The number of people having their benefits cut or stopped has soared above pre-pandemic levels, raising demand on food banks.
The government suspended most benefit sanctions at the start of the pandemic when Jobcentres were shut, but brought them back last June.
Since then, the number has soared. Government figures published this week show that in January 2022 – the most recent month for which data is available – 38,244 sanctions were imposed on Universal Credit (UC) claimants.
