Ask a Joseph Rowntree Foundation social security expert anything about universal credit changes

A staggering 6 million people across the UK are set to lose £20 a week from their welfare support from Wednesday 6 October, as the government cuts the amount people on universal credit are receiving.

The £86 monthly rise in the benefit was brought in during the Covid-19 pandemic to help struggling families, but ministers are preparing to remove it at the end of this week.

The government has come under pressure, including from Conservatives on its own back benches, to keep the top-up payment after being warned that soaring energy prices and increased living costs mean it is the “worst possible time” to pull the uplift.

But ministers have explained the cut in support by saying it was always intended to be a “temporary measure” and reduction is set to go ahead.

A government spokesperson told The Independent the uplift was “designed to help claimants through the economic shock and financial disruption of the toughest stages of the pandemic, and it has done so”.

The concern around the move is now only increasing and removing the uplift will be a “catastrophic cut” which may cause people’s mental health problems to spiral, a charity Mental Health UK has warned.

Its online mental health and money advice service have seen almost double the number of visits in the course of a year. There were 30,760 visits in August 2020 which rose to 60,214 in August 2021.

As we approach the date of change there are plenty of questions circulating about what those who are affected should do and what it means for the wider picture as we as a society attempt to emerge back into some form of normality as the pandemic restrictions ease.

To answer your questions we have got social security expert Iain Porter on hand to explain some of the details about the planned changes and how they’ll affect people across the country, although he won’t be able to provide personal advice.

Iain is the policy and partnership manager at the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. As part of his role he leads the charity’s policy work on Universal Credit with a focus on how to enable more people to move out of poverty through a better system of social security.

Iain previously worked on UK poverty policy and advocacy for a leading children’s charity. Before that he helped develop a comprehensive new social security policy platform for a major UK political party and was previously a senior manager with an international business advisory firm.

Iain will be taking your questions during a live ‘ask me anything’ session being held in the comments section of this page between 1-2pm on Friday, 1 October.

All you have to do is register to submit your question in the comments below. If you’re not already a member, click “sign up” in the comments box to leave your question. Don’t worry if you can’t see your question – they will be hidden until Iain joins the conversation to answer them. Then join us live on this page at 1pm as he tackles as many questions as he can.