An MP for Oldham has urged the Chancellor Jeremy Hunt to use the Autumn Statement to increase social security in line with inflation.
Debbie Abrahams, the representative for Oldham East and Saddleworth, wrote an open letter to the Chancellor, signed by four former Secretaries of State for Work and Pensions, as well as three Metro Mayors.
She said: “We believe that the social security system should provide the vital safety net it was set up for in the post war settlement.
“A failure to increase payments in line with inflation would lead to a real terms loss of income for some of the most vulnerable people in society during a cost of living crisis, including working people on low incomes, households with children, and disabled people.
“Some may argue that inflation will decrease over the next few months, but this ignores the real term cuts in working age social security support since 2011.”
Abrahams also cited YouGov polling to demonstrate the effect that the cost of living crisis has already had on members of the public.
She said: “This summer a YouGov survey for the Food Foundation found that 17% of households in the country experienced ‘food insecurity’, which is more than double those in January 2021.
“Likewise, in 2024-25 average prices are expected to be 25% above those in 2020, with social security payments only 16% higher at this point.
“It is only right that, in this context, we do all we can to ensure the most vulnerable people have adequate support.”
Abrahams referred to the disparities between social security in the UK and other countries as well.
The Labour MP said: “At this point our social security system is one of the least generous in Europe, with payments at a lower level than OECD and EU-27 averages.
“This has resulted in record levels of working people living in poverty and 71% of poor people coming from working families.”
Ahead of the #AutumnStatement I have written to the #Chancellor urging him to increase all #socialsecurity payments by inflation, along with 4 former #DWP Secretaries of State and 3 Metro #Mayors pic.twitter.com/QyXcKy9xlw
— Debbie Abrahams MP (@Debbie_abrahams) November 20, 2023
The UK is a signatory to the 2015 UN Sustainable Development Goals which was set up in order to halve UK poverty by 2030.
Abrahams’ letter said real terms cuts to social security would mean this target would be much more difficult to achieve.
The former Public Health consultant also made reference to a 2020 report conducted by Professor Sir Michael Marmot in his Marmot Review report on the link between health outcomes and productivity.
She said: “It is not just a moral case but a pragmatic one too. By enabling better health outcomes and improvements in healthy life expectancy in the population, through improvements in social security payments, we will increase the country’s productivity, at a time when it is lagging behind many similar economies.”
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said in a speech to local business and community leaders today that he wants to “reward hard work”.
He said: “Our view on the welfare system is that it should be compassionate, it should be fair and it should be sustainable.
“With over 2 million people of working age who are not currently working, that isn’t a good situation.
“It’s not sustainable for the country, for taxpayers. It’s not fair. But it’s also not compassionate to write people off.”
However, the majority of the Prime Minister’s pre-Autumn Statement speech did not focus on social security, but rather reducing inflation and potential tax cuts.
He said: “Now that inflation is halved and our growth is stronger meaning revenues are higher, we can begin the next phase and turn our attention to cutting tax.”
"Now that inflation is halved and our growth is stronger… we can begin the next phase and turn our attention to cutting tax"
— BBC Politics (@BBCPolitics) November 20, 2023
PM Rishi Sunak says the government will start cutting taxes "in a serious, responsible way"https://t.co/ImdIMM78ID pic.twitter.com/wlpaLeV6sb
The Chancellor will deliver the Autumn Statement this Wednesday.
Feature image by Jordhan Madec.
