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1123703

registered interest
date	29/04/2019
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	Food Poverty: Children
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 Food Foundation's Children’s Future Food Inquiry report published on 24 April 2019, what steps the Government is taking to support children who live in food insecure households.
tabling member constituency	Barnsley Central
tabling member printed	Dan Jarvis
uin	248684
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/05/2019 answer text <p>This Government is committed to helping families into work, as the best route out of poverty. We are also supporting over 1 million children with free school meals, investing up to £26 million in school breakfast clubs, providing approximately 2.3 million children aged 4-6 with a portion of fresh fruit or vegetables each day at school, and, through the Healthy Start Programme, hundreds of thousands of low income families benefit from vouchers which can be redeemed against fruit, vegetables, milk and infant formula. In 2019/20, the government will be spending more than £95 billion a year on working-age benefits. The new set of food insecurity questions introduced into the existing Family Resources Survey from April will build a better understanding of household food needs, to help ensure we’re targeting support to those most in need.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 02/05/2019 10:21:47 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4243 label Biography information for Dan Jarvis

1171106

registered interest
date	15/01/2020
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	Universal Credit
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 new claims for universal credit were paid in full and on time by (a) child element, (b) limited capability for work element, (c) childcare element and (d) housing element in the most recent 12 months for which figures are available.
tabling member constituency	Glasgow South West
tabling member printed	Chris Stephens
uin	3829
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/01/2020 answer text <p>Our latest data shows the proportion of new Universal Credit claims paid in full on time was 88.4%. In many cases where full payment is not made on time, it is due to unresolved issues such as: claimants not accepting their Claimant Commitment or passing identity checks, or having outstanding verification issues, such as housing costs and self-employed earnings.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>The latest available information on payments made in full and on time to Universal Credit claimants is published and can be found at:</p><p><a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/" target="_blank">https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/</a>.</p><p> </p><p>Guidance on how to extract the information required can be found at:</p><p><a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Getting-Started.html" target="_blank">https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Getting-Started.html</a></p><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 20/01/2020 14:16:58 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4463 label Biography information for Chris Stephens

1172107

registered interest
date	20/01/2020
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	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 estimate she has made of the number of universal credit claimants who have had a (a) waiver and (b) reduction in deductions to their monthly payments on the grounds of hardship in the latest period for which figures are available.
tabling member constituency	Glasgow South West
tabling member printed	Chris Stephens
uin	5464
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/01/2020 answer text <p>The Department has an obligation to ensure that public funds are administered responsibly and to abide by the principles set out in Her Majesty’s Treasury’s guidance on Managing Public Money. Waiver applications have to be considered in line with this guidance. Debts can only be waived if recovery is causing substantial medical and/or financial hardship to a claimant or their immediate family.</p><p> </p><p>In 2019/20 (up to 31<sup>st</sup> December 2019), there were 10 Universal Credit claimants who had their debts waived.</p><p> </p><p>We understand the impact that debt can have on the wellbeing of claimants and we endeavour to ensure that the recovery of any overpayment is managed in a way that takes account of the claimant’s individual circumstances. Where a person says they cannot afford the proposed rate of recovery, a reduction in their rate of repayment may be agreed.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>In 2019/20 (up to 31<sup>st</sup> December 2019), 159,000 Universal Credit claimants had the rate at which they were repaying a benefit overpayment reduced.</p><p> </p><p><em>*The figures provided in this response have been sourced from internal management information and were not intended for public release. They should therefore not be compared to any other similar figures subsequently released by the Department. The figure relating to the number of debts waived has been rounded to the nearest 10, and the figure relating to reductions in repayment rates has been rounded to the nearest 1,000. It is important to note that debts waived may not all relate to Universal Credit.</em></p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 23/01/2020 16:30:45 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4463 label Biography information for Chris Stephens

1172110

registered interest
date	20/01/2020
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	Universal Credit
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will place in the Library the (a) code of practice and (b) decision-making process governing universal credit deductions.
tabling member constituency	Glasgow South West
tabling member printed	Chris Stephens
uin	5467
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/01/2020 answer text <p>The Department’s deductions policy strikes a fair balance between a claimant’s need to meet their obligations and their ability to ensure they can meet their day-to-day needs. From October 2019, Universal Credit deductions have been reduced to 30% of a claimant’s standard allowance down from 40% to better achieve these objectives.</p><p> </p><p>Deductions are made following the priority order, which determines the order in which items should be deducted. ‘Last resort’ deductions, such as rent or fuel costs, are at the top of the priority order, ensuring that claimant welfare is prioritised, followed by social obligation deductions, such as child maintenance, and finally benefit debt, such as Social Fund loans and benefit overpayments.</p><p> </p><p>The Department collects and analyses data on Universal Credit regularly, including on the rate of deductions. Alongside this, the Department is always building our understanding on the impact deductions can have on claimants, and has heard evidence from external organisations on this issue. We have to balance these impacts with the need for claimants to meet their obligations.</p><p> </p><p>The Code of Practice ‘What happens if you are overpaid Universal Credit, Jobseeker’s Allowance or Employment and Support Allowance?’ was deposited in the Library 6 May 2014. Deposit reference ‘DEP2014-0790’ refers.</p><p> </p><p><a href="http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/business-papers/commons/deposited-papers/" target="_blank">http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/business-papers/commons/deposited-papers/</a></p><p /><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 23/01/2020 16:48:27 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4463 label Biography information for Chris Stephens

