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Government 'hampering' probe into universal credit cash splash-out

Anne Begg MP claims scrutiny of wasted pubic funds is being blocked

An Aberdeen MP has slammed the Con-Dem cabinet’s alleged “hampering” of her investigation into taxpayer dosh wasted on crafting the universal credit benefit.

Millionaire Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith’s pet project lumps a raft of benefit schemes into a single means-tested payment.

But its national rollout has been delayed for months, with just a handful of regions still functioning as test subjects and accepting only the most straightforward cases of young jobseekers with no partner or dependents.

Meanwhile Aberdeen South Labour MP Dame Anne Begg, who is chairwoman of the Commons’ work and pensions committee, accused the government of keeping mum on major budgetary blowouts.

A National Audit Office (NAO) report revealed £40m spent on obsolete software, while another £90m-worth is expected to become obsolete within five years.

The NAO paper was published last September, but the committee claimed the government had known of the software sinkhole for at least 18 months without letting on.

“The government has hampered the committee’s scrutiny of universal credit implementation,” the report continued.

“It is not acceptable for the government only to provide information about major policy changes when forced to do so by the imminent prospect of being held to account in a public evidence session.”

Dame Anne agreed: “We do not, as the secretary of state suggested, want to run his department.

“We do, however, expect to have access to the information we need.”

A Department for Work and Pensions spokesperson said the department did all it could to help with the committee’s enquiries.

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