Kevin Higgins, Head of Policy Advice NI, examines the issue of Winter Fuel Payments; the proposed changes; and the choices facing the NI Executive in terms of what could happen in Northern Ireland.
Over half of NI households rely on credit cards and overdrafts to cover childcare during school holiday expenses. The budget allocation for childcare is only 6 per cent of the £400m required.
With the Department for Communities currently issuing thousands of Migration Notice letters each month to people on Tax Credits as part of its ‘Move to UC’ programme, we want to make sure that those affected get the right advice about the timing of their claim in order to maximise their entitlement to the 6.7% benefit uprating from April.
