Universal Credit has caused rent arrears and hardship for people who need support
Alison Johnstone MSP, Social Security spokesperson for the Scottish Greens, today (22 March) backed the call from Scottish Ministers for the UK Government to stop the roll out of Universal Credit in Scotland.
Alison Johnstone MSP said:
“Universal Credit has caused rent arrears and hardship for people who need support, with some distressing cases where people have been left with pennies to live on. There’s a six week wait time, during which you can apply for a crisis loan, but you then need to repay that from a very low income.
"Scottish Ministers have sensibly said that they will use devolved powers to make payments more frequent and adaptable. In the meantime, the DWP should halt the roll-out to other areas of Scotland. The DWP has described Universal Credit a test and learn environment but we cannot continue to put such strain on vulnerable people and council staff. The system’s problems need resolved before it goes any wider.”