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1176713

registered interest
date	06/02/2020
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, what recent steps she has taken to ensure that universal credit claimants paying rent weekly do not face a one-week shortfall in their UC housing element in 2020.
tabling member constituency	Aberavon
tabling member printed	Stephen Kinnock
uin	13476
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/02/2020 answer text <p>Neither tenants or landlords lose a week’s rent in a 53 weekly rent payment year as has been alleged; no year contains 53 weeks. The problem is alignment between weekly and monthly cycles. Each month the UC housing element is a constant figure but claimants with weekly tenancy agreements will be required to make either four or five rent payments within this period. If the claimant always pays their rent on time, in five payment months they are effectively making payment for part of the following month. That month will always be a four rent payment month, so the combination of the advance payment and the ‘overpayment’ of housing support during that month will result in the correct amount of housing element being paid.</p><p> </p><p>Where a landlord charges rent weekly on a Monday, because of the way the calendar falls every 5 or 6 years, they will seek 53 rent payments in a year, with the 53rd payment in part covering the tenancy for the first few days of the following year. The effect of this is that, over the course of the next housing association rental year, a tenant’s UC payments will accurately reflect their liability, irrespective of the 53 payment weeks.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 11/02/2020 10:37:53 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4359 label Biography information for Stephen Kinnock

1176774

registered interest
date	06/02/2020
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: Fraud
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many fraudulent cases of universal credit advance were (a) recorded and (b) processed at Jobcentres in (i) Preston, (ii) Blackburn, (iii) Blackpool and (iv) Bolton; what the value was of those fraudulent claims; and how much each claimant had to repay as a result of a fraudulent claim made on their behalf by a third party in the last two years.
tabling member constituency	Preston
tabling member printed	Sir Mark Hendrick
uin	13420
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/02/2020 answer text <p>I estimate that providing the information you request would incur disproportionate costs.</p><p> </p><p>However, let me assure you that the Department takes this issue very seriously. We have set up a dedicated team to investigate this type of fraud and are proactively addressing it by using messaging on social media to remind people of the importance of safeguarding their identity, as well as shutting down social media sites that promote this fraud.</p><p> </p><p>We have also made changes to the Universal Credit advance application process. Universal Credit claimants who wish to apply for a new claim advance are now required to attend a face to face interview. This change will help protect claimants from identity fraud and becoming victims of third party scams.</p><p> </p><p>If a claimant has been the victim of a scam, and has not benefited from an advance in any way, they will not be asked to repay it. In these cases, we will seek recovery from the perpetrator of the scam. The Department considers all cases on their own merits and decisions are made on the strength of the evidence provided.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 14/02/2020 12:40:00 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	473 label Biography information for Sir Mark Hendrick

1176895

registered interest
date	06/02/2020
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, pursuant to the Answer of 5 February 2020 to Question 10760, on Universal Credit, how many case managers were working on the roll-out of universal credit in December (a) 2014, (b) 2015, (c) 2016, (d) 2017, (e) 2018 and (f) 2019; and what her estimate is of the average number of cases managed by a case manager in each of those months.
tabling member constituency	Glasgow South West
tabling member printed	Chris Stephens
uin	13531
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/02/2020 answer text <p>Between November 2014 and September 2017, Universal Credit Full Service was going through its Pilot phase, during which resourcing levels were regularly reviewed in line with the growing needs of the Pilot.</p><p> </p><p>Upon conclusion of the Universal Credit Pilot in September 2017, UC Full Service began rolling out throughout the remainder of the country in a phased approach, which concluded in December 2018. The latest published Caseload position for UC stands at 2,084,952 cases (August 2019 figure), at which point there were 4,508 Case Managers deployed within Universal Credit Service Centres supporting UC claimants, with each Case Manager on average handling 463 cases.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 14/02/2020 14:59:15 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4463 label Biography information for Chris Stephens

1176896

registered interest
date	06/02/2020
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	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 her oral contribution of 7 October 2019, Official Report, column 1496, what recent assessment she has made of the level of minimum income that a person needs to meet essential living costs after the benefits freeze ends in 2020.
tabling member constituency	Newcastle upon Tyne Central
tabling member printed	Chi Onwurah
uin	13532
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/02/2020 answer text <p>The Secretary of State completed her annual review of benefits and pensions in November and I refer you to her statement of 4 November:</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-statement/Commons/2019-11-04/HCWS74/" target="_blank">https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-statement/Commons/2019-11-04/HCWS74/</a></p><p> </p><p>We continue to monitor the impact of our policies by assessing the trends in low income, using our annual Households Below Average Income publication.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 11/02/2020 10:16:26 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4124 label Biography information for Chi Onwurah

1176309

registered interest
date	05/02/2020
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, with reference to the High Court judgment of 11 January 2019, [2019] EWHC 23 (Admin), on universal credit and periodic assessments of income, what submissions on remedies her Department has made to the court.
tabling member constituency	Kilmarnock and Loudoun
tabling member printed	Alan Brown
uin	12944
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/02/2020 answer text <p>The judgment affects a small number of people on Universal Credit (UC), with specific characteristics. The Department is currently appealing this judgment, and as such will await the outcome of that process before taking any further action.</p><p>Monthly assessment periods align to the way the majority of employees are paid and also allows UC 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 UC.</p><p>The amount of UC paid to claimants reflects the actual circumstances of a household during each monthly assessment period, as closely as possible<strong>.</strong></p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 14/02/2020 14:59:59 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4470 label Biography information for Alan Brown

