Category Archives: Universal credit

Universal Credit has been massively delayed and is now unlikely to be fully up and running until late in the next parliament

 

In his July 2010 Green Paper ‘21st Century Welfare’, Iain Duncan Smith downplayed the scale of the major IT project which has now led to delays in the implementation of Universal Credit.

 

The Green Paper included claim that: “The IT changes that would be necessary to deliver a more integrated system would not constitute a major IT project, but two developments building on existing technologies.”[i]

 

On this basis, in his November 2010 White Paper ‘Universal Credit: welfare that works’, Iain Duncan Smith set out his timetable which stated that from October 2013 all new claims for out-of-work benefits would be for Universal Credit and no new JSA, ESA, Income Support and Housing Benefit claims would be accepted, while by April 2014 no new claims would be made for tax credits, with Universal Credit being fully in place by October 2017.[ii]

 

In November 2011, the Government claimed that by April 2014, over a million people would be claiming Universal Credit.[iii]

 

However, by June 2012, Iain Duncan Smith realised that this timetable was unachievable and limited introduction for new out of work benefit claims to only one Jobcentre per region.[iv]

 

Then in December 2012, this claim was watered down yet again. In a letter to local authority chief executives, the new programme director Hilary Reynolds (then in her job for four weeks – now replaced) wrote that even then the roll out for new out of work benefit claims in the selected Jobcentres would only apply to straightforward claims such as those who do not claim housing benefit.[v]

 

The current position set out in March 2013 in PQ answers, is that DWP ministers will no longer specify any dates by which existing benefits will cease to be paid.[vi][vii]

 

While ministers still claim that Universal Credit will fully be in place by the end of 2017, given the delays to its introduction, on the existing evidence this claim is no longer plausible.

 Universal Credit is a fine idea that builds on Labour’s tax credits revolution that made work pay more than benefits for millions of people.

 Today’s pathfinder is a pathetic joke, limited to a tiny number of people the scheme can handle. The truth is the scheme is late, over budget, the IT system appears to be falling apart and even DWP Ministers admit they haven’t got a clue what is going on.

The warning lights are on, now we need a rescue plan – fast.

 

Ends

 

Notes to editors


[i] Department for Work and Pensions, 21st Century Welfare, July 2010, p.34

http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/21st-century-welfare.pdf

 

[ii] “October 2013 to April 2014: All new claims for out-of-work support are treated as claims to Universal Credit. No new Jobseeker’s Allowance, Employment and Support Allowance, Income Support and Housing Benefit claims will be accepted. Customers transitioning from out-of-work benefits into work will move onto Universal Credit if they are eligible.”

“April 2014: No new claims are made to Tax Credits.”

“April 2014 to October 2017: During this time we would begin to work through existing cases.”

Department for Work and Pensions, Universal Credit: welfare that works, November 2010, p.37

http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/universal-credit-full-document.pdf

 

[iii] Department for Work and Pensions, press release, Iain Duncan Smith sets out next steps for moving claimants onto Universal Credit, 1 November 2011

http://www.dwp.gov.uk/newsroom/press-releases/2011/nov-2011/dwp123-11.shtml

 

[iv] “Working with HMRC and local authorities, DWP has agreed that Universal Credit will be introduced in one district per region in October 2013 and then be rolled out to the remaining districts.”

Department for Work and Pensions, e-zine, Touchbase, June 2012

http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/touchbase-ezine-june-2012.pdf

 

[v] “Initially [in the trials], UC will replace new claims from single jobseekers of working age in certain defined postcode areas. From October 2013 we plan to extend the service to include jobseekers with children, couples and owner-occupiers, gradually expanding the service to locations across Great Britain and making it available to the full range of eligible working age claimants.”

Letter from Hilary Reynolds, Universal Credit Programme Director, to Local Authority Chief Executives

http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/hilary-reynolds-letter.pdf

 

[vi] Hansard, 13 March 2013

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmhansrd/cm130313/text/130313w0003.htm#13031380000070

 

[vii] Hansard, 18 March 2013

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmhansrd/cm130318/text/130318w0005.htm#1303199000027

 

BYRNE DEMANDS WEST COAST MAINLINE STYLE ENQUIRY INTO DWP’S £130MILLION FIASCO

Labour’s Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, Liam Byrne, is today demanding a West Coast Mainline style enquiry into government incompetence which has placed at risk £130 million of public money at risk.

