A random mix of screen captures from todays webinar on Child poverty - understanding the 2 child limit of child benefit - A benefit we all pay into but has been refashioned by the ongoing Tory government to limit payment to families. Based on lack of understanding of the impact on families and the added cost of spin off problems. I continue to put forward to groups and meetings that - Poverty is diagnostic of failed leadership and that all citizens should have the right to financial dignity. We heard from the frontline on how one father was struggling with now a third child and cut in child benefit a right for all... He was a trier and had coped with mental ill health but was trying to be proactive. His wife a nurse. However, the cut in benefit and added expense of their child had become financially stressed to the point of the marriage briefly breaking up. The said debts he had were as I put forward to the APPG Poverty meetings not HIS debts but the system malpolicies creating debts. The webinar was recorded so will load the link as soon as I get it... But the speakers were a mix of researchers from York University and Leeds University with the Church of England too. Thank goodness for caring people to see the problems on the front-line and fight for reform to stop the pain of lack of support. Of course the job losses from the pandemic will and is hitting families that have been just about managing with feeding clothing their family. There are some that have gone from being self sufficient to now needing Universal Credit as no work and trying to find work.
A stat that is strongly on my mind is that 1.1 million children in poverty and expected to rise to 2.2 million by end of this horrendous year. That takes some absorbing this is the United Kingdom that is long considered to be a wealthy country... yet has had the UN reporteur for Poverty Philip Alston investigating the UK and filing a report which government will not accept!!! and we have Sports Aid raising funds for UNICEF with a highlight that food parcels are now being allocated UK children by UNICEF... Sorry but this government needs to hang its head in shame!!! My thoughts on this and i cannot believe my Ancestral motherland is in such a state. It is not what my mother and father fought for.. They fought for all to have financial dignity and life dignity. We are not all asking for limousines, diamonds and tiaras but dignity to have food for our families, clothing be able to pay bills and live simply live - thrive not just be surviving. These are my thoughts from this thought provoking worrying meeting.
Here are some links to follow:
two child limit Parliament pdf
Welfare reform larger families
