Tories finally admit link between Universal Credit and Foodbank use

The UK Government have finally admitted the link between the roll-out of Universal Credit and the significant rise in food bank use in recent years.

The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Amber Rudd, made the admission in the House of Commons on Monday after previous ministers and the UK Government refused to acknowledge any link between the two.

Dundee East MP, Stewart Hosie, welcomed the admission but claimed that it was “not enough” and that “more has to be done to end the suffering of families on this benefit.”

Full service Universal Credit was rolled out to Dundee in late 2017. Since then the demand for emergency food parcels has sky-rocketed and Dundee City Council have had to spend £2.5 million mitigating the effects of changes to benefits such as the bedroom tax and the switch to Universal Credit.

Commenting Stewart Hosie MP said:

“It’s good to see that the Government are finally taking some responsibility for the rise in food bank use over the past few years.”

“But of course, it isn’t enough to just recognise the failure of the policy, more has to be done to end the suffering of families on this benefit.”

“I have written to the UK Government several times in previous years encouraging them to halt and rethink this policy, but these requests have fallen on deaf ears. The Tories last year claimed that ‘austerity is over’. They ought to put their money where their mouth is and prove it.”

“I have lost count how many times constituents have come to me with issues relating to Universal Credit. The system isn’t working.”

ENDS