Households ‘teetering on the brink of financial ruin’ as coronavirus support cliff edges loom, says Shadow Chancellor

Labour Party urges Chancellor to fix Britain's broken safety net and tackle the root causes of income insecurity

Many households in the UK are 'teetering on the brink of financial ruin' as coronavirus support cliff edges loom, the Shadow Chancellor Anneliese Dodds has said.

While a number of different schemes have been introduced to offer financial support to households during the COVID-19 pandemic, Labour highlights that much of the support is scheduled to end abruptly during the first four months of 2021, including - 

• 11 January - the end of the ban on evictions;
• 29 January - the deadline for applications for the third grant under the Self-Employed Income Support Scheme;
• 31 January - the deadline for mortgage holidays and the end of the ban on home repossessions;
• 31 March - applications close for government-backed loan schemes such as the Business Interruption Loan Scheme and the Bounce Back Loan;
• 6 April - the end of the temporary £20 a week increase in universal credit; and
• 30 April - the end of the furlough scheme.

Urging the government not to abandon struggling families, Ms Dodds said - 

'The irresponsible decisions taken by the Conservatives over the last decade left many UK households without a penny in the bank going into this crisis. When COVID hit, they had nothing to fall back on – and now some are teetering on the brink of financial ruin as several COVID support cliff edges loom.

The Chancellor’s chaotic, last-minute approach to this crisis plunged the UK into the worst downturn of any major economy, but it seems he hasn’t learned any lessons.

Families up and down the country will continue to suffer if he doesn’t fix Britain’s broken safety net and tackle the root causes of income insecurity across our country.'

For more information, see Insecure Britain: Chancellor’s Covid cliff edges push UK households to the brink from labour.org.uk