Source · Select Committees · Work and Pensions Committee
Recommendation 51
51
Paragraph: 230
It is disappointing that suggestions to improve Universal Credit have apparently been thwarted by an...
Conclusion
It is disappointing that suggestions to improve Universal Credit have apparently been thwarted by an IT system which was supposed to be developed in an agile fashion, yet seems to be anything but. It is unfortunate that such a rigid, clunky IT structure was adopted for UC which makes improvements required by Ministers and needed by claimants harder to implement, adding greater costs to benefit administration.
Paragraph Reference:
230
Government Response
Not Addressed
HM Government
Not Addressed
The Committee has repeatedly pointed out how well Universal Credit (UC) has performed across the pandemic. We have adapted our processes and practices in an agile way, enabling us to support an unprecedented increase in claimants whilst responding to the specific challenge of working in a world of social distancing. Payment timeliness has remained high at above 90% for the duration of the pandemic despite there now being 5.7m individual claims.