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1274701

registered interest
date	08/01/2021
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: Maladministration
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department’s staff can retrospectively correct information posted on a claimant’s universal credit journal without including an acknowledgement of the Department’s error.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	134451
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/01/2021 answer text <p>Work Coaches and Case Managers are prevented from amending or deleting Universal Credit journal entries made by a claimant.</p><p> </p><p>Staff members can retrospectively amend information they have posted to the Universal Credit journal, however claimants should receive an explanation to justify the amendment.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 13/01/2021 17:58:22 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1226560

registered interest
date	20/07/2020
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 the evidential basis is for her Department's decision to restrict the eligibility criteria for a work allowance as part of universal credit.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	76740
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/07/2020 answer text <p>Work Allowances remain focussed on providing an additional work incentive for some of the more vulnerable claimants and are just one of many elements of Universal Credit designed to provide work incentives and support to people moving into and progressing in work.</p><p> </p><p>The Government has made significant investment to improve Universal Credit’s generosity through the reduction in the taper rate from 65% to 63% in 2017, and an extra £1.7 billion a year put into Work Allowances by 2023/24, increasing them by £1,000 a year for working parents and disabled claimants, from April 2019 - an extra £630 a year in the pockets of 2.4 million of the lowest paid families.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 28/07/2020 16:25:58 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1240392

registered interest
date	05/10/2020
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: Coronavirus
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 covid-19 outbreak on the level of (a) absolute and (b) relative poverty.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	98976
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/10/2020 answer text <p>We understand that this is a difficult time for people on low incomes and we’ve taken significant action to support those affected by Coronavirus, including through income protection schemes, mortgage holidays and additional support for renters. For those most in need we’ve injected more than £9 billion into the welfare system, which includes an increase to Universal Credit of up to £1,040 this financial year.</p><p>Distributional analysis published by HMT in July 2020 shows the Impact of Covid-19 on working household incomes. This publication shows that the lowest income decile of working households has seen no fall in income due to Government measures that have been put in place. This is available here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/impact-of-covid-19-on-working-household-incomes-distributional-analysis-as-of-may-2020" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/impact-of-covid-19-on-working-household-incomes-distributional-analysis-as-of-may-2020</a></p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 08/10/2020 16:49:29 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1170314

registered interest
date	13/01/2020
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	Employment: Poverty
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 07 January 2020 to Question 318 on Employment: Poverty, what steps she is taking to reform to the welfare system to tackle in-work poverty; and if she will end the sanctions regime for universal credit.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	2556
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/01/2020 answer text <p>Universal Credit, at the heart of our welfare reforms, aims to reduce the number of workless households by reducing the financial and administrative barriers to work that existed in the previous system of legacy benefits.</p><p> </p><p>In recent years the Government has made significant investment to improve work incentives including:</p><p>o the reduction in the UC taper rate from 65% to 63% in 2017; and.</p><p>o An extra £1.7 billion a year put into UC work allowances for working parents and disabled claimants to increase them by £1,000 a year from April 2019. Providing a boost to the incomes of the lowest paid and resulting in 2.4 million families keeping an extra £630 per year of what they earn.</p><p> </p><p>We have also taken a range of broader steps to help families keep more of what they earn including another rise in the National Living Wage to £8.21 and increasing a full-time worker’s annual pay by over £2,750 since its introduction. Tax changes have also made basic rate taxpayers over £1,200 better off since April, compared with 2010. The most recent changes mean that, from April, a single person on the National Minimum Wage is taking home over £13,700 a year after income tax and National Insurance – £4,500 more than in 2009/10. Additionally, further help is being provided to working families by doubling free childcare to 30 hours a week for nearly 400,000 working parents of three and four-year-olds and introducing Tax-Free Childcare, worth up to £2,000 per child per year;</p><p> </p><p>The Government has no plans to remove sanctions but continue to monitor the operation of the policies and processes to ensure the sanctions system remains clear, fair and effective in promoting positive behaviours.</p><p> </p><p>The Government believes that these improvements help people on UC to keep more of what they earn, support employment and help to make work pay.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 16/01/2020 17:12:05 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1280619

registered interest
date	26/01/2021
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: Maladministration
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 13 January 2021 to Question 134451, what redress claimants are given in addition to an explanation, in circumstances where they are unable to identify an incorrect decision or payment as a result of her Department's staff having retrospectively amended their universal credit journal.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	143771
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/02/2021 answer text <p>Universal Credit payment information is provided through an online statement which provides a breakdown of entitlement following the end of each monthly assessment period. Work Coaches and Case Managers are unable to alter these statements as they are automatically generated based on individual claimant circumstances, including any decisions made by the Department that effect the award amount. If a claimant cannot resolve an issue through their journal or via the freephone Universal Credit helpline, formal complaints can be raised by following the Department’s complaints procedure which is published on <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-work-pensions/about/complaints-procedure" target="_blank">GOV.UK</a></p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 01/02/2021 16:12:59 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1242078