1176403

registered interest
date	05/02/2020
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, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of aligning the timescales for payment of universal credit and direct payments to landlords to ensure that tenants are not falsely shown to be in arrears.
tabling member constituency	Mansfield
tabling member printed	Ben Bradley
uin	12993
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/02/2020 answer text <p>Alternative Payment Arrangements (APAs), such as a Managed Payment to Landlord (MPtL), are available to enable the housing costs element to be paid directly to the landlord if the tenant is likely to have difficulty in managing their rent payments or is in rent arrears. APAs will only be considered where a lack of financial capability poses a risk to the claimant, or their family, and the decision to implement one is assessed on a case by case basis.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 14/02/2020 15:01:21 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4663 label Biography information for Ben Bradley

1175969

registered interest
date	04/02/2020
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 she plans to change the calculation of universal credit payments to take account of when earnings are scheduled to be paid to claimants.
tabling member constituency	Kilmarnock and Loudoun
tabling member printed	Alan Brown
uin	12354
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/02/2020 answer text <p>Assessment periods allow for UC awards to be adjusted on a monthly basis, ensuring that if a claimant’s income changes, they do not have to wait several months for a corresponding change in their UC award.</p><p> </p><p>Earnings are taken into account in the assessment period they are received and in this way the UC paid to claimants reflects, as closely as possible, the actual circumstances of a household during each monthly assessment period.</p><p> </p><p>The Department has been working closely with HM Revenues and Customs (HMRC) since UC went live in 2013 to support and inform employers who report payroll earnings, to emphasise the importance of timely reporting via the Real Time Information (RTI) system.</p><p> </p><p>HMRC have updated their guidance to reiterate to employers the importance of reporting payroll accurately and the impact of reporting payments late.</p><p> </p><p>Employers should already record on HMRC’s RTI system the date a salary is scheduled to be paid, rather than the date it is paid, where it is earlier due to a weekend, bank holiday or at Christmas.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 12286 question first answered 12/02/2020 16:34:51 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4470 label Biography information for Alan Brown

1176012

registered interest
date	04/02/2020
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 funding is available to existing universal credit claimants to pay for childcare so that they are not required to pay up front and claim the money back.
tabling member constituency	Walthamstow
tabling member printed	Stella Creasy
uin	12273
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/02/2020 answer text <p>The Universal Credit childcare policy aligns with the wider government childcare offer, which includes free childcare hours and tax free childcare. Claimants can utilise both the free childcare entitlement and Universal Credit childcare costs in conjunction with each other. This offer means that reasonable childcare costs should not form a barrier to work. The Government is committed to supporting parents with moving into work and, as part of this, Universal Credit pays up to 85% of childcare costs, compared to 70% in legacy benefits.</p><p> </p><p>The Flexible Support Fund (FSF) can pay up to 100% of the upfront childcare costs (subject to payment limits) that the claimant incurs before starting work and receiving their first wage. Through FSF, work coaches can support claimants with barriers that may prevent them from moving into employment, such as childcare or travel costs. Each case is considered carefully on its own merits with financial help available in advance to eligible claimants.</p><p> </p><p>Universal Credit claimants are able to upload digital copies of their childcare cost receipts or invoices through their online Universal Credit account. In October 2019, the Department introduced changes to give parents longer to report their childcare costs. Childcare costs can be claimed in the same assessment period they were paid, or by the end of the following assessment period.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 10/02/2020 13:15:45 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4088 label Biography information for Stella Creasy

1176037

registered interest
date	04/02/2020
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, what plans her Department has to introduce a mechanism into universal credit to allow claimants to move their review date, in order to avoid fluctuations in their benefit payments when there is no change in wages.
tabling member constituency	Filton and Bradley Stoke
tabling member printed	Jack Lopresti
uin	12286
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/02/2020 answer text <p>Assessment periods allow for UC awards to be adjusted on a monthly basis, ensuring that if a claimant’s income changes, they do not have to wait several months for a corresponding change in their UC award.</p><p> </p><p>Earnings are taken into account in the assessment period they are received and in this way the UC paid to claimants reflects, as closely as possible, the actual circumstances of a household during each monthly assessment period.</p><p> </p><p>The Department has been working closely with HM Revenues and Customs (HMRC) since UC went live in 2013 to support and inform employers who report payroll earnings, to emphasise the importance of timely reporting via the Real Time Information (RTI) system.</p><p> </p><p>HMRC have updated their guidance to reiterate to employers the importance of reporting payroll accurately and the impact of reporting payments late.</p><p> </p><p>Employers should already record on HMRC’s RTI system the date a salary is scheduled to be paid, rather than the date it is paid, where it is earlier due to a weekend, bank holiday or at Christmas.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 12354 question first answered 12/02/2020 16:34:51 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	3989 label Biography information for Jack Lopresti

1176093

registered interest
date	04/02/2020
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	Housing Benefit: Foster Care
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many foster carers are subject to the spare room subsidy in England and Wales.
tabling member constituency	Luton North
tabling member printed	Sarah Owen
uin	12445
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/02/2020 answer text <p>The Removal of the Spare Subsidy (RSRS) policy allows one additional bedroom for approved foster carers, who have a child placed with them or are between placements. This is provided the period in which they don’t have a child or young person placed with them does not exceed 12 months.</p><p> </p><p>Information on how many foster cares are subject to the spare room subsidy in England and Wales is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 10/02/2020 17:30:23 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4777 label Biography information for Sarah Owen