universal credit

Over half of Universal Credit recipients do not have enough money for food, research finds

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https://leftfootforward.org/2024/03/over-half-of-universal-credit-recipients-do-not-have-enough-money-for-food-research-finds/

A petition calling on the government to take urgent action to support the introduction of an Essentials Guarantee was presented to political parties in Westminster this week.

Research commissioned by the Trussell Trust has found more than half of recipients of Universal Credit do not have enough money for food.

The study was carried out by YouGov on behalf of the Trussell Trust. It found that 2.4 million claimants (37 percent) had fallen into debt because they could not keep up with essential bills. Two in five (42 percent) reported being behind on one or more household bill.

The research suggested that 780,000 claimants of Universal Credit had been driven to use a foodbank during the month December 2023 to January 2024. More than half of the recipients who were surveyed said they had run out of food. In the previous 12 months, 22 percent of Universal Credit claimants reported being unable to cook hot food as they could not afford to use their own or other utilities. 52 percent said they were behind on their bills and credit commitments or were finding keeping up with them a constant struggle.

From April, the £90 weekly Universal Credit standard allowance is £30 less than the weekly cost of essential items for a singly person, says the charity. It is calling on the Chancellor to provide greater support for people on the lowest incomes in next week’s Spring Budget, including an extension to the Household Support Fund. 

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https://leftfootforward.org/2024/03/over-half-of-universal-credit-recipients-do-not-have-enough-money-for-food-research-finds/

Continue ReadingOver half of Universal Credit recipients do not have enough money for food, research finds

Green Party claims that poverty is a political choice

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Image of the Green Party's Carla Denyer on BBC Question Time.
Image of the Green Party’s Carla Denyer on BBC Question Time.

Responding to this year’s poverty report from the Joeseph Rowntree Foundation, which says that it is now 20 years and six prime ministers since there was a sustained fall in poverty, co-leader of the Green Party, Carla Denyer, said: 

“This latest report from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation makes for grim reading. Over one in five people in the UK were living in poverty in 2021/22. That’s almost 14 and a half million people, with over eight million working-age adults and over four million children.  

“For years, successive UK governments have allowed poverty to become entrenched and for inequality to widen. The super-rich have seen their incomes soar during a time of increased hardship for millions of people.  

“It doesn’t have to be this way. Poverty is a political choice. 

“There are things that can be done quickly to address the sickening levels of poverty in our society. For example, the Green Party would increase Universal Credit by £40 per week and abolish the two-child benefit cap. A wealth tax on the super-rich, along with tax reforms such as changes to Capital Gains Tax and abolishing “non dom status,” could pay for these and other measures to reduce poverty.  

“As Labour finalises its manifesto, there’s little indication that they will make the right political choices to help the millions enduring grinding poverty. Which is why we so desperately need a group of Green MPs in parliament after the next general election to put pressure on Labour to do the right thing.” 

Continue ReadingGreen Party claims that poverty is a political choice

UK government is ‘violating international law’ over poverty levels, says UN official

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https://leftfootforward.org/2023/11/uk-government-is-violating-international-law-over-poverty-levels-says-un-official/

The UK government is in breach of international law over failing to tackle extreme levels of poverty and destitution in the country, according to a scathing assessment made by the UN’s special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights.

It comes after the Joseph Rowntree Foundation recently released a report showing that almost 4 million people experienced destitution in 2022, including more than a million children.

Government data recently revealed that 14.4 million people lived in relative poverty in 2021-22 – a million more than the previous year.

With a cost of living crisis and soaring food and fuel prices as well as increasing housing costs, Olivier De Schutter, the UN’s special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, slammed the UK’s woefully inadequate welfare system, citing research showing universal credit payments of £85 a week for single adults over 25 were “grossly insufficient” and described the UK’s main welfare system as “a leaking bucket”.

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https://leftfootforward.org/2023/11/uk-government-is-violating-international-law-over-poverty-levels-says-un-official/

Continue ReadingUK government is ‘violating international law’ over poverty levels, says UN official

Disgraceful Tory Deputy Chairman Lee Anderson says ‘nonsense’ to claim there is poverty

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https://leftfootforward.org/2023/10/disgraceful-tory-deputy-chairman-lee-anderson-says-nonsense-to-claim-there-is-poverty/

The End Child Poverty Coalition revealed that an extra 600,000 children were plunged into poverty in a year as ministers got rid of extra support for families on Universal Credit.

Lee Anderson
Lee Anderson

In the latest incident of vile and disgraceful remarks made by Tory ministers at the party’s conference, Tory Deputy Chairman Lee Anderson has said that it’s ‘nonsense’ to claim there is poverty.

The MP for Ashfield made the comments while on the fringes of the Conservative Party conference in Manchester on Tuesday, where he went on to add that people just needed to “get off their arse”.

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“This poverty nonsense. Go in a time machine back to when I was growing up in the 1970s — that was real poverty.”

He went on to add: “If you want something you can get it. You need to get off your arse and go and get it for yourself.”

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https://leftfootforward.org/2023/10/disgraceful-tory-deputy-chairman-lee-anderson-says-nonsense-to-claim-there-is-poverty/

Continue ReadingDisgraceful Tory Deputy Chairman Lee Anderson says ‘nonsense’ to claim there is poverty

Sanctions make it harder for benefit claimants to find work, new research finds

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https://leftfootforward.org/2023/08/sanctions-make-it-harder-for-benefit-claimants-to-find-work-new-research-finds/

Image of cash and pre-payment meter key
Image of cash and pre-payment meter key

“Demanding compliance from people means they end up jumping through hoops rather than finding jobs that are a good fit for them”

Benefit sanctions make it harder for claimants to find a good job, new research has found. According to the research carried out by the New Economics Foundation (NEF), the majority of people required to attend job centres to access benefits think that being sanctioned undermines their ability to find a good job.

According to a report in PoliticsHome, NEF commissioned polling of unemployed people receiving universal credit and required to attend job centre appointments found that 61 per cent said the threat of sanctions found it harder for them to have a trusting relationship with support services. That figure is higher for unemployed people who are also disabled – at 69%. 63% also said that the threat of sanctions negatively impacted their mental health, rising to 73% for disabled people.

Welfare claimants were also likely to report negative experiences of attending job centre appointments. 73 per cent reported that their first meeting at the job centre focused on the rules and obligations placed on claimants. 59 per cent also said they felt that the job centre wanted them to get a job as quickly as possible, rather than finding a role which was a good fit.

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https://leftfootforward.org/2023/08/sanctions-make-it-harder-for-benefit-claimants-to-find-work-new-research-finds/

Continue ReadingSanctions make it harder for benefit claimants to find work, new research finds