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14 Jan 19
The government has side-stepped “the cruellest benefit cut in history” with the latest universal credit changes, according to the chair of the work and pensions committee.
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6 Dec 18
The International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board has reached a “major milestone”, approving the standard on accounting for social benefits after 16 years of discussion.
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28 Nov 18
It’s a political choice that a fifth of our population live in poverty, says Mary-Ann Stephenson, director of the Women’s Budget Group. It is time for the government to acknowledge its mistakes and...
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13 Nov 18
Council tenants claiming universal credit owe on average more than two-and-a-half times the rent arrears of claimants on the previous housing benefit system.
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29 Oct 18
Philip Hammond has announced an extra funding boost for the government’s flagship universal credit welfare scheme and said the system is “here to stay”, despite criticism.
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19 Oct 18
Benefits claimants will receive a £1.67bn windfall, owing to “historic underpayments” by the government.
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2 Oct 18
The Scottish Government has called for an end to the benefits freeze after a new report highlighted the fall in social security spending north of the border.
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1 Oct 18
Work and pensions secretary Esther McVey announced to the Conservative Party conference today £39m is to be given to a support service to help people access universal credit.
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25 Sep 18
Labour wants to create a benefits system based on “compassion and respect rather than distrust and stigma”, the shadow work and pensions secretary Margaret Greenwood has told her party conference.
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13 Sep 18
Difficulty in obtaining data from the Department for Work and Pensions has created “a significant challenge” for the official body responsible for Scotland’s economic forecasts.
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11 Sep 18
John Thornton asks if the UK could learn from the US Digital Service when it comes to implementing IT systems for immigration and universal credit.
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6 Sep 18
Brexit will leave British families worse off regardless of what type of deal the UK gets, the Joseph Rowntree Foundation has warned.
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3 Sep 18
Wrongful benefit payments increased to £3.8bn last year, official government figures have shown.
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9 Aug 18
Ministers have abandoned plans to change the way rent for people in supported housing is paid and confirmed it will remain within the welfare system.
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6 Aug 18
Families rely more on food banks over the summer holidays because children do not have access to free school meals, according to an anti-poverty charity.
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18 Jul 18
Thousands of sick or disabled people have missed out on employment support allowance due to the government’s “inept” handling of payments, MPs have claimed.
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4 Jul 18
Work and pensions secretary Esther McVey has come under pressure to withdraw what have been described as misleading remarks about the success of the universal credit programme.
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29 Jun 18
The high turnover of civil servants and their limited freedom to challenge ministers is responsible for a lot of government policy failure, the chair of the Public Accounts Committee has told...
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15 Jun 18
Universal credit is pushing additional costs onto councils, while the overall scheme may never provide value for money, according to the National Audit Office.
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8 Jun 18
A charity is demanding a major shake up in the social security system because of “shameful” shortcomings that left one and a half million people in destitution in 2017.
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25 May 18
With a public distrust of taxation and how it is used, ring-fencing tax for specific purposes could simplify it and solve the problem of some people being reluctant to pay it, says Common Vision’s...
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15 May 18
Welfare reform has had a substantial impact on the Scottish housing sector, with the introduction of universal credit pushing up rent arrears for social tenants, according to a report from the...
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8 May 18
Young people should receive a £10,000 windfall at the age of 25 to bridge the generational wealth gap, an expert commission has recommended.
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25 Apr 18
The number of Scots seeking help to pay for food and heating from a crisis fund has increased, with one in eight applications due to a delay in the payment of benefits, according to the Scottish...
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24 Apr 18
Public sector expert Sir Michael Lyons has called for some of the soaring value of land assets to be used to boost social and affordable housing.