Show Search Form

Search Results

registered interest	true false
date	exactly: or between: and
answering body
answering dept id
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name
hansard heading
house id
legislature	pref label
question text
tabling member constituency
tabling member printed
uin
answer	is ministerial correction true false date of answer exactly: or between: and answer text answering member constituency answering member printed grouped question UIN question first answered answering member label
tabling member	label

Search

1306932

registered interest
date	12/04/2021
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: Remote Working
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the additional costs of working from home are taken into account when calculating universal credit payments for claimants who are working from home during covid-19 restrictions.
tabling member constituency	Stockton North
tabling member printed	Alex Cunningham
uin	178584
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/04/2021 answer text <p>A Universal Credit award is calculated on the basis of the set benefit rate against money coming in, to ensure fairness of treatment for all claimants against the money that they have available. This is a long-standing principle of means-tested benefits.</p><p> </p><p>Universal Credit rules align closely to tax legislation (Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003 (ITEPA)). Amounts that are taken into account for a Universal Credit award include those that are general earnings, as defined in section 7(3) of ITEPA. Amounts paid as expenses that are exempt from Income tax under Part 4 of ITEPA are not taken into account for a Universal Credit award.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 15/04/2021 14:38:00 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4122 label Biography information for Alex Cunningham

1307081

registered interest
date	12/04/2021
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	Disability Premium: Judgements
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to implement the Court of Appeal's decision in the case of R (TD & Ors) v Secretary of State for Work And Pensions [2020] EWCA Civ 618.
tabling member constituency	Lewisham, Deptford
tabling member printed	Vicky Foxcroft
uin	179272
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/04/2021 answer text <p>The Department is considering its response to the judgment and will communicate further details in due course.</p><p /><p /> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 15/04/2021 13:19:18 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4491 label Biography information for Vicky Foxcroft

1307636

registered interest
date	12/04/2021
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: Severe Disability Premium
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many universal credit claims were made by people who were both homeless and in receipt of severe disability premium in 2017.
tabling member constituency	Brentford and Isleworth
tabling member printed	Ruth Cadbury
uin	179166
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/04/2021 answer text <p>The Department does not centrally collate this data.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 179167 question first answered 15/04/2021 14:34:27 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4389 label Biography information for Ruth Cadbury

1307639

registered interest
date	12/04/2021
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: Severe Disability Premium
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many universal credit claims were made by people who were both homeless and in receipt of severe disability premiums in January 2017.
tabling member constituency	Brentford and Isleworth
tabling member printed	Ruth Cadbury
uin	179167
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/04/2021 answer text <p>The Department does not centrally collate this data.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 179166 question first answered 15/04/2021 14:34:27 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4389 label Biography information for Ruth Cadbury

1307955

registered interest
date	12/04/2021
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: Rents
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 potential merits of extending universal credit rent support to adult children living in their familiar home where that rent is not paid to a family member.
tabling member constituency	Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey
tabling member printed	Drew Hendry
uin	179234
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/04/2021 answer text <p>Housing Costs Support in Universal Credit is already available to any claimant with a rent liability for the home they live in, where that liability is on a commercial basis and not owed to a close relative who lives at the same address.</p><p> </p><p>There are no limitations on adult children who live at the same address as their parents from claiming housing costs support, so long as the above conditions are met.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 15/04/2021 12:54:28 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4467 label Biography information for Drew Hendry

1306237

registered interest
date	25/03/2021
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	Social Security Benefits: Rents
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of benefit claimants in (a) Coventry North East constituency, (b) Coventry, (c) the West Midlands and (d) England are in rent arrears; and what steps her Department is taking to support benefit claimants in those areas in rent arrears.
tabling member constituency	Coventry North East
tabling member printed	Colleen Fletcher
uin	175891
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/04/2021 answer text <p>We do not hold this information.</p><p> </p><p>For 2020/21 we are projected to have spent almost £30 billion to support renters with their housing costs. This includes a boost of almost £1 billion to the Local Housing Allowance (LHA) in response to Covid-19, which provided 1.5 million households in the private rented sector with around £600 more in housing support over the year. In 2021/22 all LHA rates will be maintained at their increased level, meaning claimants will continue to benefit from the significant increase in rates</p><p> </p><p>For those claimants struggling with their single monthly rent payment and as a result are at risk of financial harm there are alternative payment arrangements.</p><p> </p><p>For those who require additional support with housing costs Discretionary Housing Payments (DHP) are available. For 2021/22 £140m is being made available for DHPs. Since 2011 we have provided over £1 billion in DHP funding.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 13/04/2021 13:21:08 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4378 label Biography information for Colleen Fletcher

1306442

registered interest
date	25/03/2021
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	Unemployment: Older People
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent estimate she has made of the number of unemployed people aged over 60 who are unable to claim universal credit but (a) have not reached the state pension age and (b) have a low household income.
tabling member constituency	Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford
tabling member printed	Yvette Cooper
uin	175715
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/04/2021 answer text <p>No such estimate has been made.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 13/04/2021 13:28:18 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	420 label Biography information for Yvette Cooper

