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1135484

registered interest
date	28/06/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Social Security Benefits
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 27 June 2019 to Question 268401, what information she holds on the reasons why those 156,000 claimants with deductions from universal credit for non-universal credit debts are not repaying their debts.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Frank Field
uin	270705
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/07/2019 answer text <p>The table below provides information on why the specified claimants were not repaying their debts.</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>Zero balance**</p></td><td><p>92,776</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Business as usual/head of work (Includes future instalment confirmation)</p></td><td><p>48,196</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Awaiting Financial Reconciliation</p></td><td><p>12,452</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>In progress – Awaiting further information (e.g. customer correspondence/contact)</p></td><td><p>4,214</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Managed by external contractor (Debt collection agency)</p></td><td><p>618</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Awaiting appeal outcome</p></td><td><p>534</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Waiting for customer to call back</p></td><td><p>306</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Other</p></td><td><p>477</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p><em>*The data provided in this response has been sourced from internal management information and was not intended for public release. It should therefore not be compared to any other, similar data subsequently released by the Department.</em></p><p> </p><p><em>** The zero balance category is made up of debts that have been fully repaid, but are yet to be removed from the Debt Manager system. It is important to note that no further recovery action will be taken in these cases</em></p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 15/07/2019 15:06:25 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

1135490

registered interest
date	28/06/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Social Security Benefits
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 27 June 2019 to Question 268402, if she will place in the Library a copy of the dataset from which the median balance per debtor was calculated.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Frank Field
uin	270706
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/09/2019 answer text <p>A copy of the relevant dataset* will be placed in the Library.</p><p> </p><p>In order to comply with the General Data Protection Regulations 2018, the dataset contains values only.</p><p> </p><p>The data set shows all balances held on our systems for the relevant period. It includes ‘minus’ figures, which reflect changes made as a result of successful appeals.</p><p> </p><p>The data does not include any Universal Credit overpayments. It includes debts accrued in a number of ways including Working Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit overpayments built up under HMRC as well as fraud and error overpayments.</p><p> </p><p>Working Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit were introduced in 2003, with some people then accruing debts over many years.</p><p> </p><p>We do not want people to face undue financial hardship as a result of repaying overpayments. If people do struggle, adjustments can be made and will be based on an individual’s circumstance.</p><p> </p><p>The overall maximum amount that can be deducted from a claimant’s Universal Credit each month to recover a benefit overpayment is an amount equal to 40% of their Universal Credit standard allowance.</p><p> </p><p>The vast majority of benefit payments are made correctly; this stock of debts equates to around 0.6% of current annual welfare expenditure. The legacy welfare system is complex in its structure and administration and in the way that qualifying conditions interact with each other. UC provides a single system of means-tested support for working-age households who are in or out of work and we expect this to reduce overpayments.</p><p> </p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><em>*The data provided has been sourced from internal management information and was not intended for public release. It should therefore not be compared to any other, similar data subsequently released by the Department.</em></p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 03/09/2019 16:11:32 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

1135342

registered interest
date	27/06/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Universal Credit: Overpayments
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 5 June 2019 to Question 257458 on Universal Credit: Overpayments, how many successful applications there were for a reduction in an overpayment repayment rate in each year from 2013 to 2018.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Frank Field
uin	270288
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/07/2019 answer text <p>The information requested is not available.</p><p> </p><p>Our systems do not hold data on the recovery rates that were applied to debts that have either been fully repaid, or have been written off. It is therefore not possible to give a complete figure for the total number of successful, or unsuccessful applications for a reduction in an overpayment recovery rate.</p><p> </p><p>The Department ensures that appropriate safeguards are in place to protect claimants who have deductions from their benefit to repay overpayments. If a claimant is struggling they can contact the Department’s Debt Management Team to discuss lowering their repayment rate. Any adjustment to the rate of repayment will be based on the individual circumstances of the claimant.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 02/07/2019 14:31:57 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

1135343

registered interest
date	27/06/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Universal Credit: Overpayments
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 5 June 2019 to Question 257458 on Universal Credit: Overpayments, how many overpayments were waived in (a) full and (b) part as a result of applications made by (i) claimants and (ii) their representatives in 2015-16.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Frank Field
uin	270289
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/07/2019 answer text <p>In 2015/16 there were less than 5 applications for the full waiving of a Universal Credit overpayment and less than 5 partial waiver applications for UC overpayments.</p><p> </p><p>The Department has an obligation to ensure that public funds are administered responsibly and to abide by the principles set out in Her Majesty’s Treasury’s guidance on Managing Public Money (which can be found on gov.uk). Waivers are only granted in limited circumstances including where the recovery of an overpayment is causing substantial financial and/or medical hardship and clear supporting evidence of this is provided.</p><p> </p><p>We are unable to provide a breakdown of how many applications were made by claimants or their representatives as this information is not stored.</p><p> </p><p><em> *The figures provided in this response have been sourced from internal management information and were not intended for public release. They should therefore not be compared to any other figures subsequently released by the Department. We are not able to report exact figures that are lower than 5, therefore this has been listed as “less than 5”.</em></p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 02/07/2019 14:43:02 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

