Extent of poverty in Corby, Wellingborough and Kettering constituencies revealed in TUC ‘mega’ poll

Findings of a new poll have revealed that households across North Northants are deeply worried about rising bills, with more than half of people cutting back on heating, hot water or electricity.

A recent Trades Union Congress (TUC) ‘mega’ poll show the extent of cutbacks made by people living in the Corby, Wellingborough and Kettering parliamentary constituencies.

More than half of people have cut back on heating, hot water or electricity, while around 40 per cent of people in the area are having to cut back on food spending.

Shockingly figures show that 1 in 8 (12 per cent) people across the constituencies are having to skip meals or go without food to make ends meet.

This month, Kettering Food Bank’s stocks were running at an all time low.

The union poll comes on the back of the Corby Trades Union Council reforming.

TUC Midlands regional secretary Lee Barron said: “No one should have to worry about putting food on the table or heating their homes.

“But too many families across Corby are struggling to cover even the basics. We are living in a real cost of living emergency.

“Food and energy bills are soaring, but real wages are plummeting. We have to get pay rising, deliver good jobs and ensure that work is a way out of poverty or we risk entrenching hardship and poverty for thousands of families.

“We need strong unions to bargain for better pay, to end the scourge of insecure and temporary work. Yet what is the Government’s proposal? To make it harder for working people to win better pay and conditions.

“So let this be a wake up call. We must reject the Government’s union busting legislation and come together to secure the jobs, pay and respect that the people of Corby demand.”

The TUC says the findings were a ‘stark reminder’ of the cost living pressures facing households.

Polling organisation Opinium conducted the poll of 10,495 GB adults from September 26 to 30, designed to be representative of the national population according to demographics and past voting behaviour.

The data from the poll was analysed using a multilevel regression and post-stratification (MRP) approach to derive constituency-level estimates for the results of key questions including voting intention.