Universal Credit is flawed

The Universal Credit system is indeed flawed, that five-week wait being a major issue. Another flaw is the link between the DWP and city councils in connection with Council Tax reduction.

Most Universal Credit (U/C) applicants will apply for Council Tax reduction around the same time as they apply for U/C; this is done through Glasgow City Council or the appropriate council. But the actual interaction between U/C and GCC takes place towards the end of that five-week wait.

The result is that claimants can find themselves being billed for the full amount of Council Tax, with no reduction. If there were to be any improvements in the whole U/C system, apart from scrapping it, it would be for that interaction between U/C and city councils in connection with Council Tax reduction to take place much earlier in the whole process.

Edward Burns, posted online

No problem with system

I was on ESA and PIP when I had to apply for Universal Credit and the new system was much better for me; I didn’t lose any benefit, they offered the advance and the jobcentre staff were more sympathetic to my situation and any issues were sorted out with less hassle than the old system.

I don’t understand why people are complaining.

Paul Murphy, posted online

Same way for all parties

Boris Johnson was elected by the same system whereby Gordon Brown succeeded Blair, how May succeeded Cameron and how Sturgeon succeeded Salmond.

Every party has chosen its leader this way, not just the Tories. We don’t elect presidents in this country thankfully.

If you don’t like Johnson that is your right, but you can’t use that as a criticism of Johnson or Sturgeon or May or anyone else becoming leader.

You would have to get the constitution changed so that we elected a president with a fixed term of office, answerable to no-one except the electorate.

Thomas Wilson, posted online