Work on debt raises issue up the political agenda

The Bevan Foundation’s recent work on debt receives extensive media and political attention. 

The Bevan Foundation’s recently published Debt in the pandemic report has had a significant reaction. The report outlined the unequal impact of the pandemic on debt, with households who were already at a heightened risk of being in problem debt being amongst those that were most significantly affected by the economic impact of the pandemic. 

The Foundation’s work on this issue gained media attention on the day of the report’s publication. The report was covered extensively by both the Western Mail and the National, with the issues raised by the report being the subject of a Western Mail editorial. 

The Bevan Foundation’s work has also informed political debate. On 4 October, Steffan Evans of the Foundation gave oral evidence to the Senedd’s Equality and Social Justice Committee as part of their inquiry into debt in Wales. Committee members praised the Foundation’s work in this area and mentioned that its report had been referenced by a number of other witnesses during the day’s session. Among members who made reference to the work was the new MS for Bridgend, Sarah Murphy. She said

“Thank you to the Bevan Foundation. A lot of people who we have met with today have quoted a lot your research and it’s really invaluable when looking at this topic.”

A video recording of our launch webinar can be accessed here if you’d like to learn more. You can watch the Foundation’s oral evidence to the Senedd here.