It reflects Rashford’s increasing interest in the underlying drivers of food poverty and his appreciation of the role of adequate welfare benefits in protecting and feeding struggling families over the longer term.
A £20 top-up to universal credit and tax credits was introduced by the government as a temporary 12-month Covid measure last April. However, the chancellor, Rishi Sunak, has repeatedly refused to confirm whether the £6bn-a-year measure will be retained, despite cross-party support.
Campaigners have estimated that as many as 700,000 people, including 300,000 children, will be pushed into poverty if the universal credit top-up is abandoned. This would mean a £1,050 a year drop in income for claimants at a time of rising unemployment, falling living standards and growing destitution.