1135376

registered interest
date	27/06/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she will make an assessment of the potential merits of exempting care leavers under the age of 25 from the under-occupancy penalty in the social rented sector.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Frank Field
uin	270290
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/07/2019 answer text <p>Care leavers up to the age of 22 are exempt from the Local Housing Allowance shared accommodation rate in the Private Rented Sector. There are no plans to extend this exemption or to introduce an exemption for care leavers to the removal of the spare room subsidy policy in the Social Rented Sector.</p><p>For those individuals who may require more support and whose circumstances may make it difficult for them to share accommodation, Discretionary Housing Payments are available.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 270291 question first answered 02/07/2019 11:19:53 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

1135377

registered interest
date	27/06/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Local Housing Allowance: Care Leavers
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending the local housing allowance exemption for care leavers up to the age of 25.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Frank Field
uin	270291
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/07/2019 answer text <p>Care leavers up to the age of 22 are exempt from the Local Housing Allowance shared accommodation rate in the Private Rented Sector. There are no plans to extend this exemption or to introduce an exemption for care leavers to the removal of the spare room subsidy policy in the Social Rented Sector.</p><p>For those individuals who may require more support and whose circumstances may make it difficult for them to share accommodation, Discretionary Housing Payments are available.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 270290 question first answered 02/07/2019 11:19:53 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

1134889

registered interest
date	26/06/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Universal Credit
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what is the median advance payment awarded to people awaiting their first payment of universal credit.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Frank Field
uin	269644
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/07/2019 answer text <p>The median payment for new claim and benefit transfer advances was £380.</p><p> </p><p>Notes:</p><p>The figure relates to Universal Credit full service only</p><p>The figure is rounded to the nearest £</p><p>The median is based on those advances paid between March 18 and February 2019</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 01/07/2019 16:34:46 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

1134891

registered interest
date	26/06/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Universal Credit
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what is the median repayment period for advance payments awarded to people awaiting their first payment of universal credit.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Frank Field
uin	269645
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/07/2019 answer text <p>The median repayment period for new claim and benefit transfer advances was 12 months.</p><p> </p><p>Notes:</p><p>The figure relates to Universal Credit full service only</p><p>The median is based on those advances paid between March 18 and February 2019</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 05/07/2019 12:49:09 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

1134893

registered interest
date	26/06/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Universal Credit
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of repayment schedules for advance payments awarded to people awaiting their first universal credit claim have been timetabled to (a) one to three months, (b) four to six months, (c) seven to nine months and (d) 10-12 months by Jobcentre Plus district in the most recent period for which figures are available.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Frank Field
uin	269646
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/07/2019 answer text <p>The repayment schedule for an advance payment is agreed by the claimant.</p><p>The information requested is provided in the attached table which gives the proportion of repayment schedules for new claim and benefit transfer advances by Jobcentre Plus district.</p><p>From October 2021 we will be increasing the recovery period for advances from 12 to 16 months, further supporting those in financial need.</p><p>Notes:</p><p>The figures relate to Universal Credit full service only</p><p>The figures are rounded to the nearest %</p><p>The proportions are based on those advances paid between March 18 and February 2019</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 01/07/2019 16:31:42 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma attachment 1 file name PQ 269646 table.xlsx title Table attachment
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead

1134904

registered interest
date	26/06/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Work Capability Assessment
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) disability and (b) work capability assessments were carried out with a home visit in 2018-19 in each DWP Region.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Frank Field
uin	269649
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/07/2019 answer text <p><strong> </strong></p><p>Please find the information requested below. PIP and HDAS both have separate estate delivery models resulting in a significant difference in numbers of home visits. I have interpreted ‘(a) disability’ as PIP assessments.</p><p> </p><p>This is unpublished data derived from the DWP0400 report. The numbers are unpublished data, derived from assessment provider MI.</p><p> </p><p>(a) PIP data does not align to DWP regions, however, I have provided the data in the relevant Lots. Lot 1 (Scotland, north-east and north-west England), Lot 2 (Central England and Wales) and Lot 3 (South East and South West England):</p><table><tbody><tr><td><p><strong>Personal Independence Payment completed as Home Visits Contract Lot</strong> <strong>April 18 - March 19</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Total</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Lot 1 – Scotland &amp; the North</p></td><td><p>76,890</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Lot 2 – Wales and The Midlands</p></td><td><p>116,630</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Lot 3 – The South of England</p></td><td><p>47,160</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p><strong> </strong></p><p>Lot 2 numbers are higher due to the supplier business model; Lot 1 is higher than Lot 3 due to the higher proportion of rural areas.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>(b) Work Capability Assessment data by DWP regions:</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p><strong>Work Capability Assessments completed as Home Visits by DWP Region <br> April 18 - March 19</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Total</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Central</p></td><td><p>2,070</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>London &amp; Home Counties</p></td><td><p>1,460</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>North East</p></td><td><p>2,200</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>North West</p></td><td><p>1,590</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Scotland</p></td><td><p>1,350</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Southern</p></td><td><p>1,080</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Wales</p></td><td><p>630</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Figures rounded to the nearest 10.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>All Assessment Providers are required to undertake home visits where there is a clinical need to do so and assess all cases prior to routing them for assessment. In PIP, there is some contract flexibility in the delivery of home assessments over and above the clinical requirement.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 01/07/2019 16:42:45 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead