Research commissioned from the Institute for Fiscal Studies last week showed that the Coalition’s emergency budget hit families with children hardest, and that the poorest families are set to lose most.
The consequences will be dire for many people. Even a five per cent loss of income may not sound like very much but it is enough to tip some people over the edge. The cuts are creating huge hardship.
Take Kath Carter from Stockton on Tees. Kath – a pillar of the local community, and a key member of Church Action on Poverty’s local partner, Thrive – knows what it is like to struggle to make ends meet. Shortly after the General Election, Kath wrote to share her concerns with the new Prime Minister:
“I was happy for you to gain your goals as a Christian woman, but sad that my son cannot find a job even though he is a full apprenticed engineer in the aerospace field. He lives on the dole in a house that he cannot afford to heat, in an area that used to have jobs galore in shipbuilding and the chemical industry. 1,400 steel jobs taken away at the stroke of a pen. It is easy to blame the benefit society – pride comes from working, but there aren’t any jobs for people to do. It is a continuous circle of training followed by a short-term job, then back to benefits.
“I saw you on the TV driving in your big shiny cars from your warm comfortable houses in the best part of town. Funny, I didn’t see one deprived council estate in view. I used to live in your area, said hello to my neighbours but never crossed the threshold. Now on a council estate through being a failed businesswoman (I tried), I see my neighbours talking and visiting each other as communities do.
“They may not have the trappings of wealth, but their spirit is strong despite the hardships they endure. These people are the people that made this country great. Please, I ask you, take notice of the big divide and heed that God has not been introduced into government. All people are equal in God’s eyes, and so the government must look to God to see the way forward.”
Kath – and thousands like her – are already just keeping their heads above water and struggling to keep up with their debt repayments and living costs. They are not people in a position to see their income further reduced.
Back in May, the Coalition Government made a commendable commitment to fairness and specifically their commitment to protecting the poorest and most vulnerable from the cuts. What is vital now, is that they need to follow through on that commitment.
Clearly, given the state of public finances, some cuts need to be made, but that they should be borne by those with the capacity to bear them, rather than those already struggling.
