Spend a day with me in the eviction court, Mr Sunak, and you’ll understand the ‘cost of living’

theguardian.com:

Expect something on Wednesday, some gesture in the spring statement to ease the gathering cost-of-living storm. But for whom? That’s the chancellor’s political and moral choice. But, before he chooses, I would like to bring him with me to sit in court to watch a day of housing evictions, warrants and repossessions.

Since the ban on evictions in England during Covid ended last summer, a wave of cases has surged through the justice system. Here Rishi Sunak would see stricken households losing their daily battle to stay afloat in a sea of bills and misfortunes. Many were knocked into debt by lost earnings in the pandemic, struggling against mounting bills. Many were “just about managing” with the £20 a week “uplift” to universal credit, before that was cruelly withdrawn.

In Watford county court, Hertfordshire, some of them find their last hope in Ruth Camp, a duty solicitor and housing specialist who works for Shelter, the housing charity. They spill out their story briefly to her before they go into the courtroom, where she argues their case before the judge, doing the best she can on the day. Some tenants, having already given up in despair, never even turn up. Often she does win adjournments and delays, finding technical errors in landlords’ paperwork or gaining a legal “breathing space” for those with mental health problems. Years of legal aid cuts have left just one law firm still taking housing cases in all of Hertfordshire, she says, while landlords often have barristers. The usher says no reporters ever come here.

I’d like the chancellor to meet Adele, who has fallen asleep in the foyer queueing for Camp’s help. She has already been evicted by bailiffs, but all her possessions, including, crucially, her ID, are locked