Major UK Churches are warning that the Government’s Welfare Reform and Work Bill marks a dangerous shift away from a core principle of the Welfare State and will make poor people even poorer.
News | 06.11.15
Major UK Churches are warning that the Government’s Welfare Reform and Work Bill marks a dangerous shift away from a core principle of the Welfare State and will make poor people even poorer.
The report, entitled "Enough: Our responsibility to meet families’ needs”, has been published by the Baptist Union, Church Action on Poverty, the Church of Scotland, the Methodist Church, Quakers in Britain, the Scottish Episcopal Church and the United Reformed Church, who together represent more than 840,000 people in Britain.
The Churches’ report reveals that the Benefit Cap, which reduces families’ benefits by an average of over £3,500 per year, has only resulted in a further 4.7% of families finding work. However, 46% of families affected by the Cap experienced increasing problems with rent arrears. This is despite the Government’s claims that reducing the amount of benefits people are entitled to is an effective way of moving people into work.
A YouGov survey commissioned by the Churches has also revealed that 61% of UK adults believe that welfare benefits should be set at a level that allows families with children to cover their basic costs. In contrast, only 25% of those polled said they thought that benefits should be set deliberately low to encourage families to find work or get more work.
The following film was released with the report:
To read more and to download the report, please visit:
