20 July 2017: Liz Kendall MP visits Citizens Advice LeicesterShire to discuss issues facing people in Leicester, including Universal Credit
Liz Kendall, Labour MP for Leicester West, met some of the staff and volunteers at Citizens Advice LeicesterShire at our Leicester city branch in Charles Street on Friday 14th July.
During her visit, Liz spoke to staff, including Chief Executive, Richard Evans, and Leicester city branch Service Leader, Dawn Montoya-Mason, in order to understand the advice services on offer in Leicester.
Liz also spent time talking to some new volunteers, who were about to finish their training and begin interviewing the people who contact Citizens Advice LeicesterShire.
Also discussed were issues such as the impact of Brexit on Leicester and Universal Credit; the biggest shake-up of the benefits system since the welfare state began over 60 years ago.
Universal Credit is fully rolled out in some areas of Leicestershire, and will be introduced in Leicester city in March 2018. Citizens Advice LeicesterShire is campaigning for the roll-out of Universal Credit to be paused in order to iron out problems with delivery of the new system.
Richard Evans, Chief Executive of Citizens Advice LeicesterShire, said:
“We were delighted that Liz was able to visit our Leicester city branch and meet some of the volunteers who give their time to support people with their problems in Leicester.
“We were especially grateful that she took time to listen to the issues some of our clients are experiencing with Universal Credit.
“With full roll-out in Leicester city due in March, its vital that problems with the new system are fixed now, before the financial security of almost 100,000 households across the city and county is put at risk.”
Liz Kendall said:
“I was very impressed with the dedication of the staff and volunteers at Citizens Advice LeicesterShire, many of whom give their time for free.
“The work that Citizens Advice LeicesterShire do in supporting local people in my constituency is invaluable.
“However, concerns over the Government’s implementation of Universal Credit in March next year and the impact this will have on local people is extremely worrying.
“I wholeheartedly support Citizens Advice LeicesterShire in calling on the Government to fix the issues with Universal Credit before more people find themselves struggling to survive and are forced into debt.”
