Universal Credit is a bad policy

Universal Credit a policy which is coming under increasing scrutiny as millions more citizens begin to experience its failures. Unfortunately the policy was never properly scrutinised, instead it won widespread acceptance on the Right and Left - not because it is a good policy - but because it panders to prevalent prejudices about poverty and wordlessness.

In this brief interview with RT TV Dr Simon Duffy, Director of the Centre for Welfare Reform outlines why he believes Universal Credit is not a good policy - just badly implemented. Universal Credit is a bad policy - and one which will continue to cause problems for citizens and for the government:

One policy-thinker who has persistently drawn attention to the conceptual and design failures of Universal Credit is Bernadette Meaden from the excellent think tank - Ekklesia.

Here Bernadette explains why the 2018 Budget didn't even scratch the surface of Universal Credit's problems:

http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/node/27082

Here Bernadette explains why the problems of Universal Credit go back to its origins:

http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/node/26997

Simon Duffy summarises the Centre's position here:

"Universal Credit carries over all the failed assumptions of the old income security system into a new system, but it now extends the misery and failure of the old system to many more millions more as it takes over the tax credit system. It assumes that families can bear the brunt of poverty and puts women at increased risk of domestic violence. It assumes that people don't want to work, contribute or develop and uses control, sanctions and fear to punish ordinary citizens. It claims to be improving incentives, but actually  leaves the poorest paying the highest taxes, both as percentage of their income and on every next pound earned. It claims to be simpler - but in fact it leaves people dependent on computer systems that many can't use and it disguises complexity with algorithms that most can't challenge. It is an inhuman system and it is destined to fail - the only question is - at what cost?"

Simon was also interviewed by Occupy.com on the topic of Universal Credit, you can read this interview on his personal blog.