90% of council tenants on Universal Credit in rent arrears

Today's Homes and Environment scrutiny committee received an update regarding the roll-out of Universal Credit in Wrecsam, with council staff commenting on the increasing pressure they face in trying to deal with tenants transferring to the new system, which went live in Wrecsam in October 2017.

A total of 4587 Wrecsam residents are now in receipt of the benefit, with almost 40% being in employment. Council officers explained that they are not given figures in terms of how many claimants are in receipt of the housing element of the benefit, meaning at present they could not estimate how many residents in private housing were also being affected by the roll-out.

Cllr Carrie Harper who sits on the committee said:

"The report explained that, although many of the tenants who had transferred had some level of rent arrears prior to going over to Universal Credit, arrears were on average 60% higher for Universal Credit recipients, with a total of £255,731 of the councils current arrears solely attributed to the new benefit. This is clearly very concerning.
"I struggle to understand the Tory Governments rationale for implementing this policy. I've seen studies which show that Universal Credit will ultimately cost more than the system it was designed to replace. I've also seen studies which point to an increased reliance on food banks as a result of this system. Far from incentivising work, this policy is pushing more and more people into poverty. The way it's been implemented has been completely incompetent."