Responding to confirmation that new Prime Minister is to keep Chancellor in post, Iain Porter, Senior
Policy Adviser for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation said:
“Families on low incomes desperately need stability and
certainty, as they try to afford the essentials, pay their rent,
and keep food on the table. personally pledged to go ahead
with the usual uprating of benefits in line with inflation, and
Chancellor promised last week that he
would take action to protect the most vulnerable and to act with
compassion.
“The new government must show it is as serious about protecting
its citizens from harm as well as it is about calming the
markets. It can do this by moving quickly to take away a huge
source of anxiety for millions and confirming that benefits will
be uprated as soon as possible in line with September’s inflation
rate of 10.1% - a position the public agree with.
“Previous decisions not to go ahead with the normal uprating of
benefits, cutting the value of support, mean that current rates
are leaving households unable to afford the bare essentials. This
inadequate safety net has caused rising debt, foodbank use and
homelessness even before this crisis. Even if benefits are
uprated in line with inflation, the usual bare minimum the
government can do, rates of support will still be in the lowest
levels we’ve seen in decades.
“The cost of living crisis continues to intensify and the review
on help with energy bills will be an important part of ensuring
that support is sufficient and effectively targeted at those who
need it. People on the lowest incomes will need to know that
whatever is announced in the upcoming fiscal statement, this is a
government which has listened and will protect the worst off from
the frightening rises in the cost of living.”
ENDS
Notes to Editors
- For the incoming Prime Minister’s pledge on uprating
benefits, see here: 26 May 2022 (Statement to HoC
on cost of living support).
“And I can reassure the House that next year, subject to the
Secretary of State’s review, benefits will be uprated by this
September’s CPI…
“…which, on current forecasts, is likely to be significantly
higher than the forecast inflation rate for next year.”
-
The poll was of 1600 people
across the UK and was carried out online by YouGov during
the Conservative Party conference on 4th and
5th October.