Liam Byrne MP, Labour’s Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary said:

 “Bungling DWP ministers have turned their back to work schemes into a West Coast mainline-style fiasco. Hundreds of thousands of sanctions have been put at risk by the sheer incompetence of Iain Duncan Smith and his department.

 “This monumental blunder has put over £100million of public money at risk. We now need an urgent enquiry, in line with the Laidlaw review, into how Ministers got this so badly wrong.”

 “The department for Work and Pensions is fast becoming the department where nothing works.”

 Background

 Following a Court of Appeal judgement all JSA sanctions issued over the last two years for people who would not participate in almost all of the Government’s work schemes might now be illegal because IDS botched the regulations introducing them.

 The Government has today been forced to bring forward emergency legislation to protect £130million of public money. Labour has secured vital safeguards from the Government to be inserted into the bill: 

  • Ministers must guarantee that appeal rights are protected for JSA claimants who have been wrongly sanctioned. This means that people who have good cause for not participating will still be able to claim their JSA back. Good cause is a wide ranging appeal right – and appeals can be made up to 13 months after sanctions
  • Ministers must launch an independent review of the sanctions regime, with an urgent report to parliament. This is because of real concerns about the way in which sanctions have been used in some cases.

 Detail:

 The Laidlaw Review into the West Coast mainline fiasco

 The West Coast Mainline fiasco has cost the taxpayer £40m already and could cost over £100m as a result of significant technical flaws in the procurement process for the West Cost franchise in October 2012. 

 The Laidlaw Review was set up by the Secretary of State for Transport and tasked with identifying lessons to be learned for the Department and what measures the Department should implement to ensure the sound running of future competitions.

 Attached, the terms of reference for the Laidlaw enquiry, as expressed to Sam Laidlaw in a letter from the Secretary of State for Transport

 DWP’s £130 million incompetence

 The DWP has been forced to bring forward emergency retrospective legislation to regain the general legal base for sanctions issued to around 220,000 individuals since 2011.

 All JSA sanctions issued over the last two years for people who would not participate in almost all of the Government’s work schemes might now be illegal because IDS botched the regulations introducing them.

 The Court of Appeal found that the Government had not provided enough detail in the regulations and not set out enough technical detail of the schemes in the letters sent out to jobseekers.

 Since the Government introduced almost all of their schemes in one set of regulations in March 2011, it now means that all of the sanctions issued under those schemes might be illegal and that they would need to be repaid. This puts £130million of public money at stake. As a result, the Government has been forced to bring forward emergency legislation.

 

Cameron’s Bedroom Tax has descended into total chaos

 

Liam Byrne MP, Labour’s Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, responding to changes announced to the Bedroom Tax, said:

 “David Cameron’s Bedroom Tax has descended into total chaos. Today’s announcement doesn’t bring forward one extra penny for victims of this wretched tax.

“Ministers have said nothing today to guarantee disabled children will be protected from his hated Bedroom Tax. The truth is there is only 6 weeks help available for everybody hit and David Cameron mustn’t use smoke and mirrors about how this hated tax will hurt disabled children. They have said nothing to almost half a million households that are home to a disabled person who are set to lose over £700 at exactly the same time as millionaires receive a massive tax cut.

“Today this Government will oppose Labour’s plans today for a Mansion Tax – but they’re pressing ahead with a Bedroom Tax which will hit families with literally nowhere else to go.

“Labour will not rest until Ministers think again, admit they have got this wrong and drop this hated tax for good.”

Jim Murphy MP, Labour’s Shadow Defence Secretary, said:

 “For months head-in-the-sand defence ministers have denied there was a problem, but now they’ve backtracked. Ministers’ incompetence has been shown up in this humiliating move.

 “Government embarrassment is matched only by the fact this climb-down does not go far enough to include reservists, whose families could also be hit.

 ”The Government’s defence plans now rely entirely on increasing reservist numbers, yet we are not protecting those who protect our nation.

 “Not for the first time, Ministers should listen to Labour and the service community.”

