Universal credit U-turn: Helpline charges axed

CHARGES for the Universal Credit helpline are being dropped as ministers seek to shore up support for the flagship welfare reform.

Theresa May said she had listened to criticism of the helpline charges, which can be as high as 55p a minute, but rejected calls from Labour to pause the wider introduction of the benefit.

The Prime Minister said the ‘simpler system’ combining six benefits into a single payment was working because ‘more people are getting into work’.

‘Pausing Universal Credit won’t help those people who will be helped by going to Universal Credit getting into the workplace and bringing home more pay for their families,’ she told MPs.

The Government last night ordered Tory MPs not to take part in a vote on a Labour motion calling for the rollout of the new system to be paused.

The motion was passed by 299 votes to zero but will have no impact as it was not a binding vote. Sarah Wollaston was the only Tory MP to vote with Labour.

Work and Pensions Secretary David Gauke announced yesterday that charges for calls to the Universal Credit helpline would be scrapped over the next month. All other Department for Work and Pensions helplines will be free of charge by the end of the year. Mr Gauke told the Commons work and pensions committee the 0345 number for the Universal Credit line was not premium rate and the DWP made no money from it. It was charged at local rate and included as a free call in many landline and mobile phone packages, he said.

But he added: ‘Given the recent attention and concern that this could place a burden on claimants, I have decided this will change to a freephone number over the next month.

‘Having reviewed this matter more widely, I will be extending freephone numbers to all DWP phone lines by the end of the year.’

Universal Credit is designed to make the welfare system less complicated and ensure no one would be better off claiming benefits than working.

But the Government yesterday faced renewed calls from Tory MPs to adapt the system, which is gradually being rolled out across the country, so new claimants do not have to wait six weeks to receive their first payment in full.

The benefit is paid monthly in arrears to mirror how most workers are paid, but there is an extra week to calculate entitlements and at the start a ‘waiting week’ to save taxpayers money. Advance payments are available so claimants are not left without cash.

But Iain Duncan Smith, who as work and pensions secretary pio- neered the reforms, yesterday called on ministers to consider cutting the waiting time.

The former Tory leader told the Commons: ‘Universal Credit is the single biggest change to the welfare system and those who really care about this... know it has within it the capability to dramatically change lives for the better.

‘We should... not stall the rollout because it is delivering to thousands of people huge success.’

But he added: ‘[Mr Gauke] made a very good point when he said we look constantly at what needs changing and the issue around waiting days is absolutely critical.

‘I know he will look at this and see how the evidence for that stacks up as to whether changing that or not would actually make a major difference.’ Fellow Tory MP Stephen McPartland told the BBC’s Daily Politics: ‘I’d like to see a reduction in the waiting time from six weeks down to four weeks. I don’t think it is acceptable at six weeks – it cannot be justified.’

Mr Gauke earlier told the work and pensions committee it would be possible to reduce the six-week delay in first payments to five weeks by removing a seven- day ‘waiting period’ before assessment of claimants begins, but this would have ‘a cost implication’.

He argued that the Government had adopted a ‘ responsible approach’, and criticised Labour for trying to ‘wreck’ the reform

A total of 610,000 people were on Universal Credit in September, up 4 per cent on the previous month.

‘Change lives for the better’