A leading Liberal Democrat has used a visit to York to warn that families in the city could still be hit by welfare cuts despite a high-profile Government U-Turn last year.

Lord Jonathan Oates, who was recently made a life peer after serving as a councillor in Kingston Upon Thames and Chief of Staff to Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg throughout the Coalition Government, outlined his concerns at an event for party members at the weekend.

Last year, George Osborne was forced to re-think cuts to tax credits after a local and national campaign by the Lib Dems. The changes were set to hit 8,000 families in York, but Osborne said households claiming the benefit would be helped by “transitional protection” as they moved to the new single Universal Credit. Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith claimed that “nobody will lose any money on arrival on universal credit from tax credits”.

However, the Government has revealed the “transition” funding will not be given to new claimants or families if they have a “significant change in circumstances” such as finding a partner or moving home. This means a single parent in York who finds a new partner and decides to form a two-parent family could as a result lose around £1,000 in benefit. The Lib Dems have dubbed this a “love tax” and launched a petition against the changes: www.yorklibdems.org.uk/universalcredit
Lord Oates, a Liberal Democrat peer in the House of Lords, commented:

“During the coalition, the Lib Dems supported Universal Credit because we believed that it would increase work incentives. However, these cuts undermine this and threaten to hit low-income working families in York and across the country.  The Conservative national manifesto says that the aim of welfare reform should be to reward hard work and protect the vulnerable. These changes do the opposite and show that the Conservatives are not on the side of working people.”

Cllr Sue Hunter, Liberal Democrat Councillor for Westfield who campaigned against the cuts to tax credits last year, commented:

“Lib Dems campaigned strongly and George Osborne was forced to rethink plans to cut working tax credits. However, it now looks like the Conservative Government is pushing through very similar cuts. Families in York could in fact lose out by £1,080 a year when they were led to believe they would be no worse off with Universal Credit.”

Cllr Keith Aspden, Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group, commented:

“I am pleased that Lord Oates and the Lib Dem team in Parliament are fighting these unfair changes to Universal Credit. I would urge residents in York to sign our petition to show their opposition to these changes which could hit low-income families across the city. The petition can be found at www.yorklibdems.org,uk/universalcredit”