A woman has called out a Universal Credit rule which she says "discriminates" against young parents. At the moment, parents under the age of 25 are paid £76.63 less than those over 25.
The young mum, called Olivia, is based in Glasgow and recently saw an increase to her payments after turning 25. However, she told the BBC that she "struggled" to get by as her lower Universal Credit payments did not stretch far enough.
As reported by The Mirror, she slammed the rule as "milk costs the same, nappies cost the same, gas and electricity cost the same". Olivia was forced to go to food banks while receiving the lower payment.
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The mum-of-one said: "There's this assumption that under 25s are staying with their parents when they've got a child, which is not true. It's just bizarre that there's this pay gap."
A single person claiming Universal Credit under the age of 25 currently receives £292.11 each assessment period. Meanwhile, someone over 25 receives £368.74 on the standard allowance.
Joint claimants both under 25 receive £458.51 while joint claimants, one or both 25 or over get paid £578.82. Olivia said the £75 increase now is "going to make a big difference".
It comes as the Scottish National Party MP Martyn Day asked the Minister for Employment, Guy Opperman if the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) had considered increasing the Universal Credit payment rates for claimants under the age of 25. In a written response to the query, Mr Opperman said that "no such assessment has been made".
The SNP MP also asked whether the DWP had looked into "the potential merits of aligning Universal Credit for people under 25 with the eligibility of 23 years for the National Living Wage". Mr Opperman again responded saying "no assessment has been made".
The DWP Minister previously said: "It is acknowledged that some claimants under 25 do live independently, which is why Universal Credit includes separate elements to provide support to claimants for these additional costs. These additional amounts are provided in a similar way to all claimants."
Charity One Parent Families Scotland (OPFS) is calling on the UK Government to change the current policy and pay the same rate of benefits to those under 25 as those who are over. Satwat Rehman, the chief executive of OPFS said: "All the things that we hear people are suffering from in the cost of living crisis is exacerbated for young parents because they're given less to begin with.
"Everything costs the same. Things aren't cheaper simply because you're under 25, and what you need for your child doesn't change depending on your age as a parent."
Satwat explained how assumptions are made against young parents. Some believe that young people become parents in order to get benefits.
She added: "People think you've done this in order to be able to get benefits. What they don't understand, is actually it's below the levels anybody else would get."
A DWP spokesperson told the Mirror: "Universal Credit entitlement depends on the individual circumstances of the claimant.
"Parents regardless of their age receive an additional payment for children. Some young parents who are in work will have higher entitlements than on legacy benefits."
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