 a week Universal Credit uplift and removing the benefit cap, both of which the Mayor has called for.
This Assembly calls on the Chair of the Assembly to write to the Chancellor to reinforce the London Assembly position on this issue and ask him to look again at reinstating the £20 a week Universal Credit uplift and removing the benefit cap in light of the recent increase to inflation.
Notes to editors
- Watch the full webcast.
- The motion was agreed by 14 votes for and 8 against.
- Marina Ahmad AM, who proposed the motion, is available for interviews.
- As well as investigating issues that matter to Londoners, the London Assembly acts as a check and a balance on the Mayor.
For media enquiries, please contact Alison Bell on 07887 832 918. For out of hours media enquiries, call 020 7983 4000 and ask for the London Assembly duty press officer.