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'Reverse disability benefit cuts' say delegates at Usdaw ADM

Date: 08 May 2019 Delegates at the Usdaw annual conference have today supported a call on the Government to review the cuts to social security benefits for disabled people and the additional costs imposed on them for holidays, travel, assistance, equipment and other items.
Responding to the welfare and benefits debate at Usdaw’s Annual Delegate Meeting in Blackpool’s Winter Gardens, Dave McCrossen – Usdaw Deputy General Secretary said: “Social security is a vital support net, but this Tory Government is intent on dismantling it and we are hearing more and more from members struggling to make ends meet because the support they rely on is being stripped away. The most vulnerable are being hit hardest and we are campaigning for urgent reform of our social security system, to provide real support for people who need it most.
 
“This Government has a disgraceful record when it comes to disability rights. In a decade we have gone from one of the best performing, progressive countries on disability equality to being condemned by the United Nations for, in their words, ‘systematic violations’ of the rights of disabled people; a report and recommendations this Government has refused to accept or act upon.
 
“Usdaw has been campaigning hard against social security cuts and the introduction of Universal Credit. Those cuts disproportionately hit disabled people and their families and at the same time the disability ‘price tag’, the additional cost of everyday living, continues to rise.
 
“This Government should be removing the barriers disabled people face, not putting more in the way. Tackling this requires a joined up approach: Reversing benefit cuts; reforming Universal Credit; raising payments to a level that really meets their need, and tackling the financial penalties disabled people face when accessing goods and services.
 
Notes for editors:
 
Usdaw (Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers) is the UK's fifth biggest and the fastest growing trade union with over 420,000 members. Membership has increased by more than one-third over the last couple of decades. Most Usdaw members work in the retail sector, but the union also has many members in transport, distribution, food manufacturing, chemicals and other trades.
 
For Usdaw press releases visit: http://www.usdaw.org.uk/news and you can follow us on Twitter @UsdawUnion

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