Part of 2. Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Local Government and Public Services – in the Senedd at 2:17 pm on 17 January 2018.
Thank you. After the first six months of full service universal credit in Torfaen, the council's head of revenues and benefits, Richard Davies, said he felt the ethos of his role had changed from paying benefits and making sure people had their entitlements to ensuring people had food on the table. Sadly, there is no sign of improvement, and, last week, the chair of Bron Afon Community Housing predicted the number of tenants adversely affected by universal credit will rise again, and the level of rent arrears already being caused is deeply worrying. What steps is the Welsh Government taking to support residents in communities that are struggling under universal credit, and, in particular, what steps can we take to ensure the problems with rent arrears do not lead to an increase in evictions and homelessness?