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1082534

	registered interest
	date	06/03/2019
	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, in the most recent month for which data is available, in what proportion of universal credit assessments for working claimants was income data taken from (a) RTI data provided by HMRC and (b) claimants' payslips.
	tabling member constituency	East Ham
	tabling member printed	Stephen Timms
	uin	229075
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2019 answer text <p>The information requested is not held by the Department. Adjustments to payments owing to RTI and self-reported earnings cannot always be separated from other adjustments to a payment, such as a repayment of advances.</p><p> </p><p>From the information that is readily available for Universal Credit Full Service, in January 2019, over 1 million households had payments processed, and of these around 380,000 had an adjustment.</p><p> </p><p>Of the 380,000 payments processed that had an adjustment:</p><p> </p><ul><li>88% of the records had earnings information from HMRC’s Real-Time Earnings system.</li><li>2% of the records had Self-Reported Earnings - cases where there were no available real time information feeds. Some of this information would have come from payslips, however it is not possible to break this data down further.</li><li>less than 0.5% of the records had both Real-Time and Self-Reported Earnings information; and</li><li>9% of the records had earnings from other sources such as self employed earnings and other income, which cannot readily be separated.</li></ul><p> </p><p>Notes:</p><ul><li>Figures are rounded to the nearest 1,000.</li><li>Percentages are rounded to the nearest %.</li></ul> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 13/05/2019 17:11:54 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma previous answer version 106867 answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms

1111209

	registered interest
	date	10/04/2019
	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	Flexible Support Fund
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the overall levels of payment were from the Flexible Support Fund (a) in each region, and (b) on (i) childcare, (ii) training, (iii) clothing for work and (iv) other categories of activity in each of the last 24 months.
	tabling member constituency	Oxford East
	tabling member printed	Anneliese Dodds
	uin	243572
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/05/2019 answer text <p>The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the tables attached.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 14/05/2019 12:03:52 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma attachment 1 file name Flexible Support Fund Expenditure by Region.docx title Flexible Support Fund Expenditure by Region previous answer version 114103 answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4657 label Biography information for Anneliese Dodds

1123769

	registered interest
	date	29/04/2019
	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	Eastman Kodak: Pensions Protection Fund
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government who is responsible for oversight of matters regarding the Pensions Protection Fund (PPF) and Kodak; and whether they plan to commission an independent review of the handling of Kodak by the PPF and the Pensions Regulator and the advice received by both.
	tabling member printed	Lord Myners
	uin	HL15407
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/05/2019 answer text <p>The Pension Protection Fund is a statutory public corporation led by its Board and accountable to Parliament through the Secretary of State for the Department for Work and Pensions.</p><p> </p><p>The original decision in the Kodak case, which provided savers with the potential to receive benefits above Pension Protection Fund levels, was finely balanced and carefully assessed with the benefit of the due diligence carried out for the trustees. Regulated Apportionment Arrangements, a restructuring mechanism which allows a financially troubled employer to detach itself from its liabilities in respect of a defined benefit scheme, are rare and The Pensions Regulator will only agree to them if stringent criteria are met, with entry into the Pension Protection Fund the expected outcome, and the Pension Protection Fund must not object to the Regulated Apportionment Arrangements. The Pensions Regulator published a section 89 regulatory intervention report in November 2014 describing in detail the considerations leading to the decision in this case.</p><p> </p><p>As a condition of approving the successor Kodak pension scheme in 2014, a memorandum of understanding was put in place giving The Pensions Regulator the power to closely monitor the progress of the scheme and if necessary trigger its wind up. This has allowed The Pensions Regulator, with the Pension Protection Fund, to remain actively involved in discussions about the scheme’s future. Due to underperformance of the underlying business it was concluded that the scheme would be unable to meet its long term funding requirements. Action has therefore been taken to bring the scheme into a Pension Protection Fund assessment period which commenced on the 25 March 2019.</p><p> </p><p>Specialist firms with extensive Pension Protection Fund experience have been brought in to manage the administration of the pension scheme and to oversee its efficient passage through the assessment process.</p><p> </p><p>Whilst the Kodak case is a significant claim, the Pension Protection Fund remains in a robust financial position. In its last reported accounts, the Pension Protection Fund had a £6.7 billion reserve and is currently on track to reach its funding objective. There has been no immediate impact on the Pension Protection Fund Levy arising from this case. The Pension Protection Fund aims to collect £500m in levy in 2019/20 which is £50m lower than it aimed to collect in 2018/19.</p><p> </p><p>The Pensions Regulator aims to learn from every major pensions restructuring case and has refined its approach to complex pension restructurings in light of the lessons learned in the Kodak case and successive cases. A letter was sent on the 17<sup>th</sup> October 2018 from Lesley Titcomb, the then Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of The Pensions Regulator, addressed to the Chair of the Work and Pensions Select Committee, Rt Hon Frank Field MP, summarising the lessons learnt in the Kodak case.</p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 14/05/2019 15:29:45 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	3869 label Biography information for Lord Myners

