Potential cuts to Universal Credit could lead to thousands of families in South West skipping meals
That's according to new research which has been carried out by the Trussell Trust
Last updated 8th Sep 2021
Today (Wednesday 8th September), the Salisbury based charity the Trussell Trust publishes a new survey that lays bare the devastating impacts that a £20-a-week cut from Universal Credit payments next month will have for people living in the South West.
This is the biggest overnight cut to social security since the Second World War and will be a huge blow for thousands of families in the region both in and out of work.
New research conducted by YouGov on behalf of the Trussell Trust found that 1 in 5 people currently claiming Universal Credit in the region – representing 91,000 people – say they are ‘very likely’ to need to skip meals when the cut hits.
Furthermore, a quarter of people surveyed in the South West – representing 100,000 people – told researchers they would struggle to heat their homes this winter.
The Trussell Trust, which supports a nationwide network of more than 1,300 food bank centres, is part of a coalition of 100 organisations that is urgently calling on the UK government to stop the cut as part of the Keep the Lifeline campaign.
The cut comes amid growing need at food banks throughout the charity’s network during the pandemic, as well as year-on-year increases in numbers of emergency food parcels distributed to people who are living in crisis.
The charity says this is not right and the vast majority of the UK public agrees. The research finds only one in five members of the UK public surveyed believes that social security provided enough support to people with physical and/or mental health conditions, which affect most people visiting food banks.
Emma Revie, chief executive at the Trussell Trust, said:
“Cutting this lifeline will be a devastating blow for thousands of people across Yorkshire and the Humber already struggling to make ends meet. These are families already caught in impossible situations who worry every day about switching on the heating and feeding their children. Families who are nearly at breaking point but just about managing to keep their heads above water.
“This research reveals the shocking consequences of what lies ahead if this lifeline is cut in October. No one should have to suffer the indignity of not being able to afford the essentials in life – like food or heating. That’s why we’re saying it would be wrong of the UK government to take away £20 a week from already precarious incomes and push even more people through the doors of food banks.
“The answer must be to ensure our social security system provides people with enough money to cover the essentials. At the very least we’re saying this October, the UK government must choose to protect people and choose to keep the lifeline."