Well done IDS
Yesterday new figures released by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) revealed that the so-called ‘Bedroom Tax’ now costing each household it affects £66 a year more than originally predicted,
The policy, referred to as ‘removing the spare room subsidy’ by Iain Duncan Smith, costs 442,000 homes £15.27 a week each, 9 per cent more than the original estimate of £14. That works out at £794 a year, compared to £728 in the 2013/14 official impact assessment.
Then there was the news today that the phone number claimants will need to call to access IDS’ new Universal Credit will be premium rate. That means it will cost callers at least 45 pence per minute to call from mobiles, and 12p a minute to call from landlines. These rates will be especially high for people who have ‘pay-as-you-go’ phones – top-ups typically used by people who cannot afford contracts.
A call to the DWP typically lasts about 40 minutes, which could work out at around £18 – about a third of the youth rate of Jobseekers’ Allowance. This is supposed to last for a whole week.
Then there’s the story today that a 16-year-old boy who has no arms or legs faces losing his Personal Independence Payment unless he can ‘prove’ that he is disabled.
After filling in a form to request the renewal of benefits after their son turned 16, in which they detailed his condition, Edward Bright’s parents were shocked to receive a reply telling them to attend a face-to-face meeting. The family were told that if Edward did not attend the meeting in a different town, his benefits could be stopped.
All in a week’s work for the Compassionate Conservatives…
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10 Responses to “A busy week at the Department for Work and Pensions”
GWB
Criminal does not begin to cover it.
Ian
for existing claimants and replaced the premium rate 0845 numbers that were previously in use before 17 March 2014.
Calls to 0800 numbers are free from landlines and mobiles. Prior to 1 July 2015, mobile operators charged for calls to 0800 numbers and DWP had to pay extortionate fees to the mobile operators to make calls to the DWP 0800 numbers free from mobile phones. These numbers are used by people who are starting a new benefits claim. In the case of Universal Credit, there is no 0800 claims line because Universal Credit cannot be claimed by telephone.
All claims for Universal Credit must be made online. It is this policy that must be reversed.
‘British government killing pensioners’ | Dear Kitty. Some blog
[…] A busy week at the Department for Work and Pensions […]
Ian
The first line of my previous comment is missing. The comment in full..
Calls to 03 numbers are inclusive from landlines and mobiles, else charged at geographic rates. These numbers are used for helplines for existing claimants and replaced the premium rate 0845 numbers that were previously in use before 17 March 2014. The cost of calling 01, 02 and 03 numbers is set entirely by the callers landline or mobile provider and revenue sharing is not permitted.
Calls to 0800 numbers are free from landlines and mobiles. Prior to 1 July 2015, mobile operators charged for calls to 0800 numbers and DWP had to pay extortionate fees to the mobile operators to make calls to the DWP 0800 numbers free from mobile phones. These numbers are used by people who are starting a new benefits claim. In the case of Universal Credit, there is no 0800 claims line because Universal Credit cannot be claimed by telephone.
All claims for Universal Credit must be made online. It is this policy that must be reversed.
So long, IDS. And good riddance. | Left Foot Forward
[…] A busy week at the Department for Work and Pensions […]