Universal credit cut will push thousands of people in Skegness into poverty if Boris does not change his mind
Boris Johnson has been warned he is playing with people’s lives after he ignored some of his own MPs to reduce Universal Credit by £20-a-week. The impact of the benefit cut is going to be dramatic with food and energy prices increasing.
800,000 people in the UK face being plunged into poverty with the benefit cut, with thousands of those people living in Skegness, Lincolnshire.
A staggering 6,172 households in the Boston and Skegness constituency live in fuel poverty, according to the charity National Energy Action. The Universal Credit cut is going to force some people to decide between heating their homes and eating.
The extra £20 per week Universal Credit payment helped thousands of people in Skegness and Boston from going into the poverty trap.
Former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith, the architect of universal credit, does not agree with Boris Johnson cutting Universal Credit. He is trying to force a vote on the benefit cut and stop it, which could embarrass Boris Johnson.
Stephen McPartland, the Conservative MP for Stevenage, said: “It is not too late for the prime minister to step in and show his authority by supporting millions of people facing this cut of over £1,000 a year. Energy bills are going through the roof, new taxes on working people and incomes being squeezed – £20 a week may not sound like much, but to those on low incomes, trying to do the right thing, it often makes all the difference.”
Thousands of people in Skegness, Lincolnshire could lose over £1,000 a year if Boris Johnson does not change his mind. With the increase in National Insurance, rising energy bills, food prices, and the continuing increase in petrol prices, low-income families in Skegness are once again going to suffer due to the Governments mistakes.
Boris Johnson has warned that the Universal Credit uplift was always meant to be a temporary measure. The Prime Minister believes he is doing the right thing. However, 89 of the 100 people we spoke to in Skegness believe Boris Johnson does not understand the difficulties people are going through and is making a terrible mistake.
Citizen Advice has warned the Universal Benefit cut will see more people going into debt, while financial experts have said more people could turn to pay day loans to survive.
If there is ever a time for Boris Johnson to show compassion and act like a Prime Minister for all the people and not just the rich, it is now.