LABOUR has urged Warrington South Tory MP Andy Carter to do the ‘right thing’ for hard-pressed families on universal credit in the town.

The Conservative Government is planning to end a £20-per-week increase in the benefit from October.

The increase was introduced to help poor families during the coronavirus pandemic.

Faisal Rashid, chair of the Warrington South Constituency Labour Party, said: “It is time for Andy Carter to do the right thing for hard-pressed Warrington families.

“Cutting universal credit for poor families will have a devastating impact.

“There are currently 17,646 people on universal credit in Warrington and that figure is increasing.

“This cut will have huge impact on their lives.”

Mr Carter says the right thing to do is to help people in Warrington get back into jobs.

He added: “As well as meeting people looking for work I’ve spent the summer talking to employers desperately trying to fill vacancies, in fact we have record vacancy levels in Warrington and across the UK and at the same time wages are rising at the fastest rate for a long time.

“This extra support was announced by the Chancellor as a temporary measure in March 2020 to support those likely to be facing the most financial disruption as a result of the Covid.

“Now as we open up, restrictions end and our recovery gathers pace, it’s right that focus is switched into helping people into well paid work and improving their prospects with training and support.”