1305571

registered interest
date	24/03/2021
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: Grants
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 oral evidence given by the Minister for Welfare Delivery on 9 March 2021 to the Work and Pensions Committee and the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee, how her Department reached the conclusion that introducing a non-repayable grant for new universal credit claimants would cost about £2 billion to £2.5 billion per annum; and if she will publish the details of those costings.
tabling member constituency	East Ham
tabling member printed	Stephen Timms
uin	174714
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/04/2021 answer text <p>This estimate was derived from the Spring 2020 forecasts, which are based on the Department’s inflow forecasts, with an assumed take-up rate of 100%. There are no plans to introduce a non-repayable grant.</p><p> </p><p>New Claims Advances are the claimant’s benefit paid early, allowing claimants to access 100% of their estimated Universal Credit (UC) payment upfront. With a UC Advance, claimants receive an additional UC payment, resulting in 13 payments in a year rather than 12. From 12 April 2021, claimants have the option to spread twenty-five UC payments over twenty-four months, giving them more flexibility over the payments of their UC award. This will also allow claimants to retain more of their award, giving additional financial security.</p><p> </p><p>The Department’s deductions policy strikes a fair balance between a claimant’s need to meet their financial obligations and their ability to ensure they can meet their day-to-day needs. Since October 2019, UC deductions are a maximum of 30% of a claimant’s standard allowance down from 40% previously. We also recognise the importance of safeguarding the welfare of claimants who have incurred debt, so last resort deductions over the 30% cap can be applied to protect vulnerable claimants from eviction and/or having their fuel supply disconnected, by providing a repayment method for arrears of these essential services.</p><p>The main aim of the deductions policy in Universal Credit is to safeguard the welfare of claimants who have incurred debt in a cost effective and efficient way. It provides protection for claimants from the consequences of homelessness, imprisonment or having vital utilities disconnected. Regulations protect claimants from excessive deductions and there are no plans to suspend them.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 174715 question first answered 13/04/2021 13:26:07 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms

1305572

registered interest
date	24/03/2021
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: Grants
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 oral evidence given by the Minister for Welfare Delivery on 9 March 2021 to the Work and Pensions Committee and the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee, how her Department concluded that introducing non-repayable grants in universal credit would take two years or longer; and what assessment she has made of the barriers to introducing those grants more quickly.
tabling member constituency	East Ham
tabling member printed	Stephen Timms
uin	174715
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/04/2021 answer text <p>This estimate was derived from the Spring 2020 forecasts, which are based on the Department’s inflow forecasts, with an assumed take-up rate of 100%. There are no plans to introduce a non-repayable grant.</p><p> </p><p>New Claims Advances are the claimant’s benefit paid early, allowing claimants to access 100% of their estimated Universal Credit (UC) payment upfront. With a UC Advance, claimants receive an additional UC payment, resulting in 13 payments in a year rather than 12. From 12 April 2021, claimants have the option to spread twenty-five UC payments over twenty-four months, giving them more flexibility over the payments of their UC award. This will also allow claimants to retain more of their award, giving additional financial security.</p><p> </p><p>The Department’s deductions policy strikes a fair balance between a claimant’s need to meet their financial obligations and their ability to ensure they can meet their day-to-day needs. Since October 2019, UC deductions are a maximum of 30% of a claimant’s standard allowance down from 40% previously. We also recognise the importance of safeguarding the welfare of claimants who have incurred debt, so last resort deductions over the 30% cap can be applied to protect vulnerable claimants from eviction and/or having their fuel supply disconnected, by providing a repayment method for arrears of these essential services.</p><p>The main aim of the deductions policy in Universal Credit is to safeguard the welfare of claimants who have incurred debt in a cost effective and efficient way. It provides protection for claimants from the consequences of homelessness, imprisonment or having vital utilities disconnected. Regulations protect claimants from excessive deductions and there are no plans to suspend them.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 174714 question first answered 13/04/2021 13:26:07 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms

1304676

registered interest
date	22/03/2021
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: Languages
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what support is available to universal credit applicants whose first language is not English.
tabling member constituency	Glasgow East
tabling member printed	David Linden
uin	173150
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 26/03/2021 answer text <p>Universal Credit is designed to be a 'digital-first' service, ensuring we make best use of technology to deliver a modern and effective working-age welfare system, allowing our staff to concentrate on those people who require additional support. Although the Department offers comprehensive support for claimants to use our digital service, there will be occasions when people are unable to make their claim online, so telephone applications are accepted.</p><p> </p><p>Foreign Language interpreting help is available, in writing and by telephone, to assist claimants who may require additional support. Claimants can also access free telephony and web support through the Citizen's Advice Help to Claim service.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 26/03/2021 15:34:46 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4640 label Biography information for David Linden