1124222

	registered interest
	date	01/05/2019
	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	State Retirement Pensions: Reciprocal Arrangements
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what effect the UK leaving the EU without a deal would have on reciprocal pension agreements with EU member states.
	tabling member constituency	Romford
	tabling member printed	Andrew Rosindell
	uin	249961
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/05/2019 answer text <p>The Government has consistently put citizens’ rights first in our negotiations with the EU. The best way to guarantee those rights, which include social security, both for UK nationals in the EU and EU citizens in the UK, is the deal that the Government has secured. The Government supported the amendment put forward by Alberto Costa MP which requires the Government to seek a joint UK/EU commitment to preserve the citizens’ rights section of the Withdrawal Agreement whatever the outcome of negotiations. The letter to the European Commission setting out the Government’s position and the Commission’s reply is available at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/costa-amendment-letter-to-the-eu-institutions" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/costa-amendment-letter-to-the-eu-institutions</a></p><p> </p><p>The current EU arrangements providing for reciprocity in social security would no longer apply if the UK leaves the EU without a deal.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman grouped question UIN 249962 question first answered 14/05/2019 13:52:36 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
	tabling member	1447 label Biography information for Andrew Rosindell

1124223

	registered interest
	date	01/05/2019
	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	State Retirement Pensions: Reciprocal Arrangements
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions the Government have held with (a) the EU and (b) individual EU member states on reciprocal pension agreements after the UK leaves the EU.
	tabling member constituency	Romford
	tabling member printed	Andrew Rosindell
	uin	249962
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/05/2019 answer text <p>The Government has consistently put citizens’ rights first in our negotiations with the EU. The best way to guarantee those rights, which include social security, both for UK nationals in the EU and EU citizens in the UK, is the deal that the Government has secured. The Government supported the amendment put forward by Alberto Costa MP which requires the Government to seek a joint UK/EU commitment to preserve the citizens’ rights section of the Withdrawal Agreement whatever the outcome of negotiations. The letter to the European Commission setting out the Government’s position and the Commission’s reply is available at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/costa-amendment-letter-to-the-eu-institutions" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/costa-amendment-letter-to-the-eu-institutions</a></p><p> </p><p>The current EU arrangements providing for reciprocity in social security would no longer apply if the UK leaves the EU without a deal.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman grouped question UIN 249961 question first answered 14/05/2019 13:52:36 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
	tabling member	1447 label Biography information for Andrew Rosindell

1124225

	registered interest
	date	01/05/2019
	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	State Retirement Pensions: British Nationals Abroad
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the Government has made an (a) reciprocal or (b) unilateral agreement to maintain the annual increases to the pensions of UK citizens residing in the Republic of Ireland if the UK leaves the EU without a deal.
	tabling member constituency	Romford
	tabling member printed	Andrew Rosindell
	uin	249964
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/05/2019 answer text <p>The UK and Ireland signed on the 1 February 2019 a reciprocal agreement which will protect the social security rights of UK and Irish nationals living and/or working in each other’s state when the UK leaves the EU. It allows for the payment of each country’s uprated state pensions to recipients living in the other.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 14/05/2019 14:34:21 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
	tabling member	1447 label Biography information for Andrew Rosindell

