One in four people face at least one more year of money worries sparked by pandemic, charity says

Women are predicting it will take longer to recover financially from the pandemic than men, a survey reveals
Turn2us predict it will take an average of 17 months to get back to a pre-Covid position financially
jma659/Pixabay

Almost a quarter of people face at least another year of money worries from the Covid pandemic, a national poverty charity has warned.

Figures from Turn2us showed 23 per cent of people think it will take a year or more to get back to the financial position they were in before coronavirus hit.

It is women who expect to be worst affected, with one in four saying it will take more than year to recover, compared to one in five men who say the same, according to the survey by Censuswide.

It will take the British public an average of 17 months to get its personal money situation back to pre-Covid levels, the charity estimated.

Thomas Lawson, chief executive at Turn2us, said: “We have been inundated with demand for support over the last twelve months, giving millions of pounds in grants, and we see no sign of this slowing down any time soon.

“It will take us significant time to recover from the debt, loss of income and damage to mental health that so many of us have experienced in this pandemic, which is why it is so important that the government makes permanent the £20 uplift to Universal Credit and extends it to legacy benefits.”

As well as women, younger people aged between 18 and 34 predict it will take them much longer to recover from lost income and debts incurred over the past 12 months.

By contrast, 60 per cent of over-55s said the pandemic has had no effect on their finances at all.

The survey of 2,009 people also revealed around one in five people (19 per cent) are struggling to pay bills, while a shocking 17 per cent say they struggle to even afford food.

Munira Wilson, the Liberal Democrats’ spokesperson for health, wellbeing and social care, told the Standard: “The toll that this pandemic has taken on the mental health of millions across the country is staggering.

“Worryingly, the scale of the problem is growing and hitting the most vulnerable the hardest.”

She added that the government should make the £20 universal credit uplift permanent, as well as going further “by increasing sick pay, offering more generous support for those self-isolating and increasing funding for mental health services more broadly”.

The stark figures have prompted grave concerns over the impact on the mental health of those struggling to get by.

Some 62 per cent of respondents said their mental health had been affected in some way, while more than a quarter of people have experienced anxiety as a result.

Helen Undy, chief executive at the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute, said: “Mental health problems and debt can be a marriage made in hell and these issues have become even more acute in the current crisis, with millions more people affected.

“It’s vital that the government strengthens the safety net for people - by making the Universal Credit uplift permanent and extending it to other benefits and by ensuring everyone can access adequate sick pay.”

A government spokesperson said it was “helping millions of families” through its extension of the temporary £20 universal credit uplift.

They added: “As the economy reopens, we will focus on supporting people back into work through our comprehensive Plan for Jobs, making sure they are able to find their feet again.”

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