Brown’s UC appeal

FORMER prime minister Gordon Brown has issued a fresh appeal to the Government not to go ahead with this week’s £20 a week cut to Universal Credit after analysis by the University of York showed 3.4 million households - covering 6.3 million adults and children - will be unable to pay escalating fuel bills.

Mr Brown said: “It’s not the right time to abandon families. Sparing people destitution and enabling families to eat and have heat is a very basic investment in our nation’s future.”