Sam Rowlands, Member of the Welsh Parliament for North Wales, has praised the Royal British Legion for its continued support to members of the Armed Forces.
Mr Rowlands, Shadow Minister for Local Government and a keen supporter of the Armed Forces was commenting after the Royal British Legion published analysis of applicants to their Cost of Living Grants with 6% living in Wales.
He said:
The numbers show that 9,000 applications have been made for RBL Cost of Living Grants within the last six months, which is really significant.
We are all affected by rising costs these days but I am concerned for members of our Armed Forces who are there to serve King and country and deserve our full support.
The RBL is doing a great job helping our service men and women and acknowledge the UK Government’s significant intervention to support households but would like to see additional finance being made available.
The Royal British Legion published analysis of applicants to their Cost of Living Grants showed that one in five applications were made by currently serving households and demonstrated significant unmet needs for some groups within the Armed Forces community arising from increasing living costs.
Within six months, 9,000 applications were made to RBL’s Grants Portal by members of the Armed Forces community and over one in five, 22% applications were made by currently serving households. With Two thirds, 66% of claimants also receiving welfare benefits.
The data shows that a quarter of serving applicants were in receipt of Universal Credit, whilst three quarters reported priority debt such as rent, mortgage, or utility bill arrears. One in five owed over £10,000.
The characteristics of RBL Cost of Living Grant applicants suggest there are groups within the Armed Forces community with particular vulnerability to increasing living costs, including working age and black ex-Service households. Disabled veterans and tenants are also overrepresented compared to the veteran population.
RBL acknowledges significant Government interventions to support households with rising costs, including targeted Cost of Living Payments for low income households and disabled people, and the uprating of benefits in line with inflation.
It also urges the Government to consider what additional financial support can be targeted to ensure households at risk can withstand the pressures of increased costs.
Sam Rowlands AS yn poeni am gynnydd mewn costau byw i bersonél milwrol
Mae Sam Rowlands, Aelod o’r Senedd dros y Gogledd, wedi canmol y Lleng Brydeinig Frenhinol am ei chefnogaeth barhaus i aelodau'r Lluoedd Arfog.
Roedd Mr Rowlands, Gweinidog Llywodraeth Leol yr Wrthblaid a chefnogwr brwd y Lluoedd Arfog yn gwneud sylwadau ar ôl i'r Lleng Brydeinig Frenhinol gyhoeddi dadansoddiad o ymgeiswyr am eu Grantiau Costau Byw gyda 6% yn byw yng Nghymru.
Meddai:
Mae'r niferoedd yn dangos bod 9,000 o geisiadau wedi'u gwneud am Grantiau Costau Byw’r Lleng Brydeinig Frenhinol o fewn y chwe mis diwethaf, sy'n arwyddocaol iawn.
Mae costau cynyddol yn effeithio arnom ni i gyd y dyddiau hyn ond dwi'n poeni am aelodau o'n Lluoedd Arfog sydd yno i wasanaethu eu gwlad ac sy’n haeddu ein cefnogaeth lawn.
Mae'r Lleng Brydeinig Frenhinol yn gwneud gwaith gwych yn helpu dynion a menywod ein lluoedd arfog ac yn cydnabod ymyrraeth sylweddol Llywodraeth y DU i gynorthwyo aelwydydd ond hoffai weld arian ychwanegol yn cael ei ddarparu.
Dangosodd dadansoddiad a gyhoeddwyd gan y Lleng Brydeinig Frenhinol o ymgeiswyr am eu Grantiau Costau Byw fod un o bob pum cais wedi'i wneud gan aelwydydd sy'n gwasanaethu ar hyn o bryd ac yn dangos anghenion sylweddol heb eu diwallu ymhlith rhai grwpiau yng nghymuned y Lluoedd Arfog yn sgil costau byw cynyddol.
O fewn chwe mis, gwnaed 9,000 o geisiadau i Borth Grantiau'r Lleng Brydeinig Frenhinol gan aelodau o gymuned y Lluoedd Arfog a gwnaed dros un o bob pump, 22% o geisiadau gan aelwydydd sy'n gwasanaethu ar hyn o bryd. Mae dwy ran o dair, sef 66% o hawlwyr yn derbyn budd-daliadau lles hefyd.
Mae'r data'n dangos bod chwarter yr ymgeiswyr sy'n gwasanaethu yn derbyn Credyd Cynhwysol, tra bod tri chwarter wedi crybwyll dyled sy’n flaenoriaeth fel rhent, morgais, neu ôl-ddyledion biliau cyfleustodau. Roedd gan un o bob pump ddyled o dros £10,000.
Mae nodweddion ymgeiswyr Grant Cost Byw’r Lleng Brydeinig Frenhinol yn awgrymu bod grwpiau o fewn cymuned y Lluoedd Arfog sy’n agored iawn i niwed yn sgil cynnydd mewn costau byw, gan gynnwys aelwydydd oedran gweithio a chyn-filwyr du. Mae mwy o gyn-filwyr a thenantiaid anabl hefyd o gymharu â’r boblogaeth gyn-filwyr.
Mae’r Lleng Brydeinig Frenhinol yn cydnabod ymyriadau sylweddol gan y Llywodraeth i gynorthwyo aelwydydd gyda chostau cynyddol, gan gynnwys Taliadau Costau Byw wedi'u targedu ar gyfer aelwydydd incwm isel a phobl anabl, a chynyddu budd-daliadau yn unol â chwyddiant.
Mae’n annog y Llywodraeth hefyd i ystyried pa gymorth ariannol ychwanegol y gellir ei dargedu i sicrhau y gall aelwydydd sy’n wynebu risg wrthsefyll pwysau costau uwch.
