Government’s COVID-19 exit strategy will pose tough questions for the operation of universal credit, says Institute for Government

Key challenges will include deciding when, where, and at what scale work coaches engage with claimants, and how claimant conditionality will be re-introduced post-lockdown

The government's COVID-19 exit strategy will pose tough questions for the operation of universal credit, the Institute for Government (IfG) has said.

In an assessment of the DWP’s performance in response to the early stages of the coronavirus crisis, the IfG welcomes the fact that the universal credit system has coped with more than 1.8 million new claims and that, according to the DWP, 93 per cent of claims processed in the first week of lockdown will be paid on time and in full.

However, the IfG cautions that these figures do not show how many claims were successful or how many applicants received nil or very small awards. In addition, it points out that the payment processing data only relates to the first week of the lockdown, in early March 2020 when claim numbers were far below their peak when they reached in excess of 140,000 in just one day in late March.

In addition, looking ahead to what challenges the DWP faces when the UK exits lockdown, the IfG highlights that -

‘... there are many difficult decisions facing the government as it plots the UK’s ‘exit strategy’ out of lockdown, with some form of social distancing measures likely to be with us for a long time.’

Of particular concern, the IfG says, is how conditionality in universal credit, that has been dropped for the time being, will be re-introduced -

‘Just how, and when, and where, and at what scale can universal credit work coaches once again engage with claimants to help and cajole them back into work?

How far will it be safe to open jobcentres? What expectations of job search and other activities can reasonably be expected of claimants - indeed what types of jobs will they be expected to look for, given the hammer blow to certain parts of the economy, notably hospitality and retail, that the coronavirus is delivering? How far can the welfare-to-work element of DWP’s role be successfully done online?'

As a result, the IFG says that while the DWP has made what looks like a fine start in its response to the coronavirus outbreak, its biggest challenge may yet be to come.

For more information, see Credit where it is due: Universal Credit during the coronavirus lockdown from the Institute for Government website.