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1126310

	registered interest
	date	13/05/2019
	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	Working Links: Insolvency
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of Working Links going into administration on the charities to which it owed money.
	tabling member printed	Lord Hogan-Howe
	uin	HL15670
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/05/2019 answer text <p>The Department considered the impact on stakeholders and sub-contractors, based on the Administrator’s statement of affairs at the point of Working Links going into administration, and has worked with both the Administrator and Fedcap, who have taken over a number of Working Links contracts, to minimise the impact on those supply chain partners owed monies by Working Links at the point of administration.</p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 28/05/2019 14:19:29 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	4693 label Biography information for Lord Hogan-Howe

1130235

	registered interest
	date	05/06/2019
	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: Repayments
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the case for modifiying the repayment of Universal Credit advance payments in order to take into account individual circumstances such as debts related to (1) utilities, (2) Council Tax, and (3) previous loans.
	tabling member printed	Lord Hylton
	uin	HL16096
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/06/2019 answer text <p>The Department recognises the importance of safeguarding the welfare of claimants who have incurred debt. Universal Credit already has procedures and regulations in place to protect claimants from excessive deductions. The maximum rate of deductions cannot normally exceed 40 per cent of the Universal Credit standard allowance, and from October 2019 this will be reduced to 30 per cent.</p><p> </p><p>The average advance amount for new claims is around £400, which can be repaid over a period of 12 months, at a rate of £33.33 per month. Therefore, in the majority of cases, advance payment recovery is small in comparison to the whole Universal Credit award, with a current average award of £658 per month.</p><p> </p><p>We recognise that exceptional circumstances may occur to claimants that were not foreseen when the advance was taken out. Help is available for those struggling to meet the recovery rate once recovery begins and if the claimant is facing unexpected financial hardship they can ask the Department for a deferral of the repayment of any advance they have taken out. The deferral periods are up to 3 months for a new claim, benefit transfer or change of circumstances advance and up to 6 months for a Budgeting advance.</p><p> </p><p>Where a claimant has a reduction in benefit due to a Fraud Penalty or Conditionally Sanction that equals or exceeds 40% of their Universal Credit standard allowance then no advance repayment will be taken. If there is insufficient Universal Credit in payment due to reductions such as earnings, other income and capital yield to take the full amount of advances repayment, a lesser amount will be taken.</p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 19/06/2019 11:35:17 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	2018 label Biography information for Lord Hylton

1127016

	registered interest
	date	15/05/2019
	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	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government how many applicants for Universal Credit have made their application by means other than the online application system since its introduction; and what are the available methods for doing so.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Sherlock
	uin	HL15777
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/05/2019 answer text <p>The Universal Credit Full Service Claimant Survey found that 98 per cent of claimants claimed online.</p><p> </p><p>For those claimants who are unable to access or use our digital services, assistance to make and maintain their claim is available via the Freephone Universal Credit helpline. Face-to-face support is also available in Jobcentres. In exceptional circumstances, a home visit can be arranged to support a claimant in making and maintaining their claim.</p><p> </p><p>Furthermore, the Citizens Advice Help to Claim service offers tailored, practical support to help people make a Universal Credit claim and receive their first full correct payment on time. It is available online, over the phone and face to face through local Citizens Advice services across Great Britain.</p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 29/05/2019 13:36:32 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	4147 label Biography information for Baroness Sherlock

1128073

	registered interest
	date	22/05/2019
	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	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the recommendations to improve information provision for Universal Credit claimants in the report by the Child Poverty Action Group Computer says ‘No!' Stage one: information provision, published in May.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Lister of Burtersett
	uin	HL15922
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/06/2019 answer text <p>Universal Credit is designed to react and respond quickly to feedback from our stakeholders and claimants to improve the service we offer. This means that any report based on a view of the service at a given date may well be inaccurate only a short period afterwards.</p><p> </p><p>This is the case with this Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) report. The report does not take into account recent changes to the Universal Credit Statement which ensures that claimants receive detailed information about any deductions which have been made to their Universal Credit award, including a clear breakdown of what each deduction is for. Consequently, the Department has written to CPAG about the report, outlining the up to date position on these issues and inviting CPAG and his Honour Judge Sir Stephen Sedley, who wrote the report’s foreword, to meet to discuss these matters.</p><p> </p><p>The Department will continue to make improvements to Universal Credit to ensure that we provide claimants with the information they need to understand their Universal Credit award.</p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 06/06/2019 13:50:42 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	4234 label Biography information for Baroness Lister of Burtersett

