Esther McVey recently referenced Mind in a speech about Universal Credit. The mental health charity decided to reaffirm their position on the much-criticised new benefit via Twitter.
Responding to the noise on social media, Vicki Nash, Head of Policy and Campaigns said: “The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Esther McVey mentioned Mind in her Universal Credit (UC) regulations statement. We have repeatedly raised our concerns with the Department for Work and Pensions about UC and the regulations and so wanted to make it clear where we stand on the issue.
“These regulations confirmed our worst fears – that in the move over to UC three million people, including hundreds of thousands of people with mental health problems, will be forced to make a new claim. This risks many being left without income and pushed into poverty. The regulations have done little to meet this fundamental problem – as it stands there is still no safety net for people before or during the move to UC.”
Read Tweet response (below)
“The Government must do the right thing and withdraw these regulations, before they fall squarely on some of the most vulnerable in society.”
Yesterday the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions @EstherMcVey1 mentioned us in a list of organisations who had recognised and welcomed changes to #UniversalCredit. We thought it was important to set the record straight. pic.twitter.com/ATZqKqLHzO
— Mind (@MindCharity) November 6, 2018
Here’s what we said in July when the Government first published its plans for moving people from older benefits onto #UniversalCredit > https://t.co/FY4hWDyWE2 pic.twitter.com/HDSwvx2FxG
— Mind (@MindCharity) November 6, 2018
Here’s what we said in response to the budget last week > https://t.co/wHlCxdl9Z9 pic.twitter.com/xMgNFKqhNi
— Mind (@MindCharity) November 6, 2018
And here’s what we said yesterday when the Government published it’s updated plans for #UniversalCredit > https://t.co/brYrb11lAh pic.twitter.com/XrR1lfNMnL
— Mind (@MindCharity) November 6, 2018
We remain clear that new #UniversalCredit regulations don’t go far enough. We won’t stop campaigning until we get a benefits system that really works for people with mental health problems.
— Mind (@MindCharity) November 6, 2018
We need MPs to vote against these regulations which create a real risk for people with mental health problems. And we need as many people as possible to join us. Find out more about the campaign here > https://t.co/Xoaw2nIzfZ
— Mind (@MindCharity) November 6, 2018