Charities seek to raise poverty line cap as help requests rise

Foodbank in Amsterdam. Photo: Pascal Maramis via Flickr.

The government should raise the poverty line as more families are unable to meet their basic needs, the charity said.

Natalie Boerebach, director of national charity Stichting Urgente Noden, told broadcaster NOS that more than 100 towns and cities where charities operate this year, despite government support measures such as energy caps. said they had applied for assistance.

“People are dealing with the aftermath of the coronavirus crisis. Their savings are gone and they can’t afford the unexpected. No. This causes long-term stress and human suffering,” she said. NOS.

Approximately 80% of those seeking help were single or single parent households. The upper poverty line for single-person households has been set at €1,460 per month this year, but in 2023 he will be raised to €1,533.

SCP researcher Stella Hoff told the station that it doesn’t mean that slightly more people would be easier to make ends meet. Consider whether the person is able to have a social life, such as going out or celebrating a birthday.

About 540,000 people in the Netherlands currently live below the poverty line. The government aims to bring this down to 430,000 by 2023. This is because increased benefits and higher minimum wages will work.

Consumption power will decline by 4% in 2022 and continue to decline at the same rate in 2023, while the government macroeconomic unit CPB Saidthe number of people living below the poverty line is expected to fall next year.