Who Loses? - The Impacts Of Planned Universal Credit Cuts Across Society

17th February 2021

Failure to maintain the £20 a week Covid top-up payment for universal credit by the Government will overwhelmingly hit the incomes of working and disabled people, and put more than 700,000 into poverty, according to a study by the Fabian Society.

Government they will decide in early March whether to keep or scrap the temporary 12-month Covid payment - giving claimants just a month to plan for what could be a £1,050 a year cut in benefits.

It is estimated that if the planned cuts to universal credit and tax credits go ahead it will put 760,000 people below the poverty line over the medium term. Of these, 490,000 (64%) will be in working households where at least one adult works, many with children.

Who is hit by the cuts?

Planned cuts to universal credit will overwhelmingly hit working families and disabled people who are not required to seek work. Half the cuts (£3.2bn) will fall on households where at least one adult is in work. A further 37 per cent of the value of the cuts (£2.4bn) will hit non-working households where at least one adult is disabled. Just 13 per cent of the cuts (£800m) will hit non-working, non-disabled households.

Read the full report HERE - 10 Pages