Back to school won’t be the same this year!

With the news that over a third of Universal Credit claimants across South East Northumberland and the Rural Coalfield have had to borrow to survive over the last eighteen months and thats without the removal of the £20 per week UC uplift things don’t bode well for the  future for families and children particularly where child poverty, fuel and food poverty have become a growth industry along with loan sharking and all of the problems that can bring to your door.

Ian Lavery MP and Northumberland Labour Groups team have been out in the press explaining the need to retain the universal credit uplift, with Ian Lavery demanding Parliament be recalled to debate the shocking damage that the removal of cash from the pockets of those in need will cause to a society already damaged by  some of the greatest numbers of covid cases in the UK.

Prior to this time of tragedy for families, 43% of children in Newbiggin by the Sea suffered from deprivation and poverty and with that figure expected to grow from mid August it is estimated that almost 60% will be dragged into the Conservatives number crunch as the Government deserts those in need, making back to school in September a dreadful experience for many families.

With the Government wanting to drop the term austerity and hide it behind some ‘fix it’ promise that will never be more than standard rhetoric, the number crunch and that's what it will be, will bypass the real lives of people as this Government seeks express delivery in paying back borrowing to cover pandemic costs faster than any Government elsewhere in the world. Johnson's policies don't just affect children and families as they are about to slash another election promise and leave OAP’s sitting behind real inflation as they are hell bent on abandoning the Triple Lock on pensions.

The latest ‘fix it’ from the leader of the fifth richest nation in the world should really say ‘We will fix it to be the nation who attacks children, the elderly and vulnerable in our society so that those who have, from anywhere across the globe can languish in our low tax haven (or if your big and rich enough pay no tax at all) and not worry about the cost of an NHS as privatisation will take the burden of treating the poor from the pockets of the rich’