CALLS to pause the rollout of Universal Credit have been rejected by the MP for North Swindon during an impassioned speech in the House of Commons.

Labour are using one of their opposition day debates to discuss how the new system is being introduced and to put forward calls for it to be delayed while problems are resolved.

Universal Credit is the most significant piece of benefit reform being introduced by the Government. It seeks to simplify the previous system by merging a number of benefits - including job seeker's allowance, housing benefit and child tax credits - into one monthly payment and introduces a range of additional support for in-work claimants.

But while the concept of a single payment system has received cross party support, the rollout has come in for criticism.

Critics argue that delays in the first payment being received once people are transferred onto Universal Credit are leading them to fall into arrears and struggle with paying for essential outgoings.

But the Government has said that the system is working overall and that measures to address problems are being introduced as they are identified. One such fix has seen a system for accelerated payments rolled out where particular hardships exist, although how effective it is has been questioned.

Speaking in the debate this afternoon, Labour MPs claimed that in its current form, the rollout was leading to "instability, uncertainty and injustice".

Judith Cummins, MP for Bradford South, appeared to suggest that Conservative MPs were out of touch with the situation that "real people" were facing.

But getting to his feet to speak in defence of Universal Credit, North Swindon MP Justin Tomlinson issued a fiery rebuke against his Labour counterpart.

"That insinuated that we have no understanding," he said. "That is absolute nonsense.

"I went to a school that was bottom of the league table, my father died at an early age and we had bailiffs on the doors. There wasn't any support.

"We absolutely do understand the importance of providing opportunity. That's what drove me into politics, that's why I support Universal Credit and I don't want to see it being paused. It really does offer a transformational opportunity for people.

"I'm not just plucking stats out of the air - I've hosted round tables, I've done visits to the job centres, I've talked to people. Those who are vulnerable, who are having to navigate incredibly complex, unique, individual challenges.

"For the first time, with predominately cross-party support, we have brought forward a system that is designed to treat people as individuals and giving them tailored support."

Mr Tomlinson, himself a former Minister for Disabled People in the department responsible for Universal Credit, said that the system inherited from the previous government was so complex that you "had to be a nuclear physicist to navigate it".

He said that the simplification was meaning people were no longer missing out on benefits they were entitled to. He praised the introduction of in-work support including the allocation of a named work coach and the removal of the "cliff edge" that used to make people wary of working over a certain number of hours for fear that their benefits might stop.

"When you talk to the staff in the job centres, they're incredibly enthused," he added. "We have empowered them to identify the help and support those people need and bring them together.

"This is a huge opportunity, we all have a duty to get behind it. Yes we are right to challenge, but Universal Credit is transforming people's lives and I fully support it."

He welcomed an announcement made earlier on Wednesday regarding the scrapping of a 55p a minute charge to the Universal Credit helpline.

Appearing before a Commons committee, Work and Pensions Secretary David Gauke said the line would be switched to a freephone number over the next month.

But at Prime Minister’s Questions, Theresa May rejected calls for further changes in direction.

She insisted that the overall system was working and dismissed calls by Jeremy Corbyn for a delay to “fix” the problems.

The Labour leader, who highlighted the helpline charges in the Commons last week, told Mrs May: “The fundamental problems of Universal Credit remain. The six-week wait, rising indebtedness, rent arrears and evictions.”

However, Mrs May hit back, saying: “It is a simpler system. It is a system that encourages people to get into the workplace. It is a system that is working because more people are getting into work."

Have you been transferred onto Universal Credit? Do you have any experiences - good or bad - that you would be willing to share? If so, please get in touch with our Politics Reporter by emailing chris.humphreys@swindonadvertiser.co.uk