Universal Credit and the North East: our letter to the chancellor

We've joined a broad, cross-sector coalition of North-East organisations has come together to urge the Chancellor of the Exchequer to reverse the planned £20 a week cut to Universal Credit.

The move will hit a third of all working-age households in the region - with around 34% of those claiming Universal Credit already in work - and remove around £5m from the regions economy every week. The removal of the uplift will place even greater pressure on advice services, like ourselves who work to support these people everyday. 

Together, we've written to the chancellor as well as all MPs in the region to highlight the impact this £20 a week loss will have, not only on struggling families, but also our region's economy.

Both nationally and regionally, there has been media interest in this story. This includes: Northern Echo, on ChronicleLive, on BBC Radio Newcastle, Tyne Tees TV, and in The Spectator.

The organisations who co-signed this letter can be found below:

The North East Child Poverty Commission
Citizens Advice Newcastle
Children North East
The Rt Revd Paul Butler, Bishop of Durham and Church of England lead on child poverty
North East England Chamber of Commerce
Northern TUC
Youth Focus: North East
NE Youth
North East and North Cumbria Child Health and Wellbeing Network
Citizens Advice Northumberland
Citizens Advice Gateshead
Citizens Advice Sunderland
Citizens Advice South Tyneside
Citizens Advice County Durham
Citizens Advice Darlington
Citizens Advice Hartlepool
Citizens Advice Redcar and Cleveland