Ends

 

My line in the Sunday Times story on yet more chaos in the bedroom tax – now even some families with small dining rooms will be hit.

“The Bedroom Tax is now in total chaos. This week the Prime Minister showed he hadn’t got the first idea how the scheme works and now we learn in some parts of the country even dining rooms will be hit. The whole thing is a complete mess. Ministers must get a grip of this shambles fast, before it’s too late.”

 

Chaos engulfing the Bedroom Tax is deepening by the day

Liam Byrne MP, Labour’s Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, responding to yet more government confusion over the Bedroom Tax, said:

 “The chaos engulfing the Bedroom Tax is deepening by the day.

 “Last week we learnt that even the Prime Minister doesn’t know how hard the Bedroom Tax will hit disabled children and now Ministers claim they haven’t even published all the rules yet. The whole thing is a total shambles. Meanwhile hundreds of thousands of families are in the firing line to get clobbered by this wretched policy.

 “Ministers have got to get a grip of this mess fast.”

 Ends

 Editor’s Notes:

  • Wednesday: David Cameron claims families with disabled children are exempt from the Bedroom Tax

 Edward Miliband:

Let me just make it clear, because the Prime Minister obviously does not understand it. His own impact assessment—he might like to read it, by the way—states that 420,000 disabled people will be hit by the bedroom tax by an average of £700 a year. That is £306 million. The money in the hardship fund allocated to disabled people is just £25 million. It is basic arithmetic. Will he admit that the vast majority of disabled people will get no help from the hardship fund and will be hit by his bedroom tax?

 

The Prime Minister:

The right hon. Gentleman is completely wrong, because anyone with severely disabled children is exempt from the spare room subsidy—[Interruption.]

 

Mr Speaker:

Order. Members must not shout at the tops of their voices at the Prime Minister. The question has been asked, it was heard and the answer must be heard.

 

The Prime Minister:

The right hon. Gentleman completely ignores the fact that anyone with severely disabled children and anyone who needs round-the-clock care are exempt from the spare room subsidy.

Hansard, 6 March 2013, column 952

 

  • But on Friday: Grant Shapps admits families with severely disabled children are not exempt from the Bedroom Tax

 

Peter White:

On Wednesday the Prime Minister suggested that severely disabled children were exempt from this policy. Was he wrong?

 

Grant Shapps:

Well the, where people have special cases there is a housing discretionary fund, there are a whole series of discretionary, a couple of hundred million pounds.

 

Peter White:

But they’re not exempt are they?

 

Grant Shapps:

The local authority can look at a case, for example I had somebody come to my surgery a couple of weeks ago I was able to look at their case, refer it to the local authority, let them know what I thought about it and try to bring that case to a conclusion.

 

Peter White:

That’s discretion, they’re not exempt.

 

Grant Shapps:

It’s a discretionary payment.

 

Peter White:

They’re not exempt then?

 

Grant Shapps:

It’s, yeah that’s right, it’s discretionary.

 

Peter White:

That is right. So the Prime Minister was wrong about that was he?

 

Grant Shapps:

Look, every case is different, and I think it’s right to look at these things in, um, in isolation and make a decision, when someone says somebody is disabled we all know that disability ranges from severely disabled through to actually something which is actually not, you know, a huge disablement.

BBC R4 You and Yours, 8 March 2013

 

Universal credit has descended into universal chaos

Liam Byrne MP, Labour’s Shadow DWP Secretary, responding to reports that the Tory led Government’s Universal Credit plans have hit serious problems and that work on its IT delivery contract has been halted with hundreds of staff stepping down, said:

“Universal credit has descended into universal chaos and millions of families’ tax credits are at risk because ministers would not listen to clear and repeated warnings issued to them since November 2010.

“Iain Duncan Smith must now come before parliament and account for the incompetent mess his department has become. His Work Programme is worse than doing nothing, his bedroom tax hits soldiers but not prisoners, and now his flagship universal credit scheme is falling apart.

“We were promised universal credit would be the answer to all our prayers but now it has descended into one giant mess.”

ENDS.

