Universal Credit £20 a week boost extended for six months in today’s Budget
A £20 a week Universal Credit uplift in payments is being extended for another six months, Rishi Sunak revealed today.
The Chancellor announced the boost for low-income households in his Budget today.
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The Chancellor today declared the Budget "meets the moment" of challenge and change facing the UK.
And he said those in need of Universal Credit would continue to be supported.
Speaking today, Mr Sunak said: "We’ll provide Working Tax Credit claimants with equivalent support for the next six months.
"Because of the way that system works operationally, we’ll need to do so with a one-off payment of £500.
"And over the course of this year, as the economy begins to recover, we are shifting our resources and focus towards getting people into decent, well-paid jobs."
The Chancellor said the temporary increase, introduced at the start of the coronavirus pandemic, would remain in place for half a year and "well beyond" the end of the current national lockdown in England.
The Government's temporary coronavirus support for families on benefits is worth £1,040 a year and was supposed to only last a year.
Instead, claimants will continue to get the extra cash until the autumn, when the support is then expected to be phased out.
From then, only the poorest of families will get the increased payments.
The increase has been described as a "lifeline" for struggling families.
The u-turn comes as MPs, charities and campaigners warned removing the boost will plunge thousands of families further into debt.
The coronavirus crisis has pushed millions of more people onto the benefits system in the past year as businesses and employers have been forced to close.
As of January 2021, six million Brits were on Universal Credit, up from 2.8million in the some month a year earlier, according to Government stats.
The Treasury had been reluctant to keep the top-up as it is estimated to cost taxpayers £6billion a year.
Speaking to The Sun ahead of the Budget, Richard Lane, director of external affairs at StepChange Debt Charity, said he would welcome an extension of the programme, but that it still leaves families in a state of "uncertainty".
He said: "A six month extension risks simply kicking the can down the road, leaving households to face significant uncertainty when unemployment is expected to be at its peak.
Mr Lane added the government should commit to a longer term extension.
Everyone who claims Universal Credit gets the £20 a week uplift, regardless of what elements you are entitled to.
The extra cash has automatically been added to the standard allowance element for all Universal Credit claimants and can be viewed in claimants online journals.
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