DWP

DWP heading for 'meltdown' on delivery of projects say MPs

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is heading for 'meltdown' as it fails to deliver its biggest reform projects.

The shock finding is included in a report to be published next week by the public accounts committee of MPs, which covers the government's relationship with its private sector contractors.

More than half of public spending now goes through private companies, but they are not subject to freedom of information (FoI) laws meaning failures are never properly explained.

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Unemployment

unemployed

DWP

government

DWP universal credit watch - two more areas down, on track for 2030 target

The Department for Work and Pensions has announced its latest universal credit rollout.

Two new areas will implement the scheme from today - the unemployment hotspots of Bath and Harrogate.

It is only up and running in Greater Manchester, Cheshire, Hammersmith, Inverness and Rugby as the IT system has consistently failed to deliver, with Iain Duncan Smith criticised for his incompetent management of it.

Minister for Welfare Reform Lord Freud encouraged this foot-dragging rollout, saying:

"We are introducing Universal Credit in a slow, safe and controlled way."

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Whistleblower tells of sanctions targets as IDS sticks head in sand

Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith was faced with more accusations of sanction targets when he was questioned by MPs yesterday.

Appearing before the work and pensions select committee, Smith denied that sanction targets existed, despite being presented with evidence to the contrary.

This evidence included the testimony of a whistleblower who spoke to the committee on the same day, a former jobcentre worker from Manchester.

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IDS admits more Universal Credit delays while hiding behind Autumn Statement

Under-fire Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith has admitted that he will miss his most recent timetable for the introduction of Universal Credit - the latest in a long line of delays.

He chose to release this information on the day the Chancellor gives his Autumn Statement, when most political reporters are busy, hiding his latest disappointment behind George Osborne.

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DWP trumpets 98% satisfaction - but not with unemployment services

The Department for Work and Pensions is at it again.

The beleaguered government department has today publicised a rare piece of good news: a 98% satisfaction rating with one of its services.

So which flagship section has received the full press release treatment?

The online births, deaths and marriages service 'Tell Us Once'.

Hardly a key part of the DWP offer.

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Failing Universal Credit trickles out in London

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IDS religious beliefs not shown in policy - New Statesman

Ian Duncan Smith is a Christian whose actions and beliefs would be entirely alien to Jesus.

That is the claim of an article in The New Statesman, which shows that, despite using the language of 'sin' and 'redemption', Smith's policies are not compatible with a Christian way of life

Laurie Penny, the article's author, says: "Iain Duncan Smith is a second-rate thinker and a third-rate leader who is wrecking civil society with his misguided moral crusade."

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DWP website now officially a tabloid newspaper

The Department for Work and Pensions press site has crossed the line between information provision and tabloid-style reporting.

It has published a press release titled 'Drag artist jailed for benefit fraud' - days after most media outlets picked it up - on the case of Mark Hawthorne, a 49 year old from Staffordshire.

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Government misses target on Universal Credit

The government will not be able to meet its target for rolling out Universal Credit across the whole of the UK by October.

Universal Credit will roll six working-age benefits and tax credits into one monthly payment, and is meant to simplify the system.

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Work Programme - more are getting jobs, says DWP

There has been an improvement in the number of people getting long-term jobs through the Work Programme, according to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

The Work Programme is the government's flagship scheme supporting unemployed people into jobs, but it was criticised for poor performance last year after only 3.5% of its clients found long-term work.

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