LONDON (CU)_UK household budgets are currently under mounting pressure, as food, rent and other prices continue to increase at their fastest rate for 30 years. It will only get worse over the coming months, with energy bills set to rise on average between £700 and £2,000 a year from 1 April, following which the chancellor’s 1.25 per cent national insurance surcharge will start hitting household incomes.
The effects of the ongoing price pressures and the economic downturn brought about by the pandemic are reflected in a recent figures on the number claiming universal credit, which has more than doubled since the beginning of the pandemic. Accordingly, Trades Union Congress (TUC) is calling on the government to do more to help low-paid workers amid the cost of living crisis. The unions noted that the 1.3 million increase in the number of working universal credit claimant is a result of the financial hardship that is being faced by households during COVID. Therefore, they called for a substantial increase in payments, together with a higher minimum wage ahead of the “perfect storm” of costs expected in spring.
Although some support for struggling households were announced last week, it is not sufficient to prevent millions more working people from being pushed below the breadline, according to the TUC. The London-based group noted that 12 per cent of workers told researches that they would find it hard to afford the basics over the next six months, while 22 per cent claimed they are expected to struggle to afford “more than the basics”.
Accordingly, TUC’s general secretary Frances O’Grady called for an immediate increase in universal credit payments to 80 per cent of the living wage, which is set to rise to £9.50 in April. “The government must do far more to help struggling families get through the tough times ahead. The support package announced by the chancellor last week is woefully inadequate,” she said. “Universal credit urgently needs boosting and we need further action to reduce fuel costs for those battling to make ends meet. The best way to give working families long-term financial security is to get pay rising across the economy.”
