Commons Clash over Universal Credit

The government is prioritising the "safe and secure" delivery of Universal Credit, Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith has told MPs. The £2bn project to simplify the benefits system has been beset by problems and £40m of expenditure on IT systems has been written off. Answering an urgent question in the Commons, Mr Duncan Smith said it was a "major and challenging reform". Labour said the project had effectively been delayed by two years.  Mr Duncan Smith has insisted the flagship project is on track despite acknowledging that 700,000 people will not be moved onto the new system, as planned, by the end of 2017. Read more on the BBC website.