He called the experience “bittersweet”
Manchester United footballer Marcus Rashford has said that receiving an honorary degree for tackling child poverty a day after the UK’s Universal Credit cut was a “bittersweet” moment.
The 23-year-old sportsman and child poverty campaigner was at Old Trafford on Thursday (October 7) to collect an honorary doctorate from the University of Manchester, making him the youngest recipient of such an accolade.
However the timing of the event - which was originally scheduled for last July before the pandemic intervened - could have been better. Just a day earlier, the government removed its £20 uplift to Universal Credit, a move that will impact millions of families across the country.
“I’m here to receive my honorary doctorate for my work around child poverty,” said Rashford, speaking to an Old Trafford crowd that included friends, family and former United manager Sir Alex Ferguson.
“Yesterday, millions of families across the UK lost a lifeline and a means of staying afloat – a move that could see child poverty rise to one in three children. For that reason, today is bittersweet.
He continued, adding: “It’s time that representatives got out into communities like mine.
“It’s time they saw first-hand the true measure of struggle. Covid-19 can no longer be used as an excuse.”
The government’s £20 Universal Credit uplift was introduced to help low-income families combat financial issues caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. However it ended on Wednesday October 6.
Rashford was at the forefront of a 2021 campaign to get the Tory government to provide free school meals to vulnerable children across the country during summer holidays. It was successful too, forcing prime minister Boris Johnson into a policy U-turn.
In addition to being the youngest person to appear at the top of the
Sunday Times Giving List thanks to the £20million in donations he helped raise from supermarkets whilst battling the school meals issue, Rashford continues to use his spotlight as a tool for good.
“Our university also has social responsibility at its core, and we are extremely proud to share these values with Marcus,” said University of Manchester’s vice-chancellor Professor Dame Nancy Rothwell.
“It really is an honour to finally present him with this well-deserved award on behalf of our institution.”
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