Alongside other Labour Metro Mayors, South Yorkshire Mayor Dan Jarvis has called on the Government to scrap the cut to Universal Credit.

A quarter of families in South Yorkshire will have their incomes cut by more than £1,000 a year, at a time of economic crisis, and a planned increase in National Insurance.

Mayor Dan Jarvis said:

“For those affected, this cut will cause unimaginable anxiety. This extra £20 per week can be the difference between putting food on the table or going hungry for some families. Moreover, it will have an enormous impact on our local economies. This isn’t money that sits in bank accounts, it’s money that is spent and put back into our local economy.”

Labour have laid an Opposition Day motion to force a vote on the issue this Wednesday. The Labour Mayors have called on all MPs to take action to stop the planned cut,

Mayor Jarvis continued:

“Universal Credit payments were already far too low before the pandemic. Its problems were never going to be resolved by a temporary, inadequate uplift. But to withdraw this vital lifeline for over 130,000 South Yorkshire families, at a time of economic hardship, is morally indefensible and economically illiterate.”