Universal Credit: The elephant in the room
I had a thought about Universal Credit that I want to share.
When Universal Credit is fully implemented, the Conservative Government aims to make it impossible for any claimant to receive the benefit for 42 days after they make their claim.
If this is so, why bother with all the ridiculous messing around creating a new computer system?
With 42 days in which to action any claim, it should be entirely possible to handle every single claim by every single UK citizen – by hand.
A 42-day in-built delay to any claim simply means that Iain Duncan Smith has been wasting everybody’s time – and exorbitant amounts of all our money – for no reason at all.
Of course, the only reason to make this point is that a computerised benefit system should need no in-built time delay at all. In addition, it means the Conservative Government is intentionally – and up-front admittedly – offering a poor service.
So let’s recap:
There is no point having a computerised benefit system if the delay between claiming and receiving is intentionally increasing.
As clients of the Department for Work and Pensions – customers, if you like – UK citizens should expect the fastest and best service, not an unreasonably long delay.
Any administration that intentionally builds a seven-week delay into its service should be replaced.
Am I right?
Join the Vox Political Facebook page.
If you have appreciated this article, don’t forget to share it using the buttons at the bottom of this page. Politics is about everybody – so let’s try to get everybody involved!
Vox Political needs your help!
If you want to support this site
(but don’t want to give your money to advertisers)
you can make a one-off donation here:
Buy Vox Political books so we can continue
fighting for the facts.
Health Warning: Government! is now available
in either print or eBook format here:
The first collection, Strong Words and Hard Times,
is still available in either print or eBook format here:
surely something can be done to stop this ? isn’t there something in the human rights act to prevent this Mike ?
people cant be left without money for nearly 7 weeks,its totally inhuman.
Labour want to start raising this in Parliament NOW.
i can see a bigger row over this than tax credits.Corbyn should be ripping the Tories apart over this.
why dont this Fascist govt just herd all benefit claiments into ghettos and let them starve to death,like their role models the Nazis did.
action on this should be started now !!
Michael, you’re obviously unaware that the ‘chaos’ surrounding JSA/ESA has been going on for at least the past 2 years? Thousands of people have been left destitute because of the DWP failings. Thousands of people have died or committed suicide because of what’s been going on. Debbie Abrahams MP has been trying to hold IDS/DWP Gov to account for a while now.
I’d say more than seven years, in fact. Labour has realised it was mistaken to introduce ESA and the work capability assessment.
no John, am aware how long its been going on.what i meant was that
when universal credit is rolled out coutrywide ANY benefit claiments could be classified as ” new claims ” and therefore subject to the nearly 7 week waiting period,which i think Mike was getting at.
You’re right that a 7 week delay upfront is unacceptable. As most unemployed find work in 6 months, then the 7 week delay is equivalent to about 25% reduction in payments per claim. So perhaps it is simply about saving money and massaging figures, rather like sanctions, and like the myriad rules on gross household income used to taper benefits sharply down, including partner’s pension.
Granted the IT isn’t fit for purpose by the look of it, requiring manual calculations potentially.
But the DWP have grown very accustomed to delaying benefit payments by design of rubbish systems, such as the delays of more than 13 months for ESA & PIP applications and mandatory reconsiderations to be processed, especially when contribution based benefit runs out after 12 months.
I wonder how well received this would be if it was a headline on National newspapers, agree with MB Corbyn & Co should be shouting from the roof tops about this appalling piece of so called legislation.
There will be upfront advance payments you can get during the 42 day period (loans rather than cash, but better than nothing).
https://www.tuc.org.uk/sites/default/files/BenefitsDelayed2014.pdf
I think this should be Corybn’s next question to Dave.
http://www.labour.org.uk/page/s/question-for-david-cameron – I’ve submitted a question about the six week delay.
Does it mean that if you become unemployed, like the steel workers for example, you have to wait seven weeks before you receive any support from the state?
I have been searching for hours with no success. Where is the 42 days officially mentioned?
It just shows you how out of touch with ordinary working people the Tory party has become if they think this is acceptable , I have said for a long time now , they are making a big mistake if they think computerisation is the answer to how they run the D.W.P , its having a dehumanising effect on how the staff interact with their clients as they call them, to such an effect that management now deem it ok to send individuals with profound mental health issues to a highly dangerous environment in the form of a paint recycling company that’s currently under investigation by health and safety inspectors and will shortly be the subject of legal action by me and others, I am afraid people need to understand, unless they speak up for themselves when they see things going wrong ,nobody else is going to , as most senior staff in Job Centre Plus are only interested in their pensions and will not do anything to Rock the boat even if that means breaking the law in the process. David Penson Bracknell
We are owed an enormous amount of money by government ministers past and present, also their crooked contractor chums.