‘Vulnerable’ Newtownabbey residents missing out on Spend Local cards

Macedon UUP Councillor Robert Foster says he has been working with approximately 20 residents who have yet to receive their pre-loaded card, even though they have been successful in the application process.

Cllr Foster said: “I have a great deal of constituents still waiting on their cards and they are now unlikely to get them.

“I have had at least 20 people contacting me who are not in receipt of the card although they have been verified. They are people who are in need and were relying on the card to help with not only Christmas, but general expenses of gas and electric which have risen exponentially.

“Some of the people who have not received their card are in the most vulnerable section of the community.”

In response, a Departmental spokesperson told the Newtownabbey Times: “At the end of last week, the Department identified all verified applicants who should have received their card but had not yet activated it. A specific e-mail was sent to those applicants advising them to contact the Department if they had not received a card. Over 3,000 people responded to the e-mail and new cards have now been re-issued to them.

“The spend deadline was also extended on two occasions to give people more time to spend their £100. In addition, a comprehensive communications campaign was implemented to support the delivery of the High Street Scheme.”

The spokesperson added: “There were delays due applicants submitting evidence late and applicants making errors in the application process. While the Department has made every effort to accommodate these applicants by processing as many as possible, there is no time to process any further applications.

“The last day for using the Spend Local Card is Sunday, December 19. The cut-off date for issuing new cards was Friday, December 10 as we cannot guarantee that cards issued after that date would be delivered before the scheme ended.

“The Department appreciates that there may be some verified applicants who will not receive their Spend Local Card before the scheme closes or who have experienced problems using their card. After the scheme closes we will take stock of the various issues people have faced.”

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