Following the 2010 general election, Duncan Smith was appointed by Prime Minister David Cameron as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in the Cameron–Clegg coalition. Under his leadership, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) rolled out Universal Credit and a new Work Programme, as well as implemented a real terms cut in benefits. He also looked at "how to make it harder for sick and disabled people to claim benefits" by giving DWP staff more powers to conduct benefit eligibility tests and to strip benefits from claimants with serious but time-limited health conditions. Duncan Smith was advised it would be illegal to introduce legislation not requiring parliamentary approval. The DWP was criticised by Oxfam and Justin Welby for rises in food poverty. Duncan Smith himself was criticised by the UK Statistics Authority and National Institute of Economic and Social Research for breaking the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.
Following the 2010 general election, Duncan Smith was appointed by Prime Minister David Cameron as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in the Cameron–Clegg coalition. Under his leadership, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) rolled out Universal Credit and a new Work Programme as well as implemented a real terms cut in benefits. He also looked at "how to make it harder for sick and disabled people to claim benefits" by giving DWP staff more powers to conduct benefit eligibility test,s and to strip benefits from claimants with serious but time-limited health conditions. Duncan Smith was advised it would be illegal to introduce legislation not requiring parliamentary approval. The DWP was criticised by Oxfam and Justin Welby for rises in food poverty. Duncan Smith himself was criticised by the UK Statistics Authority and National Institute of Economic and Social Research for breaking the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.