1105461

registered interest
date	27/03/2019
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 support her Department provides to families who have been reunited through refugee family reunion to access the social security system.
tabling member constituency	Bristol West
tabling member printed	Thangam Debbonaire
uin	237691
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/04/2019 answer text <p>Those who have joined a family member in the UK through refugee family reunion are entitled to the same support as any other person. As with anyone else, they will be assessed to ascertain whether they have complex needs and whether they require additional support to access DWP services.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 05/04/2019 11:10:01 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4433 label Biography information for Thangam Debbonaire

1105463

registered interest
date	27/03/2019
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: Refugees
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions she has had with the Home Secretary on collaboration between the Home Office and her Department to ensure that refugees are able to access the employment support and social security benefits that they are entitled to.
tabling member constituency	Bristol West
tabling member printed	Thangam Debbonaire
uin	237692
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/04/2019 answer text <p>The Department for Work and Pensions is working in partnership with the Home Office to improve processes for refugees claiming benefits. In order to achieve this aim we have set up the Post Grant Appointment Scheme (PGAS).</p><p> </p><p>The scheme involves contacting persons at the point when they are granted refugee status to see if they wish to apply for benefits and require assistance to do so. If they say they do, an appointment at a local DWP office is arranged for them.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 05/04/2019 10:22:09 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4433 label Biography information for Thangam Debbonaire

1108887

registered interest
date	01/04/2019
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	Employment: Veterans
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps the Government is taking to support armed forces veterans into employment.
tabling member constituency	Romford
tabling member printed	Andrew Rosindell
uin	239329
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/04/2019 answer text <p>The Armed Forces Covenant has been in place since May 2011 and sets out the relationship between the nation, the Government and the Armed Forces. The covenant is a written and publicised voluntary pledge from businesses and other organisations who wish to demonstrate their support for the armed forces community.</p><p> </p><p>The covenant can be signed by a business or other organisation of any size, and from any industry whether they are an employer of a member of the armed forces community or simply wish to acknowledge publically their support for the armed forces.</p><p> </p><p>The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) National Employer and Partnership Team (NEPT) actively promote the Armed Forces Covenant to those employers and partner organisations they work with. This has been adopted into routine business to ensure that those new to DWP’s employer portfolio are aware of the opportunity and benefits of support to the Armed Forces community.</p><p> </p><p>Every Jobcentre Plus District has an Armed Forced Champion (AFC) who is key to delivering our commitments under the covenant. The AFC will ensure that any concerns and issues raised which affect Service Personnel and their families are integrated within the wider work of Jobcentre Plus. AFCs ensure Work Coaches and other DWP staff can effectively support serving personnel, service leavers, veterans and their families.</p><p> </p><p>In addition to the local activity in Jobcentres to support veterans our National Employer and Partnership Team (NEPT) also work closely with the Ministry of Defence to align engagement activity in support of the veteran’s strategy. In particular NEPT work closely with the MOD Careers Transition Partnership (CTP) and the Defence Relationship Management (DRM) team to encourage large employers, trade body associations and partner organisations to provide practical support to the Armed Forces Covenant, particularly the employment of veterans.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 05/04/2019 12:15:41 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	1447 label Biography information for Andrew Rosindell

1109019

registered interest
date	02/04/2019
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	Food Banks: Scotland
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 her Department has made of the level of foodbank use in Scotland.
tabling member constituency	Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill
tabling member printed	Hugh Gaffney
uin	240070
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/04/2019 answer text <p>The Department for Work and Pensions has not made an assessment of the levels of foodbank use in Scotland.</p><p>The welfare system provides a strong safety net for those who need it, spending over £95 billion a year on welfare benefits for people of working age. This includes a well-established system of hardship payments, benefit advances and budgeting loans as an additional safeguard for those who need them.</p><p> </p><p>Jobcentre mangers have discretion to work with food banks in their local area; and we are exploring how to build on current good practice to make it as easy as possible for food banks to identify and refer back to the local Jobcentre any customers who may not be receiving the full formal support to which they are entitled</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 08/04/2019 15:57:42 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4614 label Biography information for Hugh Gaffney

1109209

registered interest
date	02/04/2019
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	Support for Mortgage Interest
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the effectiveness of replacing the Support for Mortgage Interest scheme with a loans-based system from April 2018.
tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
uin	240106
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/04/2019 answer text <p>Support for Mortgage Interest is designed to provide protection against the threat of repossession. The new loans system provides exactly the same level of support and provides exactly the same level of protection from repossession as the previous system. We continue to work closely with the lending industry to ensure the scheme delivers its intended aim. The conversion of SMI from a benefit to a loan is estimated to save around £140m in welfare spending.</p><p> </p><p>The Department is using evidence from a number of sources to assess the impact of the conversion to a loan on an on-going basis, including management information on claimant take up and feedback from stakeholder groups, including via our regular liaison with UK Finance, to assess whether there are unintended consequences for particular groups.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 08/04/2019 12:59:13 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1109337

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	Children: Maintenance
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Deduction from Earnings Orders have been set up at the point of application since changes were made to the collection and enforcement powers of the Child Maintenance Service in (a) the UK (b) Scotland and (c) Linlithgow and East Falkirk constituency in the last 12 months.
tabling member constituency	Linlithgow and East Falkirk
tabling member printed	Martyn Day
uin	240593
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/04/2019 answer text <p>Information on whether a Deduction from Earnings Order was set up at the point of application is not readily available and to provide it will incur disproportionate cost.</p><p>You might be interested in Table 11: Enforcement Actions which highlights Enforcement Actions used by the Child Maintenance Service, including the number of ongoing Deduction from Earnings Orders or Requests.</p><p>These statistics are published online at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-on-the-2012-statutory-child-maintenance-scheme" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-on-the-2012-statutory-child-maintenance-scheme</a></p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 08/04/2019 13:03:11 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4488 label Biography information for Martyn Day