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1109510

	registered interest
	date	03/04/2019
	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	Poverty: Children
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the effect of the benefit freeze on child poverty rates.
	tabling member constituency	East Ham
	tabling member printed	Stephen Timms
	uin	240462
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/04/2019 answer text <p>An Impact Assessment of the benefit freeze was published in 2015. The Welfare Reforms such as the benefit freeze were designed to incentivise parents to choose to move into and progress in work. Evidence shows that work is the best route out of poverty. Children in workless households are five time more likely to be in poverty than those in households where all adults were working.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 08/04/2019 10:56:13 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms

1110573

	registered interest
	date	09/04/2019
	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	Universal Credit: Housing
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to ensure that universal credit adequately supports social housing tenants paying rent weekly to meet their obligations in relation to the 53 week year.
	tabling member constituency	East Ham
	tabling member printed	Stephen Timms
	uin	242667
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/04/2019 answer text <p>No year contains 53 weeks. This perceived issue of their being 53 weeks in a year arises where a landlord charges rent weekly on a Monday and, because of the way the calendar falls every 5 or 6 years, seeks 53 rent payments in a year, with the 53rd payment in part covering the tenancy for the first few days of the following year.</p><p>Universal Credit payments are designed to mirror the world of work, with monthly payments reflecting the way many working people are paid. This model of monthly payments allows claimants to take responsibility for budgeting their own income and helps prepare them for getting back to work. The Money and Pension Service can provide debt advice and money guidance to claimants if they need support managing their monthly Universal Credit payments.</p><p>We are aware of a separate issue with respect to the way the calculation in the Universal Credit regulations converts a weekly liability into a monthly allowance. The conversion is achieved by multiplying the weekly rent by 52 and then dividing by 12. This effectively means one day’s rent a year (two days in a leap years) are not covered by UC. We are currently considering whether this formulation around weekly rents, and potentially other weekly amounts in the UC calculation, should be amended.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 15/04/2019 14:48:11 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms

1124957

	registered interest
	date	07/05/2019
	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: Mortgages
	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 the difficulties faced by universal credit claimants applying for a mortgage; and if she will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	East Ham
	tabling member printed	Stephen Timms
	uin	251193
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/05/2019 answer text <p>The Financial Conduct Authority Handbook sets out rules and guidance for lenders. This provides that, prior to entering into a mortgage, a lender must assess whether the customer will be able to pay the sums due and must not enter into the transaction unless it can demonstrate that the mortgage is affordable for the customer (and any guarantor).</p><p> </p><p>It is up to individual lenders to determine how to ensure adherence to this requirement. Each lender is required to publish a written statement setting out the factors it will take into account in assessing a customer's ability to pay. This must, inter alia, address how income and expenditure is to be assessed, including details of the types of income which are acceptable.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 13/05/2019 12:55:26 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms

1124268

	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	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, what steps she is taking to promote the use of benefits calculators to help ensure that people claim the benefits to which they are entitled.
	tabling member constituency	East Ham
	tabling member printed	Stephen Timms
	uin	249806
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/05/2019 answer text <p>The independent benefits calculators we endorse are intended to provide useful estimations of what people can get in certain circumstances, based on what information is entered on the calculators themselves. This is to allow people to safely explore what help they may receive from Universal Credit before they apply, or based on potential changes of circumstances.</p><p> </p><p>Information on accessing independent benefit calculators is readily available via the gov.uk website. This includes links to three independent calculators and advice on the type of information required to complete a calculation.</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/benefits-calculators" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/benefits-calculators</a></p><p> </p><p>In addition, DWP staff will signpost post people to independent benefit calculators and websites which provide additional advice and guidance.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 08/05/2019 15:40:26 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms

1121768

	registered interest
	date	18/04/2019
	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	Universal Credit
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she has plans to change her Department’s policy on consent requirements for authorised representatives to act on behalf of claimants of universal credit.
	tabling member constituency	East Ham
	tabling member printed	Stephen Timms
	uin	245555
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/04/2019 answer text <p>We have had a number of workshops with stakeholders during which consent has been discussed, and we plan to do further work on explicit consent. This activity will include working with claimants and their representatives to ensure the process works effectively for vulnerable claimants to access the service.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 25/04/2019 10:32:29 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms