Lanark MP gives Credit pause faint praise

The House of Commons was due to vote on proposals to move a further three million claimants onto the Universal Credit by summer 2019, but this will now be postponed, with the Work and Pensions Secretary Amber Rudd seeking approval to move just 10,000 onto the new system.

United Nations Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty,Philip Alston, recently opened a scathing attack on Universal Credit warning that the system was “mean spirited and often callous”.

Ms Crawley has consistently called on the UK Government to halt the roll-out.

She said: “Any pause to the botched roll-out of Universal Credit is welcome, but it shouldn’t have taken this long for the Tories to listen to the huge number of anti-poverty charities who have condemned the system.

“The roll-out of Universal Credit to areas across Scotland has already seen more people pushed into poverty, debt and destitution - forcing families to rely on foodbanks and emergency aid just to get by.

“Now the Tories must now take this opportunity to overhaul the system.”