Commenting on the Joseph Rowntree Foundation UK Poverty 2019/20 report, Morgan Vine, Campaigns Manager at Independent Age, said:
“We welcome this powerful report by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, which shines a spotlight on the most vulnerable members of our society. Their findings clearly show that pensioner poverty remains a significant and ongoing issue in the UK, with two million pensioners currently living in poverty, and this number has increased steadily over the past five years.
“In a recent committee hearing in the Scottish Parliament, the Department for Work and Pensions confirmed that if every pensioner received all the benefits they were entitled to, there would be almost no older people living in poverty.
“Independent Age has been campaigning to increase the number of older people receiving Pension Credit. Pension Credit is a top-up payment, designed to improve the financial situation for the pensioners most in need. However, with two in five people entitled to this benefit not receiving it, and £3.5 billion going unclaimed, it’s critical that the Government does more to ensure everyone entitled to this money receives it. Independent Age is calling for the Government to take urgent action, including introducing up-take targets and producing an ambitious action plan to achieve this.”