The government has confirmed it is set to remove the £20 a week uplift in Universal Credit payments.
The increase was introduced in April 2020 at the start of the first lockdown to help people through the Covid pandemic - as Mirror Online reports.
However, the uplift will be slashed between October 13 and November 12 as 6 million people will see their income drop in what critics say is the biggest overnight benefit cut since the Second World War.
READ MORE: Liverpool couple set to be 'plunged into poverty' over Universal Credit crisis
Conservative politicians say the move is necessary as society returns to how it was before the pandemic - but critics have slammed the timing as the cuts coincide with the end of furlough - and during a period when the UK is still recording high levels of positive Covid cases.
We've rounded up everything you need to know about the Universal Credit cut, including when it will happen, who it's going to affect and how much people are going to lose.
When is the Universal Credit cut going to happen?
The cut will kick in for claimants at some point between October 13 and November 12 depending on when your case falls around a cut off date in a month's time.
Each month your benefits are calculated during an assessment period - which spans between just over five weeks to one week before you’re actually paid.
If your assessment period ends on or before October 5, you will be paid the current higher amount of Universal Credit. If your assessment period ends on or after October 6, you will be paid the new lower amount of Universal Credit.
There’s a seven-day gap between the end of your assessment period, and the date you get paid your benefits for the month.
So that means someone whose assessment period ends on October 5 will still be paid the higher amount on October 12. They’ll only see the cut in the next month’s payment on November 12.
But someone whose assessment period ends on October 6 will be the first to see a lower Universal Credit payment on October 13.
How much will be cut from Universal Credit payments?
The monthly cut is worth about £85 to £90 across the board for all Universal Credit claimants, no matter what your situation is.
That’s because the money being cut is the “standard allowance”, which is received by everyone on Universal Credit:
- For a single person under 25, the monthly standard allowance is falling from £344 to £257.33.
- For a single person over 25, the monthly standard allowance is falling from £411.51 to £324.84.
- For a couple where both people are under 25, the monthly standard allowance is falling from £490.60 to £403.93.
- For a couple where one or both people are over 25, the monthly standard allowance is falling from £596.58 to £509.91.
Standard allowance is the money you get before any childcare or disability elements are added, and before any money is “tapered” away if you have a job:
You should have received a journal message or similar communication from the DWP spelling out more details of how you’ll be hit.
Working Tax Credit is also being cut by £20 a week.
Who will be affected by the Universal Credit cut?
Officially, as of July 2021, there are 5,923,820 people on Universal Credit in Great Britain - but that doesn’t count the 3.4million children who live in households where Universal Credit is being cut.
In more than 400 constituencies, at least 1 in every 3 working-age families with kids will be hit. In the worst-hit areas it’s more than three quarters.
Across the UK, more than 1 in every 14 workers will be hit by the cut.
As of May 2021, there were 826,000 households on Universal Credit with one child, 662,000 with two children, 258,000 with three children, 83,000 with four children and 33,000 with five children.
Of the 5.9million people on the benefit, 2,331,915 are in employment as of June 2021 - or 40% of all those claiming Universal Credit.
That means they have a job, but still claim Universal Credit because either their hours or pay are so low they still qualify for social security.
Want to find out the latest news in your area? Enter your postcode on our In Your Area page here
