A government advertising campaign which championed the crisis-hit Universal Credit benefit scheme in the style of a newspaper report will be investigated by the marketing watchdog.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said it would examine whether the ads, which ran across the Metro newspaper in print and the MailOnline website, carried misleading claims about Universal Credit.
Entitled “Universal Credit Uncovered”, the ads presented a “myth” versus “fact” section which drew more than 40 complaints from charities and experts.
Watchdog chiefs will also consider whether the adverts were obviously identifiable as marketing communications or whether the pseudo “news report” style of the ads potentially deceived readers.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) said it was working with the ASA to respond to the points raised and that its ads are always marked clearly.
Universal Credit, which brings six legacy benefits into one single monthly payment, has been beset by problems since its launch in 2013 and the subject of multiple government u-turns.
The ASA told HuffPost UK it was investigating the adverts on four separate grounds but that it could not comment further.
As well as whether some of the adverts were obviously identifiable, the ASA will consider whether the DWP’s claim that Universal Credit “works” was misleading.
In addition, the DWP’s claims that claimants do not have to wait five weeks to be paid money on Universal Credit and its contention that the scheme does not make it harder for claimants to pay rent will also be evaluated.
Anti-poverty campaigners have said the crippling effect of Universal Credit’s in-built five-week wait for a first payment is driving claimants to seek emergency food parcels.
The DWP’s adverts said the “myth” that people do not receive money for five weeks was false because claimants could seek an advance payment loan that they could pay back later on.
But MPs said this week that the loans should be scrapped because they push people into further debt.
Change UK MP Heidi Allen told the Commons: “The biggest driver of people going to food banks is the five-week wait.”
Raji Hunjan, the chief executive of Z2K, one of the charities which complained about the ads, said: “People are entitled to receive the information they need to make informed decisions and not be deceived by promotional material that cannot be easily identified as DWP propaganda.”
A DWP spokesperson said: “We have consulted the Advertising Standards Authority throughout the partnership and our advertorials reflect their advice.”