“EVERY time a brown DWP letter hits the doormat, my heart skips a beat” – that was the message from one Universal Credit claimant today (March 5) during a cost-of-living rally in Middlesbrough
The rally, which was organised in partnership between Unite, The People’s Assembly, Middlesbrough Labour MP Andy McDonald, Housing Action Teeside and other agencies, aimed at ‘shining a light’ at those that ‘fall through the cracks of society amid a cost-of-living crisis.
Dozens of people gathered at Centre Square, Middlesbrough at 1pm to stand together to hear a range of speakers, including education experts, Middlesbrough’s MP, people claiming Universal Credit and those calling on the government for real change.
Read more: Darlington residents donate thousands of items for Ukraine
The rally was organised in accordance with a two-part protest against the rising costs of rent, petrol prices and other everyday costs, with the second rally coming on the first weekend in April.
Both rallies were set up by Middlesbrough resident Kerry Wilks, who claims Universal Credit, and designed the demonstration to “fight back” against government austerity.
Speaking to The Northern Echo, Miss Wilks said: “We want to be heard and we want to bring change. In 2022, people shouldn’t struggle to pay their bills and live from paycheck to paycheck but those in charge want to keep things uneven.
“If they were truly serious about making an impact, they wouldn’t have included affluent Yarm in the levelling-up deal, and would have spread some finances over towards Middlesbrough; one of the most deprived areas of the North East.
“Rishi Sunak mentions levelling up, but it’s not a fair system.”
This event was part of UK-wide rallies, which saw hundreds of people also demonstrate in 24 other locations across the country, including Manchester, Bristol and London.
The first person to speak at the rally was Middlesbrough MP, Mr McDonald, who told those present that the government “just doesn’t understand the daily struggles of those living on the poverty line”.
The town’s MP also took an opportunity to mention the “truly devastating” situation in Ukraine, which prompted several members of the crowd to fly a large Ukraine flag next to the rally.
Using an impassioned speech to the crowd, Mr McDonald said: “During Covid, we’ve had to take the cost-of-living crisis and so many more blows. The average person on the street already has so many struggles, but this is getting more and more because of the hikes in daily goods and our hard-earned money is going straight to the billion-pound corporations.
“It’s not the big-wigs or rich people that suffer, though, it’s the working poor and the marginalised, the down-trodden.”
However, the most impassioned speech of the afternoon came from Danny Halliday, who has claimed Universal Credit for 12 months now, during which time he’s tried to take his own life several times, due to money woes.
During the rally, Mr Halliday documented his fear of the Department for Work and Pensions brown envelope hitting his doormat and the ‘flaws’ in the employment system in the UK.
Mr Halliday, who is currently not in work, due to mental health issues, worries that he could become homeless if the overall system from the government isn’t changed.
He told The Northern Echo: “I’d love to get a full-time job and work, but as soon as you mentioned mental health on your CV, people already assume that you’ll be taking time off.
“I’ve been at rock bottom and speaking today in front of these people makes me feel even more determined to get a change and ensure that no one goes through what I have.”
Former County Durham MP and current national secretary of the People’s Assembly, Laura Pidcock turned up at the rally - exclaiming that “people must stand up to this broken system. It’s unbelievable how things have got worse over the last decade, and it’s unbelievable that whenever people visit anywhere, the money is going into the back pockets of the uber-wealthy – this must stop.”
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