1124252

	registered interest
	date	01/05/2019
	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: Wales
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment she has made of whether universal credit adequately covers the cost of living in Wales.
	tabling member constituency	Ogmore
	tabling member printed	Chris Elmore
	uin	249988
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2019 answer text <p>Successive Governments have made decisions about the rates of benefits taking account of the competing demands on public expenditure, mindful of the need to balance poverty alleviation whilst not damaging incentives to work, as all Governments since 1948 have striven to do.</p><p> </p><p>Benefits provide a safety net for people to spend on their individual needs.</p><p>Government does not prescribe these, but provides support depending on circumstances such as ability to work and need for childcare.</p><p> </p><p>The applicable amount for Universal Credit is based upon a personal allowance paid according to age and family status, which can be supplemented by flat-rate premiums for groups recognised as having additional needs, such as disabled people and carers.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 13/05/2019 16:22:01 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4572 label Biography information for Chris Elmore

1124253

	registered interest
	date	01/05/2019
	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: Wales
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many claimants received an underpayment of universal credit (a) as their first payment and (b) in further payments in (a) Ogmore and (b) Wales in 2018.
	tabling member constituency	Ogmore
	tabling member printed	Chris Elmore
	uin	249989
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2019 answer text <p>The information requested is not held by the Department.</p><p> </p><p>Our latest published data shows that consistently around 85% of new claimants are being paid in full and on time. This can be found at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/universal-credit-statistics" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/universal-credit-statistics</a>.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 13/05/2019 12:28:02 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4572 label Biography information for Chris Elmore

1124349

	registered interest
	date	01/05/2019
	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, pursuant to the Answer of 15 April 2019 to Question 243330 on Universal Credit, what proportion of universal credit claimants are unable to pay back the benefit advances they have taken within 12 months of their receipt in each year for which information is available.
	tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Selly Oak
	tabling member printed	Steve McCabe
	uin	249845
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2019 answer text <p>33% of UC advances which were paid before 5th May 2018, have not been fully repaid as at 5th May 2019.</p><p> </p><p>Advances are not loans; they are an interest free payment benefit advance, available to help people who need immediate financial support, which is then recovered over an agreed period. The Department has taken a number of steps to ensure that advances meet the needs of claimants and that the recovery arrangements are personalised and reasonable. From October 2021 we are increasing the recovery period for advances from 12 to 16 months, further supporting those in financial need.</p><p> </p><p>Queries against the current repayment stock are only ever a snap shot in time and therefore the position at the end of each financial year cannot be recreated.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 13/05/2019 17:00:23 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	298 label Biography information for Steve McCabe

1124577

	registered interest
	date	02/05/2019
	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, with reference to the recommendation to exempt claimants in temporary accommodation from the benefit cap on page 7 of the report of the Work and Pensions Committee, The Benefit Cap, published on 12 March 2019, HC 1477, if she will ask local authorities to publish the number of households that are currently affected by the cap in their area; and how much Discretionary Housing Payment funding has been used to cover their rent shortfalls in the most recent period for which figures are available.
	tabling member constituency	Bethnal Green and Bow
	tabling member printed	Rushanara Ali
	uin	250474
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/05/2019 answer text <p>The latest official statistics for households capped under Housing Benefit and Universal Credit were published on 2<sup>nd</sup> May 2019, and contain data on households capped to February 2019, published here:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/benefit-cap-number-of-households-capped-to-february-2019" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/benefit-cap-number-of-households-capped-to-february-2019</a>.</p><p>Statistics by Local Authority are available in Tables 2 and 9, respectively. The number of households who have had their Housing Benefit award capped by local authorities are also published on the DWP Stat Xplore portal (<a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/" target="_blank">https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/</a>).</p><p> </p><p>Statistics on the use of Discretionary Housing Payments (for local authorities in England and Wales) are provided by local authorities on a voluntary basis and as such may not correspond exactly to the total Discretionary Housing Payment funds allocated. In addition, Discretionary Housing Payment awards can be recorded against a combination of welfare reform categories including households affected by the benefit cap.</p><p> </p><p>The latest statistics on spend by local authorities, covering the period April to September 2018, are published here:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/use-of-discretionary-housing-payments-april-to-september-2018" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/use-of-discretionary-housing-payments-april-to-september-2018</a>.</p><p>Statistics relating to the specific welfare reform category can be found in Table 7.</p><p> </p><p>The latest full year of statistics available are for the 17/18 financial year and are published here:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/use-of-discretionary-housing-payments-financial-year-2017-to-2018" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/use-of-discretionary-housing-payments-financial-year-2017-to-2018</a>.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 14/05/2019 11:28:26 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4138 label Biography information for Rushanara Ali