registered interest
date	09/10/2020
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: Lone Parents
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she plans to offer tailored support for jobseeking single parents on universal credit with pre-school-aged children.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	101285
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/10/2020 answer text <p>Universal Credit is committed to helping parents prepare for work, move into work and stay in work.</p><p> </p><p>Work coaches have the ability to tailor the frequency and type of face-to-face support they offer to the needs of each lone parent or lead carer. Generally, lone parents and lead carers need to prepare for work when their youngest child reaches age 2 and will be required to look for and be available for work when their youngest child is aged 3. Additional safeguards apply during this period and any work-related expectations will be limited to a maximum of 16 hours per week because they are caring for a pre-school age child. Those expected to look for work may limit the time they can spend travelling to and from work and have additional time to attend an interview or take up work so they can make childcare arrangements.</p><p> </p><p>Flexible Support Fund (FSF) is a discretionary fund available for use by Jobcentre Plus Service Leaders and work coaches.</p><p> </p><p>The fund has many uses and could be used to contribute to upfront childcare costs, but it’s core purpose is supporting our customers back into employment through the removal of barriers and funding innovative programmes which sit outside of our mainstream contracted provision.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 14/10/2020 16:28:49 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1178359

registered interest
date	13/02/2020
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 her Department plans to introduce a work allowance for all universal credit claimants who do not meet the existing criteria; and if she will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	1945
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/02/2020 answer text <p>Universal Credit is a modern, flexible, personalised benefit reflecting the rapidly changing world of work and replaces six outdated and complex benefits with one. It is simplifying the benefits system and making work pay. Monthly assessment periods align to the way the majority of people are paid and also allows Universal Credit to be adjusted each month. This means that if a claimant’s income falls, they will not have to wait several months for a rise in their Universal Credit.</p><p> </p><p>The Government has made significant investment to improve work incentives including: the reduction in the Universal Credit taper rate from 65% to 63% in 2017, and an extra £1.7 billion a year put into work allowances for working parents and disabled claimants to increase them by £1,000 a year from April 2019. This is providing a boost to the incomes of the lowest paid and result in 2.4 million families keeping an extra £630 per year of what they earn.</p><p> </p><p>We are committed to helping the most vulnerable to improve their life chances by tackling the root causes of poverty, and ensuring that children have the best possible start in life continue to reform the welfare system so that it promotes work as the most effective route out of poverty and is fairer towards those who receive it and the taxpayers who pay for it. We also want to identify opportunities to create a highly productive workforce, improving progression prospects for the lowest paid people so everyone has the right skills to meet the UK’s future demand.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 24/02/2020 18:08:40 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1276735

registered interest
date	14/01/2021
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: ICT
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 13 January 2021 to Question 134451 on Universal Credit: Maladministration, for what reason can welfare benefits staff retrospectively amend information they have posted to a claimant's universal credit journal; and if she will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	137946
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/01/2021 answer text <p>Universal Credit guidance is routinely published in the House of Commons’ Library. Guidance is themed by topic and work areas; within these instructions the role of the journal is outlined, including how and when it should be used for messaging claimants.</p><p> </p><p>Journal entries can be deleted in specific circumstances, including where messages are addressed to the wrong claimant, personal or sensitive information has been added, or an incorrect letter has been uploaded. However, as stated in my response to Question 134451, claimants should receive an explanation to explain any changes to their journal messages. There are exceptions to providing explanation of amendments which can apply if it would be inappropriate to do so due to a claimant’s personal circumstances.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 137947 137948 question first answered 19/01/2021 15:24:33 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1276736

registered interest
date	14/01/2021
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: ICT
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 13 January 2021 to Question 134451 on Universal Credit: Maladministration, what steps she is taking to ensure that claimants receive an explanation for each retrospective amendment made to journal entries by a staff member.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	137947
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/01/2021 answer text <p>Universal Credit guidance is routinely published in the House of Commons’ Library. Guidance is themed by topic and work areas; within these instructions the role of the journal is outlined, including how and when it should be used for messaging claimants.</p><p> </p><p>Journal entries can be deleted in specific circumstances, including where messages are addressed to the wrong claimant, personal or sensitive information has been added, or an incorrect letter has been uploaded. However, as stated in my response to Question 134451, claimants should receive an explanation to explain any changes to their journal messages. There are exceptions to providing explanation of amendments which can apply if it would be inappropriate to do so due to a claimant’s personal circumstances.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 137946 137948 question first answered 19/01/2021 15:24:33 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1276737

registered interest
date	14/01/2021
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: Maladministration
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 13 January 2021 to Question 134451 on Universal Credit: Maladministration, if she will publish the guidance her Department provides to staff on retrospective amendments to journal entries.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	137948
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/01/2021 answer text <p>Universal Credit guidance is routinely published in the House of Commons’ Library. Guidance is themed by topic and work areas; within these instructions the role of the journal is outlined, including how and when it should be used for messaging claimants.</p><p> </p><p>Journal entries can be deleted in specific circumstances, including where messages are addressed to the wrong claimant, personal or sensitive information has been added, or an incorrect letter has been uploaded. However, as stated in my response to Question 134451, claimants should receive an explanation to explain any changes to their journal messages. There are exceptions to providing explanation of amendments which can apply if it would be inappropriate to do so due to a claimant’s personal circumstances.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 137946 137947 question first answered 19/01/2021 15:24:33 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray