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100975

	registered interest
	date	27/10/2014
	answering body	Department for Education
	answering dept id	60
	answering dept short name	Education
	answering dept sort name	Education
	hansard heading	Universal Credit
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have considered including school holiday provision in passported benefits to be included in Universal Credit.
	tabling member printed	Lord Kirkwood of Kirkhope
	uin	HL2431
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/11/2014 answer text <p>The Child Poverty Strategy, published in June 2014, outlined the Government’s actions to tackle child poverty and improve the living standards of poor children.[1]</p><p> </p><p>We have not considered including school holiday provision in passported benefits to be included in Universal Credit.</p><p> </p><p>[1] <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/child-poverty-strategy-2014-to-2017" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/child-poverty-strategy-2014-to-2017</a></p> answering member printed Lord Nash question first answered 17/11/2014 14:21:59 answering member 4270 label Biography information for Lord Nash
	tabling member	635 label Biography information for Lord Kirkwood of Kirkhope

530748

	registered interest
	date	30/06/2016
	answering body	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
	answering dept id	16
	answering dept short name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
	answering dept sort name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
	hansard heading	Universal Credit
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the government of Bahrain following the cancellation of Sheikh Isa Qassim's citizenship.
	tabling member printed	Lord Hylton
	uin	HL910
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/07/2016 answer text <p>We are concerned by reports that the nationality of Bahraini Shia cleric Sheikh Isa Qassim is being revoked, and we have raised these concerns at senior levels in the Bahraini government and publicly.</p> answering member printed Baroness Anelay of St Johns question first answered 12/07/2016 14:25:47 answering member 3474 label Biography information for Baroness Anelay of St Johns
	tabling member	2018 label Biography information for Lord Hylton

530750

	registered interest
	date	30/06/2016
	answering body	Home Office
	answering dept id	1
	answering dept short name	Home Office
	answering dept sort name	Home Office
	hansard heading	Universal Credit
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 16 June (HL568), whether they will make available annually information about (1) how many certificates of sponsorship for immigration entry clearance are granted to each licensed sponsoring employer, (2) how long licences are valid, and (3) the top 50 employment categories within which the individual certificates are granted in each year.
	tabling member printed	Lord Laird
	uin	HL912
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/07/2016 answer text <p>There are no plans to publish data regarding how many certificates of sponsorship for immigration entry clearance are granted to each licensed sponsoring employer.</p><p>There is no requirement to publish annual information regarding how long sponsor licences are valid for as all sponsor licences are issued for four years, as set out in the published sponsor guidance.</p><p>Sponsorship data by tier and industry type is already published as part of the immigration statistics quarterly releases on the gov.uk website. However there are no plans to specifically publish the top 50 employment categories within which the individual certificates are granted in each year.</p> answering member printed Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon question first answered 14/07/2016 12:58:08 answering member 4210 label Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
	tabling member	2479 label Biography information for Lord Laird

1400598

	registered interest
	date	06/01/2022
	answering body	Treasury
	answering dept id	14
	answering dept short name	Treasury
	answering dept sort name	Treasury
	hansard heading	Universal Credit
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to increase Universal Credit payments in the event that energy bills increase.
	tabling member printed	Lord Taylor of Warwick
	uin	HL5203
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/01/2022 answer text <p>The Government recognises the recent increase in wholesale global gas prices will be a cause of concern for consumers, businesses, and energy suppliers across the UK.</p><p> </p><p>There is a wide range of Government support in place to support consumers with their energy costs. The Energy Price Cap has been shielding millions of consumers from the volatility in the wholesale markets, and the Government is supporting low income and fuel poor households with their energy bills in a number of ways, the total value of this support being £2.5 billion a year including:</p><p>• The Warm Home Discount, which provides eligible households with a £140 discount.</p><p>• Winter Fuel Payments and Cold Weather Payments, which help ensure those most vulnerable are better able to heat their homes over the colder months.</p><p>There is also support available this winter through the £500m Household Support Fund, which helps those in greatest need with the cost of essentials over the coming months.</p><p> </p><p>The Government has also taken decisive action to support low-income working households on Universal Credit by cutting the taper rate from 63p to 55p and increasing work allowances by £500 a year. These changes are effectively a tax cut for low paid households on Universal Credit worth £2.2 billion in 2022-23 and mean that 1.9 million households will keep on average around an extra £1,000 on an annual basis.</p><p> </p><p>In the long-term, the best way to reduce energy bills for households is to invest in energy efficiency. The Government has allocated over £500 million to Local Authorities this year for the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund and the Sustainable Warmth programmes. These schemes will help reduce low-income households’ energy use through efficiency improvements, which are estimated to save participants an average of £350-450 per year on their energy bills. At the Spending Review, an additional £1.8bn was confirmed to accelerate these programmes over the next three years.</p> answering member printed Lord Agnew of Oulton question first answered 20/01/2022 13:07:02 answering member 4689 label Biography information for Lord Agnew of Oulton
	tabling member	1796 label Biography information for Lord Taylor of Warwick

1005586

	registered interest
	date	12/11/2018
	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	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of people who are yet to be moved to Universal Credit as part of the natural migration process; and what support will be available for vulnerable claimants, including those who have disabilities, during this process.
	tabling member printed	Lord Bird
	uin	HL11357
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/11/2018 answer text <p>We are unable to forecast the number of people who are yet to naturally migrate to Universal Credit. This is because Natural Migration claimants are those who have had a relevant change of circumstances that would cause a new claim to be made to a different legacy benefit, but they cannot make such a claim to legacy benefits because these have been replaced by UC.</p><p> </p><p>We take seriously the need to support vulnerable claimants moving to Universal Credit. Work Coaches provide continuous support for all claimants, including vulnerable claimants throughout their journey.</p><p>Additionally we have introduced a number of measures to assist claimants during the transition to Universal Credit including: the removal of waiting days; the UC Transitional Housing payment; Universal Support; 100 per cent advances and a longer repayment period.</p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 26/11/2018 15:21:39 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	4564 label Biography information for Lord Bird

1012529

	registered interest
	date	22/11/2018
	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	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government how the additional funding announced for claimants migrating to Universal Credit will be spent.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Meacher
	uin	HL11721
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/12/2018 answer text <p>At Autumn Budget 2018 we announced a package worth £4.5 billion across the next five years, to support those on Universal Credit. These measures include:</p><p> </p><ul><li>A £1000 annual increase in the Work Allowance from April 2019,which will provide a £630 boost for households with children, and for people with disabilities.</li><li>Reducing, from October 2019, the maximum rate at which deductions can be made from a Universal Credit award from 40 per cent to 30 per cent of the standard allowance. Additionally, from October 2021, the recovery period for advances will increase from 12 to 16 months. This will help over 600,000 families to manage their debts at any one point when roll-out is complete, providing them with, on average, £295 extra a year as their debts are repaid over a longer period.</li><li>Introducing, from July 2020 a two week transitional run on (similar to the Housing Benefit run-on introduced earlier this year) of income related legacy benefits (Income Support, income related Employment and Support Allowance and income based Jobseeker’s Allowance) for two weeks after a claim for Universal Credit has been made. This measure means that around 1.1 million households will see a one-off gain of approximately £200, between 2020/21 and 2023/24.</li><li>Commencing from July 2020, supporting the transition to Universal Credit for all self-employed people, by extending the 12-month grace period (the period before the Minimum Income Floor applies) to all gainfully self-employed people; giving claimants time to grow their businesses to a sustainable level. This will be implemented fully from September 2020.</li><li>An extension in the surplus earnings disregard exception for up to £2500 for another year from 2019 to 2020</li></ul> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 11/12/2018 14:37:11 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	3810 label Biography information for Baroness Meacher

1012530

	registered interest
	date	22/11/2018
	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	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to identify individuals who will need support in making Universal Credit claims; and what support they will provide to all claimants.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Meacher
	uin	HL11722
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/12/2018 answer text <p>All claimants, including those who are vulnerable or with mental health conditions, receive continuous tailored support through their personal work coaches, and all DWP staff working with claimants complete extensive training that prepares them for their role. Specific training is provided for working with different vulnerable groups, with guidance to signpost claimants to relevant support, and these circumstances will be recorded on a claimant’s online account.</p><p> </p><p>We take a number of steps to identify individuals who will need support in making a claim to Universal Credit. For example, we identify claimants either prior to or at the initial claim stage, to discuss what support mechanisms need to be in place to make a claim. This can be through discussions with their Work Coach, the Universal Credit helpline and/or through home visits.</p><p> </p><p>For those individuals identified as requiring support, Universal Support provides advice and assistance to help claimants manage their Universal Credit claim, with a focus on budgeting advice and digital support. Since 2017, Universal Support has been delivered by individual local authorities, funded by grants from DWP.</p><p> </p><p>From April 2019 Citizens Advice (England and Wales) and Citizens Advice Scotland will take on the responsibility for delivering a strengthened Universal Support service, a move which will ensure a consistent and streamlined service for claimants across the country. This new partnership will ensure vulnerable claimants get the support they need to make a claim and manage their money.</p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 05/12/2018 16:25:15 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	3810 label Biography information for Baroness Meacher

