The cost of living crisis has affected so many households in the UK. As a result, the government put in place several aides to help out. For many UK households, these aides have allowed them to get by each month.
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However, recent reports have shown that millions of Brits have had their monthly Universal Credit sum lowered by the government to repay debts. Due to this, some MPs are trying to fight this deduction as it is making some households struggle to make ends meet again.
The government deducted £63 from monthly Universal Credit payments
As reported by Mirror, 2.3 million Brits had £63 deducted from their monthly Universal Credit payments, the number rose by 54,0000 people.
Almost half of this deduction was done in order to repay debts that households were forced to take out due to the five-week waiting period to get their first Universal Credit payment.
The area that was hit the worst was Birmingham Ladywood. Indeed, in Birmingham, 11,000 people were deducted £63 from their monthly payment.
The next places to take a big hit were, Leeds Central with 10,000 people, 9,800 in Tottenham, 9,400 in Manchester Central and 9,300 in Brent Central.
The Universal Credit deduction is unfair according to MP
One MP has said that the deduction on the Universal Credit monthly payment is unfair and is forcing families to rely on food banks. SNP MP Chris Stephens, who, according to Mirror, found the statistics, said:
The evidence couldn’t be any clearer. Deductions are making poorer people destitute. How can this poverty tax be allowed to continue in its current form as part of a welfare state that was originally created to eliminate destitution? That’s what I’ll be asking Labour and the Tories in Westminster when I present my proposal to bring an end to this injustice.
Andrew Forsey, national director of the Feeding Britain charity, added that these deductions will mean that several households won’t be able to afford food this winter:
Deductions have long acted as a recruiting sergeant for food banks. In the absence of any action from the Department for Work and Pensions, to bring down the rate of deductions, millions of people on the receiving end of this policy will struggle to put food on the table this winter.
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Sources used:
Mirror: ‘Millions on Universal Credit have £63 taken from payments - search your postcode’
