THE despairing say: Nothing in life is simple. Certainly, the attempt by the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) to “simplify” the welfare system has caused much despair. Given the system’s complexities, the impulse to simplify it (replacing six existing benefits with one single payment) was widely welcomed, but the result of Universal Credit hitherto has been to worsen hardship for many, according to Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS).
Debt and rent arrears have risen, particularly among those waiting six weeks and more after making a claim. Such claimants have had to resort to food banks, an intolerable situation that must never become the new normal, even in this post-compassion age.
The DWP’s response to CAS yesterday reiterated the purpose of Universal Credit as getting people back into work, providing a double-whammy of irony at a time when Job Centres are being closed and 30,000 jobs have been lost in the DWP itself since 2010. Further irony is evident when claimants complain that the new, simplified system is too complicated.
If the gradual roll-out of Universal Credit is truly to “test and learn”, then the DWP must acknowledge failures. It must pause, take stock and fix the problems of delayed payments, low staffing and claimants having to resort to food banks. The aim of helping people back into work is laudable. It’s hardly helped by a system that isn’t working.
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