MP offers her phone to call benefits hotline

A Scottish MP has made the phone in her office available to job-seeking constituents who need to call the government’s controversial Universal Credit hotline.

Danielle Rowley, the Labour MP for Midlothian, said she had been contacted by people who were worried about calling the number due to its high rates.

Universal Credit claimants are charged 55p per minute to phone the helpline if they are using a mobile, while from landlines it is 9p per minute.

Jeremy Corbyn raised the issue in Prime Minister’s Questions earlier this week, saying it was “absurd” to charge people looking for work such high fees.

“If Theresa May and her government won’t fix the issues my constituents are facing with Universal Credit, the very least they could do is to make the helpline free of charge,” Ms Rowley said.

“I have been contacted by many constituents who are struggling with the new benefit, and as well as taking up their cases, I can offer this practical help too. This is politics on the frontline and I won’t turn anyone away who is in need of help and support.”