In just 2 weeks the Tory government plans to cut Universal credit by £20 per week. at a time when energy bils and the cost of living are soaring,and we approach the colder months it is unthinkable for the Torys government to go ahead with cuts that would
decimate the incomes of tens of thousands of ordinary folk across the land who are already finding it hard to to heat their homes or give their family a substantial meal There appears to be a total lack of compassion at the heart of Government.
But does this really come as a surprise, Bojo Johnson has golden wallpaper, Rishi Sunak has a new swimming pool, Dominic Rabb and Liz Truss are fighting over the use of a large mansion, contemptible politicians who could lose several £20 notes on the back seat of the
taxi they charge to the taxpayer and never notice a difference. Fighting against the backdrop of increasing food shortages, child poverty, hike in taxes, and a pandemic, people worried about heating their homes this winter or buy a Christmas dinner because their benefits have been cut,.
The UK is already suffering from a growing Tory poverty crisis, with the
worst levels of poverty and inequality of any country in north west
Europe - and the highest levels of in-work poverty this century as a
direct result of Tory cuts, tax hikes and the cost of Brexit.This planned cut to Universal Credit which is the biggest overnight cut to the basic rate of social security since WW2. The Fabian society estimated in February
that removing this amount “will put 700,000 people into poverty”,
hitting particularly hard those households with a disabled adult,
carers, and families with children. and will see the most vulnerable in our society, who are already under constant pressure pushed to breaking point.
Let's not forget in the first place that the £20 uplift to Universal Credit was not a handy boost to benefit
rates, but a recognition that previous levels were simply inadequate.
To remove it would result in the biggest cut to the basic rate of social security since the birth of the modern welfare state.
When it comes down to this kind of money, it’s the difference between
moving through a day with relative ease and stacking stress on top of
stressed foundations. On low incomes, everything becomes more difficult
and more tiring; every setback more defeating; every comfortable option
costly. It is not so much skimming the cream but taking away a ladleful of what makes already pared down lives more possible.
When
people are so down to the wire, it’s unnecessarily cruel to strip it
away further. How can any family in such a situation save for a rainy
day, when it rains every day, and there’s absolutely no money to spare?
The cut is also likely to widen inequality in health and wellbeing and runs counter to government’s commitment to levelling up health, At at a time when people are already stressed by growing debts and lower income, it will only serve to add to rising rates of mental illness. We have already seen a dramatic increase in the need for food banks
due to the coronavirus crisis and the end of the uplift would increase
demand significantly.
As an increasing number of people struggle to manage essential
household bills taking away £20 per week would make this situation
much worse
This cut is illogical, because at a time of fragile economic
recovery, when high streets up and down the country are struggling and
shops are closing, it makes no sense to be taking millions of pounds of
expenditure out of every single consttuency in the country. And this cut is unnecessary, because it is a political choice.
Coming in the autumn, the timing of these cuts exposes the callousness of the UK Government, piling further misery of those already battling to survive,.the £20 uplift in Universal Credit which has kept so many people
afloat is being cruelly ripped away by a party driven by its ideological
animosity towards working class people. No reshuffling of Boris Johnson’s cabinet of millionaires will mask the sheer cruelty that seems to be the cornerstone of this rotten government.
From an economic perspective this will end up more expensive in the
long run. Already over-stretched health and care services will have to
foot the bill for providing support for the consequences of pushing more
families into a state of despair. Poverty simply wastes and destroys lives. £20 a week makes all the difference to those on the lowest incomes, many
of whom are already working all the hours they can but simply cannot
make ends meet.
These are the same people who have been at the frontline of the
coronavirus pandemic: social care workers, shop workers, childcare
workers, delivery drivers, hospital porters, bus drivers and others. This is no way to treat those who have seen us through the greatest crisis since the Second World War.
The Chancellor, himself a multi-millionaire, says the uplift was only
ever temporary. What we know is that its removal will deliver a crushing
blow to the long-term detriment of millions of people for many years to
come.
The Government may not view £20 per week to be a large amount of
money for those who need additional income to get by, but the reality is
that the £20 could be keeping the heads of an individual or a family
above water. We must continue to put pressure on the government not to cut universal credit. and instead make the £20 Universal Credit uplift permanent and extend
it to those on' legacy' benefits, as part of a wider package of measures to
protect household incomes. We must keep this essential lifeline, people will unnecessarily struggle without it. Please email your MP now.
and please also sign too the following petition.
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