Notes to Editors:

1.   ‘Universal credit system in meltdown’: http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2013/mar/05/universal-credits-meltdown-claims-labour?CMP=twt_gu

 

 

 

 

Liam Byrne to launch Labour’s campaign against Bedroom Tax

Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary Liam Byrne will be launching a major Labour campaign to highlight the unfairness of David Cameron’s Bedroom Tax, in Hull on Monday 4 March.

The launch will be the first in a series of events ahead of the introduction of the bedroom tax in April – at exactly the same time as the Government are giving 13,000 millionaires a tax cut worth £100,000 a year on average.

Ahead of the launch, Liam Byrne said,

“David Cameron’s April tax plan is simply not fair. From next month, 13,000 millionaires are getting a tax cut worth £100,000 a year on average while over 600,000 armed forces families, disabled people and foster carers have to find £728 a year to pay a new bedroom tax.

“Yet the plan is such a shambles that someone who’s been to prison on a short sentence won’t have to pay. How unfair is that? Millionaires and prisoners are looked after but vulnerable people, carers and armed forces families get hit.

“Labour plan relentless pressure on this out of touch government until Ministers see sense, admit this policy is totally unfair and think again.”

http://www.govtoday.co.uk/politics/27-growth-reform/15074-liam-byrne-to-launch-labour-s-campaign-against-bedroom-tax?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=liam-byrne-to-launch-labours-campaign-against-bedroom-tax

 

Liam Byrne response to IDS comments to the BBC on the bedroom tax

Liam Byrne MP, Labour’s Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, responding to Iain Duncan Smith’s comments to the BBC that DWP will look again at rules affecting disabled people hit by the Government’s bedroom tax, said:
 
“The Government’s welfare reforms have now descended into complete confusion – even the Secretary of State doesn’t seem to know what is going on.
 
“We have been warning for two years that the bedroom tax was heading for trouble  – now we are just five weeks away from total chaos. Ministers have got to get a grip, and fast.
 
“Two thirds of the households hit by the bedroom tax include someone who is disabled. Iain Duncan Smith has just admitted that this policy is completely unworkable and unfair.”
 
Ends.

 

Damning report exposes chaos and confusion at heart of Tory-led Government

Liam Byrne MP, Labour’s Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, responding to today’s PAC report criticising the Government’s handling of the Work Capability Assessment, said:

“This damning report exposes the chaos and confusion at the heart of the Tory-led Government.

“Help for disabled people needed careful change yet Iain Duncan Smith has behaved like a bull in a china shop and now we see the price for the taxpayers and thousands of vulnerable people.

“David Cameron and Iain Duncan Smith have botched the Work Programme, lost a grip on Universal Credit and it’s now clear they’ve lost control of yet another reform costing multi-millions and causing millions huge distress.

“We warned the Government against a ‘big bang’ roll-out of this sensitive test in 2011. We said ‘get it right first’ but instead, ministers went hell for leather forcing thousands to jump through hoops which their own advisors said were wrong and costs the country £110 million a year.

“The Government has got to listen to Labour’s call for fast and fundamental change of the test before any more money is wasted and any more people are hurt.”

Ends

 

 

Universal Credit hitting the strivers

You can always tell when this government is in trouble because they look for someone else to blame, someone else to attack.

 

So it is no surprise that after being forced to admit that his economic plans have been a disaster, George Osborne lashed out.

 

No growth, more debt, higher unemployment, and guess who is paying the bill? It’s certainly not the millionaires he just gave £100,000 tax cut to. It’s Britain’s strivers that are once again taking the hit.

 

Last month they admitted their Work Programme is worse than doing nothing, leaving millions locked out of work and pushing the benefit bill through the roof  – an eye-watering £13.6bn higher than expected.

 

To pay down the price of that failure they are raiding the budget of their own Universal Credit programme which was supposed to make sure you’re always better off in work. Instead the scheme will lock in George Osborne’s ‘striver’s tax’.

 

Universal Credit is now set to be a car crash for 2.8 million families who will be worse off than under the current system. That’s nearly 50% more than when plans were first published.

 

The very people this government has let down are being asked to pick up the tab for Ministers’ failure.  300,000 families on middle and modest incomes will lose £3,600 a year – that’s £300 a month.

 

We were promised a welfare revolution but Universal Credit is descending into universal chaos. Instead of fixing welfare reform, this government is now just flogging working families.