Advice NI is calling on the Chancellor to make use of the upcoming Budget to overturn two austerity measures introduced by the coalition government which limit the amount of benefit, usually Universal Credit, a family with children can receive. Making these changes would be the most significant step the government could take to address child poverty.
Advice NI notes the recent articles that have been published highlighting suspension of Child Benefit payments to certain claimants based on evidence HMRC obtained that suggested they were outside the country.
With GCSE results due this week HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is urging parents who know their teenager’s plans in September to extend their claim now to continue to receive Child Benefit.
Advice NI highlights potential local impact of recent Government proposals affecting sick and disabled people & calls on the NI Executive to ‘keep an open mind’ on what could be done to mitigate the impact on the most vulnerable.
April is the time of year when you might see benefit payments increase. Increases to benefits is known as benefit uprating.
Kevin Higgins, Head of Policy Advice NI, examines the issue of Winter Fuel Payments; the proposed changes; and the choices facing the NI Executive in terms of what could happen in Northern Ireland.
With the Department for Communities currently issuing thousands of Migration Notice letters each month to people on Tax Credits as part of its ‘Move to UC’ programme, we want to make sure that those affected get the right advice about the timing of their claim in order to maximise their entitlement to the 6.7% benefit uprating from April.
People on the lowest incomes – both in and out of work – have endured a decade of austerity; with freezes and cuts to social security benefits and in-work support; hollowing out support, undermining resilience and ability to cope with adversity.
Advice NI, Rural Support and The Ulster Farmers’ Union have expressed their collective concern over the impact on many of the 134,000 self-employed people in Northern Ireland who currently rely on tax credits and who will be impacted by ‘Move to UC’.
