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Millions of UK households forced to unplug fridge to cope with rising bills
(www.theguardian.com)
this post was submitted on 14 Nov 2023
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This is the best summary I could come up with:
Nearly half of those households said that since May they had to disconnect their fridge or freezer for the first time, a sign the cost of living crisis was still hurting low-income families, according to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) charity.
Millions of families were still resorting to “desperate measures” to cope with rising bills and prices, it said, with four out of five households on universal credit also going without food, turning off the heating, and not replacing worn-out clothing.
The JRF’s latest cost of living crisis tracker survey found that in October a quarter (2.8m) of UK low-income households ran up debt to pay for food, a third sold belongings to raise cash, and one in six had used community “warm rooms”.
The findings come amid concerns among poverty charities that ministers are looking to reduce financial help for low income families at next week’s autumn statement by cutting benefits and winding down cost of living support payments.
There is speculation ministers could freeze the value of working age benefits from next April, which would raise billions for the Treasury but make about 9m households lose out on an estimated average of £460, and push lower income families even further into poverty.
Charities are concerned that headline falls in inflation levels, while welcome, will do little to improve living standards for the poorest unless benefits, the value of which has been eroded over recent years, are increased to reflect food and energy prices and private sector rents.
The original article contains 603 words, the summary contains 249 words. Saved 59%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!