More and more people in the North are finding themselves in debt and unable to afford to pay household rates as a result of the recession and Tory austerity policies, Derry MLA Raymond McCartney has said..
The Sinn Fein representative said there had been a six-fold increase in the number of people forced to seek “special arrangements” for household rates payments due to financial difficulties.
Last year, court action was taken by Land and Property Services against almost 49,000 households who found themselves in arrears, said Mr McCartney.
“These increasing debts are an indication of the pressure families are under as a result of Tory cuts and austerity.”
Mr McCartney concluded: “Those who are calling for further vicious cuts to welfare would do well to remember that additional cuts would push many of these families into further poverty and hardship.”
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