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Frank Field challenges misleading UC ad
From a letter to Neil Couling following a DWP Twitter ad which claims that UC ‘mirrors work’ and is paid monthly ‘like most jobs’.
‘The Department’s own briefing on Universal Credit stated that half of all workers earning under £10,000 per year are paid on weekly, two-weekly or four-weekly cycles. More recent data supplied to the Committee by the ONS shows that of those earning under £12,000 per year, 19% are paid weekly, 5% two-weekly, and 16% four-weekly. These workers are, of course, those more likely to be claiming Universal Credit.
You will also be aware of the Committee’s concerns about Universal Credit payment arrangements for couples. Universal Credit is paid, in its entirety, into the bank account of one nominated partner. This is in no way “like wages”, which are paid to the individual who has earned them, irrespective of their personal circumstances. Might you please therefore explain how misleading advertising such as this is compatible with, and supportive of, the Department’s commitment to transparent and open communication with claimants and stakeholders over Universal Credit?