1012531

	registered interest
	date	22/11/2018
	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	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government whether people moving from legacy benefits to Universal Credit will be subject to a hard stop to their benefit payments.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Meacher
	uin	HL11723
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/12/2018 answer text <p>The Universal Credit (Managed Migration) 2018 regulations which have been laid before Parliament for approval contain our proposed measures for the managed migration of claimants on legacy benefits to Universal Credit. These include:</p><p> </p><ul><li>Notifying claimants that they need to move to Universal Credit, and giving them a minimum of three months to make their claim. They can submit their application at any point during this period and will receive reminders if they have not done so, as the end of this period approaches;</li><li>Having unlimited flexibility to extend the period of time a claimant has to make a Universal Credit claim if there is a good reason;</li><li>The automatic backdating of all claims made once the above period has ended, if a Universal Credit claim is made within one calendar month after this. Transitional protection will also be applied to the Universal Credit award.</li></ul><p>Our objective is to ensure that all legacy benefit claimants migrate safely across to Universal Credit and to that end we will also:</p><p> </p><ul><li>have a lengthy period of careful and robust testing before we move to scale;</li><li>work closely with a large and diverse group of stakeholders to design the process so that we can draw on their insight and experience;</li><li>be producing guidance for work coaches and case managers to identify and protect vulnerable claimants.</li></ul> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 06/12/2018 12:48:25 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	3810 label Biography information for Baroness Meacher

1017032

	registered interest
	date	28/11/2018
	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	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they plan to undertake a comprehensive review of the impact of Universal Credit on vulnerable groups; and if so, what are their plans.
	tabling member printed	Lord Beecham
	uin	HL11877
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/12/2018 answer text <p>We routinely publish reviews of Universal Credit. Testing of managed migration will commence in July 2019, before taking on larger volumes from 2020. In the first year of managed migration, we expect to only move 10,000 people. In our response the Social Security Advisory Committee on the 5th November we committed to conducting detailed Equality Assessments of migration plans. This is an iterative process and will be fully evaluated with equality impacts reassessed in accordance with the evaluation. We will publish an assessment of the impacts of managed migration prior to increasing the scale.</p><p> </p><p>These include the Universal Credit Impact Assessment (December 2012) and the Universal Credit Programme Full Business Case Summary (June 2018), which sets out the rationale for Universal Credit as well as the financial impacts it is expected to have.</p><p> </p><p>I will also take this opportunity to draw attention to a recent comparison between Universal Credit and the social welfare system in Finland. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) report concludes that their universal credit approach for Finland would outperform their existing system and their proposed universal basic income, in terms of reducing poverty, providing a safety net, better targeting of finite resources and improved incentives to work. The OECD report is attached to this answer.</p><p> </p><p>We plan to publish a full evaluation of Universal Credit when it has been fully implemented.</p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe grouped question UIN HL11879 HL11880 HL11881 question first answered 12/12/2018 14:44:50 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe attachment 1 file name OECD article 28 Feb 18.pdf title OECD Article 28.2.18
	tabling member	4181 label Biography information for Lord Beecham

1017033

	registered interest
	date	28/11/2018
	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	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Universal Credit claimants have additional support needs; and how are such claimants identified, monitored and supported.
	tabling member printed	Lord Beecham
	uin	HL11878
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/12/2018 answer text <p>The information requested is not currently held in a consistent format by the Department.</p><p> </p><p>We are continuously reviewing and improving the service for vulnerable people who claim Universal Credit to ensure that it is accessible and responsive to their needs.</p><p> </p><p>To assist identification and claimant support, each Jobcentre Plus site has a complex needs toolkit in place. These are maintained and reviewed locally and contain a named single point of contact for areas such as Homelessness, Care leavers and Prison leavers.</p><p> </p><p>Work coaches receive training to help them identify and support vulnerable claimants, building a relationship to encourage claimants to openly discuss any concerns or problems as they emerge. We have introduced a function to ‘pin’ key profile notes so they are instantly visible to all staff helping a claimant.</p><p> </p><p>To help claimants who may struggle using online services or managing a monthly payment, Universal Support is available. This is advice, assistance or support to help Universal Credit claimants with managing their claim or award of Universal Credit administered by Citizen’s Advice following our brand new partnership.</p><p> </p><p>We have also increased the numbers of Disability Employment Advisers who now provide additional support to the work coaches so they can better personalise support as we continuously improve the offer available.</p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 12/12/2018 14:56:09 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	4181 label Biography information for Lord Beecham