1132639

	registered interest
	date	17/06/2019
	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	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to start the pilot of Universal Credit managed migration in July; if so, when in July; and what meetings they have held with stakeholders to discuss any such pilot.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Lister of Burtersett
	uin	HL16417
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/06/2019 answer text <p>We plan to commence the Move to UC pilot when the necessary preparations are in place, subject to management checks of readiness. Preparations are proceeding to plan.</p><p>Stakeholder engagement has been and continues to be a vital part of the work we are doing on Universal Credit. Since last October we have been working closely with a diverse range of stakeholders to listen to their views and to better understand their concerns, to ensure the widest possible range of insights are played into the design of the process for moving claimants from legacy benefits onto Universal Credit.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 25/06/2019 13:40:22 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	4234 label Biography information for Baroness Lister of Burtersett

1132641

	registered interest
	date	17/06/2019
	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	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Buscombe on 6 June (HL15922), whether the information provided about deductions in the Universal Credit statement includes information about how much debt is left to pay and the recovery rate being applied.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Lister of Burtersett
	uin	HL16419
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/07/2019 answer text <p>This information is not currently included on a claimant’s Universal Credit statement.</p><p> </p><p>Under Universal Credit there is a structured and simplified approach to deductions from benefit. Claimants can view their Universal credit statement online to see how their award is calculated and a breakdown of what deductions are being made, supporting them to manage their financial obligations.</p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 01/07/2019 14:21:27 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	4234 label Biography information for Baroness Lister of Burtersett

1131883

	registered interest
	date	12/06/2019
	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	State Retirement Pensions: Greater Manchester
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government how many pensioners aged 75 and over receive (1) state pension, and (2) pensioner credit, in each of the ten districts of Greater Manchester.
	tabling member printed	Lord Bradley
	uin	HL16301
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/06/2019 answer text <p>In November 2018, the number of pensioners aged 75 and over claiming the State Pension and Pension Credit in the Greater Manchester districts can be found in the table below.</p><p> </p><p><strong>Pension Credit and State Pension Recipients by district</strong></p><p><strong> </strong></p><table><tbody><tr><td><p><strong> </strong></p></td><td><p><strong>State Pension</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Pension Credit</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Bolton</p></td><td><p>21,321</p></td><td><p>4,859</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Bury</p></td><td><p>15,189</p></td><td><p>2,790</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Manchester</p></td><td><p>21,524</p></td><td><p>8,290</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Oldham</p></td><td><p>16,374</p></td><td><p>3,746</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Rochdale</p></td><td><p>15,231</p></td><td><p>3,798</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Salford</p></td><td><p>16,157</p></td><td><p>4,255</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Stockport</p></td><td><p>27,258</p></td><td><p>4,239</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Tameside</p></td><td><p>17,049</p></td><td><p>3,790</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Trafford</p></td><td><p>19,359</p></td><td><p>3,006</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Wigan</p></td><td><p>26,354</p></td><td><p>5,416</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 24/06/2019 15:00:45 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	452 label Biography information for Lord Bradley

