Union gathers in Dewsbury to campaign against £20 cut to Universal Credit

A £20 uplift had been given during the worst months of the pandemic until it was withdrawn last October by the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak.

The campaign is taking place in Conservative constituencies in the Leeds and Wakefield area in the run-up to the Chancellor’s Spring Statement on March 23.

The case for restoring the £20 is particularly strong in the context of the cost of living crisis many are currently living through. For some, Unite Community argues, it is best described as "a cost of survival crisis".

Figure show there are 10,603 people on Universal Credit in Dewsbury.

There are 3,993 claimant households with children in the constituency.

At Unite Community’s campaign stall, local people showed support for the union’s campaign and were happy to sign a petition asking Dewsbury MP Mark Eastwood to contact the Chancellor to reverse the £20 cut.

One mother of two in receipt of Universal Credit told campaigners that when she received the £20 “it made a real difference, though it didn’t seem like much, and now rising prices will make life really, really hard".

Unite Community campaigns coordinator, Gerry Lavery, said: “While the last budget gave some help to people in work and claiming Universal Credit, those on very low wages or out of work have been very badly hit.

“For example, someone who is single and aged over 25 years old is expected to live off a basic rate of Universal Credit of £75 per week.

"Of course, it was £95 before the Chancellor cut it.

"Universal Credit will rise by 3.1 per cent in April, whereas inflation is predicted to be 7.5 per cent by then.

“At the last time of the budget, the Chancellor and the Prime Minister both argued that the way forward for unemployed people is through work, as though their circumstances are entirely their own fault.

“In fact, according to the Department of Work and Pensions' own data, the vast majority of people rely on Universal Credit for relatively short periods of time rather than on a long-term basis, for example, when they’re between jobs.

“There may be other good reasons why some don’t work, whether that’s because they’re sick, disabled or are carers. Or it may be there aren’t many jobs in particular areas.

“We would therefore strongly urge Mr Eastwood to support some of his poorest constituents by lobbying the Chancellor, not only to reverse the cut to those on Universal Credit, but to extend the £20 to those on other out of work benefits, namely, Employment and Support Allowance and Job Seekers Allowance.

"People on these benefits never received the £20 uplift in the first place.”