Fear thousands will suffer as Universal Credit cut looms
Nearly 6,000 people in Bath living on Universal Credit will “be harmed” by a cut to benefits, according to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.
The government plans to end the £20 weekly uplift brought in during the coronavirus pandemic, in a move that could hit carers, shelf stackers and hairdressers the hardest. New data from the charity has shown that around 15 per cent of Bath’s poorest families will suffer greatly from the reduction.
The foundation estimates that the cut alone could force 500,000 people nationwide, almost half of them children, into poverty.
It predicted that 5,900 local people will “be harmed” by the drop in support, with 27 per cent of families with children badly affected.
Wera Hobhouse, the Liberal Democrat MP for Bath, said: “Bath has had to pull itself through this pandemic while dealing with this heartless Conservative government.
“This cut will do untold damage to so many of our local families.
“There is no question that the government has to reverse this cruel cut and support those at risk of falling through the gaps.
“We are calling for the Universal Credit uplift to be made permanent.”
The MP added that the country
was still “in the midst” of a pandemic and that “now is not the time” to reduce support.
“We cannot have a full recovery if millions of families are struggling to make ends meet.
“The Prime Minister’s claim that he wants people to live by their
own ‘efforts’ rather than ‘welfare’ shows how out of touch he really is.
“With 39 per cent of families receiving Universal Credit already in work and with many having young families, this cut will leave many parents and their children behind,” she said.