MAJOR CRISIS
UNIVERSAL Credit could be as bad for the Tories as the hated poll tax that helped bring down Margaret Thatcher, ex-PM Sir John Major has warned.
The former Tory leader attacked the Government's key welfare reforms today, saying it would lead to "deep political trouble" - just as the DWP boss admitted some Brits WOULD be worse off.
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Sir John said he was worried about how fast it was being rolled out and the way thousands were set to be worse off.
He told the BBC: "I am saying that if you have people who have that degree of loss, that is not something that the majority of the British population would think of as fair.
"And if people think you have to remove yourself from fairness, then you are in deep political trouble."
Sir John went on to say that the theory behind the new reforms was good, but that it was being implemented "too soon and in the wrong circumstances".
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He said that if people weren't properly protected "you run into the sort of problems the Conservative Party ran into with the poll tax in the late 1980s".
The poll tax - introduced in the 1980s - proved very unpopular and led to riots and rebellions, and the fall of Margaret Thatcher's government.
And just hours after his dramatic intervention, Work and Pensions Secretary Esther McVey admitted some Brits WILL lose out.
She told BBC News: "This country made tough decisions in 2015... Some people could be worse off on this benefit."
Theresa May told MPs yesterday that "transitional protections" would mean that no one moving onto Universal Credit would see a drop in income immediately - but it is not clear how long this will be for.
She said yesterday: "we are putting protections in, transitional protections in for those people, so people who are moved onto Universal Credit as part of that process, will not see any reduction (in there), they will be protected."
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But today Ms McVey insisted that Universal Credit, which rolls six benefits into one monthly payment, would protect the most vulnerable people, including disabled Brits.
She accused Sir John of not understanding the new system saying she was "somebody who knows more about Universal Credit than John Major".
Reports had claimed she had told cabinet colleagues that Brits could be up to £200 a month worse off as a result of the switch, but today Ms McVey refused to say if that had been discussed.
The new system has already been blasted for leaving many worse off, and seeing some wait months for any benefits at all.
Today the architect of the project, ex-minister Iain Duncan Smith, said the Tories should axe planned tax breaks for the low-paid, and use them to plough billions more into Universal Credit to make sure that people were not worse off.
“I think going forward, my personal view is that we should direct the money back into Universal Credit exactly as it was originally planned to be rolled out,” he told the BBC's Today programme.
And his call was backed up by influential MP Johnny Mercer this afternoon.
He said: "Universal Credit was designed so that no-one would be worse off. Stop the tax-free allowance rise and re-invest into UC, or I can’t support it. Not politically deliverable in Plymouth I’m afraid."
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Yesterday another ex-Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, made similar warnings about Universal Credit - and said it would tip millions of kids back into poverty.
Millions of households are set to lose money when they go onto Universal Credit, experts have predicted.
And the roll-out has so far been beset with issues - with it running years behind schedule already and causing huge delays to people's payments.
Some were missing out on hundreds due to when their pay date fell.
And one family of a boy battling cancer were so poor on Universal Credit they were forced to eat his leftover hospital food.
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The Sun revealed earlier this year the case of a disabled man born with 17 holes in his heart who has been denied benefits on Universal Credit - and told to get a job.
Ministers have insisted that no one will be worse off going on to the new system if their situation doesn't change.
But claimants will only be able to access transitional protection payments for a certain amount of time under Universal Credit in future.
Labour MP Frank Field said earlier this week that minister were aware that Universal Credit would leave poor families up to
PM Theresa May announces that 700,000 Brits will get access to £2.4billion of unclaimed benefits under Universal Credit
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