We have updated the calculator to allow you to see Universal Credit calculations without the £20 a week uplift.

If the government ends the Universal Credit uplift when planned, people who make new claims for Universal Credit on or after 7 September will not receive the uplift in their first payment. By default, we are no longer showing the uplift in Universal Credit calculations.

We know that some existing claimants will receive a Universal Credit payment during the next month with the £20 a week uplift included. Therefore, to help you support these households, we have added a link to the results page which lets you include the uplift in calculations.

We urge the Prime Minister not to cut Universal Credit

Policy in Practice supports the growing calls for the government not to cut Universal Credit’s £20 uplift, saying that by removing the pandemic’s protective measures too early the government is introducing an Autumn of income shocks to families who depend on the support.

We joined the largest coalition of organisations to date on this issue to sign a joint open letter to the Prime Minister calling on him not to go ahead with the planned £20-a-week cut to Universal Credit and Working Tax Credit, due to come into effect on 6 October.

Read our open letter to the Prime Minister

How the Health and Social Care Levy will affect care workers

Analysis by Policy in Practice finds that the new Health and Social Care Levy will mean that a carer earning the National Living Wage in April 2022 would pay an extra £121 a year, in effect paying for doing their job of caring for others.

Read analysis on the combined effect of the Universal Credit cut and the Health and Social Care Levy
Read coverage of our analysis in The Guardian

Policy alternatives to the £20 cut to Universal Credit

BBC Radio 4’s The Briefing Room, hosted by David Aaronovitch on Thursday 9 September, gave an excellent overview of Universal Credit, and the impact the £20 cut to Universal Credit is likely to have on those affected.

Deven Ghelani from Policy in Practice was a guest and he spoke about the policy choices faced by the Secretary of State and the Chancellor, and five alternatives to the cut to Universal Credit.

Listen to The Briefing Room here