"The DWP has come under increasing scrutiny since a Guardian investigation revealed leadership shortcomings unfairly landed thousands of unpaid carers with hefty bills and in some cases fraud convictions for carer's allowance overpayments. The carer's allowance scandal a timeline The impact on carers caused public outrage and was likened to the Post Office scandal. Some carers reported suicidal thoughts after they were caught up in a system one described as like being at the whim of a faceless machine."
"The DWP insisted Schofield's departure was unrelated to the recent criticism of the department's leadership. It remained committed to improving safeguards for vulnerable benefit claimants and overhauling the carer's allowance. Schofield said in a staff email: There is never a good moment to step away from a job like this, but having passed my eight-year anniversary, now feels like a good time to pause and reflect on what I want to do next while spending more time with my family."
Sir Peter Schofield, permanent secretary at the Department for Work and Pensions, will step down in July for personal reasons after eight years in the role. The department faced increasing scrutiny after a Guardian investigation found leadership shortcomings that unfairly landed thousands of unpaid carers with large bills and, in some cases, fraud convictions for carer's allowance overpayments. The scandal caused public outrage and comparisons with the Post Office scandal, with some carers reporting suicidal thoughts. The DWP said Schofield's departure was unrelated to recent criticism and pledged to improve safeguards for vulnerable claimants and to overhaul the carer's allowance. Schofield highlighted the DWP's expansion of universal credit and the department's Covid-19 response as major achievements.
Read at www.theguardian.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]