New analysis from Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) shows that around 35,000 more families across the UK could have their benefits capped next April, leaving them with a growing gulf between their income and rising costs in living. In Scotland 4,000 households are affected by the arbitrary limit to benefit entitlements.
Figures published this week by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) revealed that 120,000 households were already subject to the benefit cap in February 2022, which included 103,000 (86%) families with children. Because their benefits are capped, these families saw no increase in their income at all when most benefits were increased by 3.1% in April.
As a result, the charity said this left them with a real-terms income cut of £1,800, based on the 9% rise in inflation at that time. They also lost out on the temporary £20 weekly uplift in Universal Credit introduced at the start of the coronavirus pandemic.
