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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
National
Robert Booth Social affairs correspondent

Benefits rise brings relief but stark warning from poverty campaigners

A jobcentre
Universal credit claimants will get a rise in their payment by an average of £600 next year, according to the chancellor, Jeremy Hunt. Photograph: Yui Mok/PA

Anti-poverty campaigners expressed relief at the chancellor’s decision to increase benefits by 10.1% next year but warned that millions of the poorest people would still face a fall in spending power as inflation soars.

The increase is lower than the current 11.1% rate of inflation and follows years of cuts to the real value of benefits affecting the lives of 9 million households – 7 million of which include someone who works.

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