I couldn’t comment on whether the study is accurate or not as I’m not a sociologist, but it’s kind of moot anyway – Universal Credit is a poorly designed system for many reasons beyond that it might possibly increase crime.
– The waiting period is plenty long enough for someone to default on bills or rent
– the system is unnecessarily punitive
– it provides very little support for building a career
– it recommends companies which are not vetted at all
– the interview and application requirements incentivise people to apply for jobs they have no intention of doing which wastes everyone’s time
– it doesn’t pay enough to live on anyway especially since housing allowance can’t be applied to mortgages and has a very low cap that comes to a fraction of what housing costs even in cheap areas
That it causes enough stress and anxiety to drive up crime wouldn’t surprise me at all, but we should focus on reforming UC just because it’s shit at its supposed job and it’s evidently been designed in a right wing ‘work makes you free’ fashion.
While we’re at it reform PIP as the only explanation for that system being the way it is is that the Tories want disabled people to just go away and be poor and die.
Only get dole for 2 babies nowadays so no babe factories for big tellys.
4 comments
If you aren’t interested in the editorialising and spin, [here’s the actual study the article is referring to](https://academic.oup.com/bjc/advance-article/doi/10.1093/bjc/azac043/6611758?login=false).
I couldn’t comment on whether the study is accurate or not as I’m not a sociologist, but it’s kind of moot anyway – Universal Credit is a poorly designed system for many reasons beyond that it might possibly increase crime.
– The waiting period is plenty long enough for someone to default on bills or rent
– the system is unnecessarily punitive
– it provides very little support for building a career
– it recommends companies which are not vetted at all
– the interview and application requirements incentivise people to apply for jobs they have no intention of doing which wastes everyone’s time
– it doesn’t pay enough to live on anyway especially since housing allowance can’t be applied to mortgages and has a very low cap that comes to a fraction of what housing costs even in cheap areas
That it causes enough stress and anxiety to drive up crime wouldn’t surprise me at all, but we should focus on reforming UC just because it’s shit at its supposed job and it’s evidently been designed in a right wing ‘work makes you free’ fashion.
While we’re at it reform PIP as the only explanation for that system being the way it is is that the Tories want disabled people to just go away and be poor and die.
Only get dole for 2 babies nowadays so no babe factories for big tellys.
The serious flaws are by design