New petition calls for DWP £10 Christmas Bonus to increase for first time in 51 years
dailyrecord.co.ukA new online petition is calling on the UK Government to increase the annual £10 Christmas Bonus payment in line with inflation.
The tax-free £10 payment has been paid to millions of benefit claimants since it was introduced by Ted Heath’s Conservative Government in 1972.
The Christmas Bonus is paid to people of State Pension age and those in receipt of certain benefits. It has not been uprated or increased since it was introduced five decades ago and in today’s money, it would be worth around £162 - when calculated under the composite price index published by the UK Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Petition creator, Shona McMahon, highlights how Labour Prime Minister Gordon Brown increased the payment to £70 in 2008 to help people cope with the financial crash and asks: “Why can’t the Conservatives do the same again during the cost of living crisis?
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