LABOUR’S Margaret Greenwood took aim at Work and Pensions Secretary Esther McVey yesterday, calling on her to resign over the universal credit shambles.

The shadow work and pensions secretary said Ms McVey’s competence and judgement was in serious doubt after she claimed to have “inadvertently” misinterpreted the National Audit Office (NAO) report published on June 1.

But Ms Greenwood charged that she either did not understand the highly critical report or wilfully misrepresented its findings to back her own motive to accelerate the roll-out of the controversial benefit reform scheme.

Ms McVey made three statements to MPs that Auditor General Sir Amyas Morse pointed out were “incorrect” and “unproven,” thereby she broke ministerial code, Ms Greenwood said.

Ms McVey was hauled before MPs for the second time to explain the ongoing welfare reform row with Mr Morse, who took the unprecedented step of writing her an open letter in which he asked her to explain herself.

She only apologised for one of the three statements by saying she had used the “wrong words.”

Ms Greenwood added: “The Secretary of State should be ashamed that she has been forced to come to this House again.”

Work and pensions select committee chairman and Labour MP Frank Field outlined the multitude of problems claimants have faced under the Tories’ disastrous benefit reform scheme, including the two-thirds of disabled people who were not paid on time and in full, which he said led to the NAO demanding that she “pause” UC.

Ms McVey apologised on Wednesday, for having “inadvertently misled” the Commons by claiming the NAO had called for UC roll-out to be accelerated rather than stopped, although she defended two other claims she had made in response to the report.

She told MPs yesterday that her “incorrect interpretation” of the report had led to her making the assumption that the roll-out of UC across the country should be “speeded up” rather than stopped.

She also claimed that she and the NAO had agreed on factual information but came to “different conclusions” of the facts.

Ms McVey said she plans to meet Mr Morse on Monday, adding: “From my interpretation of what was said and the words that I used, I apologised for and came to the House.”

Labour MP Meg Hillier asked Ms McVey to confirm that she had confidence in the NAO, with the minister replying that “they do their job.”

Lamiat Sabin is the Morning Star's Parliamentary Reporter