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28 April, 2020 Open access

Disability Benefits Consortium calls on government to extend universal credit and tax credits increase to all out of work benefits

Results of survey show that almost all disabled people have seen an increase in expenditure due to the coronavirus outbreak, with more than 90 per cent struggling to meet additional cost of food

The Disability Benefits Consortium (DBC) is calling on the government to extend the emergency increases in universal credit and tax credits - that were introduced in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak - to all out of work benefits.

In addition to launching a petition calling for the increase, the DBC has also released the results of a survey of more than 200 disabled people which found nearly all (95 per cent) had seen an increase in their costs as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and that 92 per cent were struggling to meet the additional cost of food.

Commenting on the results of the survey,  Ella Abraham, Z2K’s Policy and Campaigns Officer and Campaigns Co-Chair of the DBC, said -

'The government is discriminating against millions of disabled people on other benefits by choosing to only ‘focus on new claimants’ on universal credit.

We stand with the hundreds of disability charities and activists demanding the government immediately give all benefits the same COVID-19 emergency £20 increase that universal credit has seen to ensure the safety of everyone.'

For more information, see Join the DBC's call in demanding the government to stop leaving people behind.