Universal Credit which combines all six benefits including the housing and working tax credit benefits into one payment system has fresh hurdles to cross before a complete roll-out. Trussell Trust, a local charity, has predicted that the addition of more applicants for Universal Credit may possibly spike the use of food bank referrals. The National Audit Office (NAO) analysed the report provided by the Trussell Trust and suggested that there was a 30% increase in the foodbank in the six months following full-service launch in one area.
Other drawbacks include financial difficulties that the applicants faced in delayed payments during the transition period. This meant that many had to rely on borrowings from other sources to pay their bills. And while 11% of the applicants have been registered under the new system, not everyone found the process of online registration simple. 25% of these applicants sought help either from the Job-centre staff in person or on phone to claim their benefits.
Although Universal Credit is a simplified system, the practicality of its roll-out is doubted by many today including local assembly members Navin Shah who said, “The evidence is stacking up that the Government’s punitive welfare changes are pushing more and more Londoners into the cold grip of destitution. The implementation of Universal Credit clearly isn’t working and it risks doing more harm than good.”
These are only the surface level challenges that the new system would possess for the 135,000 Londoners seeking to benefit from Universal Credit by 2021. And this report by Trussell, Mr. Shah says, “is the latest in a growing abundance of proof that Universal Credit will force some families to choose between feeding their children and keeping a roof over their heads. That’s a cruel position to put people in.”