1134314

	registered interest
	date	24/06/2019
	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	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the current (1) weekly rates of Child Benefit, and (2) monthly rates of Universal Credit standard allowances and child elements; and what would each of those rates have been had they not been frozen for the past four years.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Lister of Burtersett
	uin	HL16599
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/07/2019 answer text <p>Work is the best route out of poverty and for people to be more financially independent. Our welfare reforms are part of the Government’s commitment to incentivise moves into work and progression in work, and to better support working families.</p><p>The Department completed an Impact Assessment titled ‘Welfare Reform and Work Bill: Impact Assessment of the Benefit rate freeze’ in July 2015 which included information surrounding the policy objectives and the intended effects. Benefits for the additional costs of disability, and for carers, are exempt from the benefit freeze.</p><p>Currently the weekly rate of Child Benefit is £20.70 for the eldest or only child and £13.70 for additional children.</p><p>Universal Credit is made up of a standard allowance and any additional amounts which apply to claimants with certain circumstances, such as dependent children. The current monthly rates for the requested Universal Credit components are shown in the tables below.</p><p> </p><p><strong>Standard allowance</strong></p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>Single and under 25</p></td><td><p>£251.77</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Single and over 25</p></td><td><p>£317.82</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>In a couple and both under 25</p></td><td><p>£395.20 (for both)</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>In a couple and either are 25 or over</p></td><td><p>£498.89 (for both)</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p><strong>Child components</strong></p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>For the first child</p></td><td><p>£277.08 (born before 6 April 2017) £231.67 (born on or after 6 April 2017)</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>For the second or other eligible children</p></td><td><p>£231.67</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>For a disabled or severely disabled child</p></td><td><p>£126.11 or £392.08</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>We are unable to determine what each of the rates would have been had they not been subject to a freeze, as the legacy system is not comparable with Universal Credit.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 08/07/2019 15:17:12 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	4234 label Biography information for Baroness Lister of Burtersett

1127442

	registered interest
	date	20/05/2019
	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	Poverty: Children
	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 Agnew of Oulton on 16 May (HL15606), whether they will now answer the question put.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Primarolo
	uin	HL15853
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/06/2019 answer text <p>The information on numbers of children entering and exiting poverty is not available. However, figures for percentages of children moving in and out of poverty are collected in the Income Dynamics publication. These are available in Table 8.1, and in the table below:</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p>2010-2011 to 2011-2012</p></td><td><p>2011-2012 to 2012-2013</p></td><td><p>2012-2013 to 2013-2014</p></td><td><p>2013-2014 to 2014-2015</p></td><td><p>2014-2015 to 2015-2016</p></td><td><p>2015-2016 to 2016-2017</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>% children entering poverty</strong></p></td><td><p>6</p></td><td><p>6</p></td><td><p>6</p></td><td><p>7</p></td><td><p>6</p></td><td><p>7</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>% children exiting poverty</strong></p></td><td><p>34</p></td><td><p>35</p></td><td><p>37</p></td><td><p>33</p></td><td><p>33</p></td><td><p>35</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>The percentage of children entering poverty is the percentage of only those children who were <em>not in poverty</em> in the earlier year but who were in poverty the following year. The percentage of children exiting poverty is the percentage of only those children who were <em>in poverty </em>in the earlier year but who were out of poverty the following year. Entry and exit rates are very different (since entry / exit rates are expressed as a percentage of only those not previously in poverty / previously in poverty respectively).</p><p /><p>The threshold used is 60 per cent of median equivalised household income Before Housing Costs (BHC). Since household incomes are subject to measurement error, and the threshold is subject to sampling and measurement error, the analysis only includes ‘clear’ transitions. For an entry/exit to count, household incomes must cross the 60 per cent of median income threshold and be at least 10 per cent higher / lower than the threshold in the following year.</p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 04/06/2019 16:27:01 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	217 label Biography information for Baroness Primarolo

1134319

	registered interest
	date	24/06/2019
	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	Poverty: Children
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government how many children who live in a household where at least one adult is employed are currently living in absolute poverty after housing costs.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Primarolo
	uin	HL16604
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/07/2019 answer text <p>National statistics on the number of children in absolute poverty in a family where at least one adult is employed can be calculated from figures published in the annual &quot;Households Below Average Income&quot; publication.</p><p>In 2017/18, 2.5m children were in absolute poverty (after housing costs) in families with at least one adult in employment. However, nearly half of these families are in part time work only, or are self-employed</p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 08/07/2019 14:38:48 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	217 label Biography information for Baroness Primarolo