Universal Credit has increased crime rate, landmark study finds

Move to more restrictive social security system linked to rise in crime

Universal Credit was the flagship project of former work and pensions secretary Iain Duncan Smith (Getty Images)

The government's flagship Universal Credit benefits system has driven an increase in the crime rate across Britain, a new study has found.

Researchers at University College London studying the roll-out of the new system found there was "salient and plausible evidence linking UC to an increase in recorded crime".

The peer-reviewed findings, published in the British Journal of Criminology, are the latest piece of evidence adding to a growing body of work suggesting less generous social security systems drive increases in lawbreaking.