To coincide with today’s day of action, DPAC is publishing “#20More4All – Why the £20 per week uplift to Universal Credit must be applied to legacy benefits: testimonies, stats & facts”
The testimonies collated in the document have been collated together from three sources:
- Responses to an online survey set up DPAC Sheffield and @ImaJSAClaimant. There were 177 respondents. 17% of these are on Universal Credit and have received the uplift. 84% reported they are in receipt of legacy benefits.
- Responses to a survey carried out by Unite Community. 539 Community members responded. These include disabled people and unemployed workers.
- Emails sent to Disabled People Against Cuts. These include three from legacy benefit claimants describing their everyday financial struggles and another 25 with copies of letters sent to constituency MPs asking them to support the extension of the uplift.
We have left the comments in people’s own words as we received them.
The research evidence section collates key findings from a number of recent reports that clearly evidence the need not only for the £20 uplift to be extended to legacy benefits and made permanent, but also the urgent for a new social security system that ensures a guaranteed decent income for all.
Linda Burnip, co-founder of DPAC, said: “The survey results show how necessary an uplift to legacy benefits is needed. People especially those in the WRAG who are being forced to live on a measly £74 a week are being left to starve or freeze. Even in austerity struck Tory Britain this is totally unacceptable.”
Andy Mitchell, @ImaJSAClaimant on twitter, said: “For me the comments quite clearly demonstrate how much the extra £20 is needed for the most basic of human needs. In a wealthy country, even after spending 10 years living through and being affected by austerity, it is deeply troubling that disabled people and families with dependent children are missing out on meals and cutting back on heating, As Linda rightly says, it is totally unacceptable – but it is something too many in society have turned a blind eye to for far too long.”
Jen Jones, founder of DPAC Sheffield and herself a claimant of legacy benefits, said:”I cried reading the replies, so many people who feel just like me. Forgotten, unwanted, or a burden, stated that they would wish the extra support for only the most basic necessities. To eat 3 meals a day, to be able to wash themselves and their clothes and to keep warm. We’re not asking for the moon on a stick. Support us to live.”
#20More4All – why the £20 uplift must be extended to legacy benefits – final
As a single parent of 3 and on disability i was not allowed to transfer to universal credit as my disability review was when the UC uplift started and had to go to tribunal. Because of this i was not allowed to even try to switch to universal credit and had to wait for the courts to catch up on the backlog before i had the option. the kids fathers all in arrears by many years of unpaid child support it has been a struggle. The free school meals money was helpful but for the first year this was not given during isolation and with all the kids mixing in schools we had 10 weeks off school isolating and in that time there was no help funding the kids eating at home using the energy to do home schooling so i was hit double. When my review was completed the idea of losing and money for 6 weeks while switching to UC and again living on credit again was too stressful to even try. The councils grants and financial aids are not easy to obtain and are degrading having to beg and have to show your private financial statements to receive help is shameful when you are unable to work from no fault of your own and if the NHS waiting lists for diagnosis and treatments were shorter i might already be back in work myself. ROCK…..HARD PLACE
My name is Colin. When I was on job seekers allowance I got no bonus. I had 100 pound to last me two weeks. I had to put £20 on electric,£6 TV licence and £2 at first but put up to £4-50 delivery charge for Tesco delivery. I had hardly any money for anything else.