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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

1134313

	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
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Baroness Buscombe on 19 June (HL Deb, col 771), on what occasions the UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights was "not keen to engage" with UK officials.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Lister of Burtersett
	uin	HL16598
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/07/2019 answer text <p>Department for Work and Pensions officials liaised extensively with the Special Rapporteur’s office over the arrangements for his visit to the UK last November. From the outset, his staff were clear that Professor Alston’s priority was to secure meetings with UK Government Ministers.</p><p> </p><p>DWP proposed meetings and round tables with senior officials across the relevant departments so that topics, including health, housing and welfare benefits, could be explored in more detail. The scope and time available for these meetings was significantly curtailed as the Special Rapporteur’s office asked that meetings with parliamentary committees and other public bodies, for example the National Audit Office, be prioritised over meetings with UK Government officials.</p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 08/07/2019 13:50:34 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	4234 label Biography information for Baroness Lister of Burtersett

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

1135078

	registered interest
	date	26/06/2019
	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 (Managed Migration Pilot and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2019
	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 25 June (HL16417), why the draft Universal Credit (Managed Migration Pilot and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2019, which were laid on 14 January, have not yet been tabled for debate and affirmative resolution in the House of Lords.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Lister of Burtersett
	uin	HL16705
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/07/2019 answer text <p>On 3 May 2019, the High Court handed down a judgment in relation to Universal Credit and the Severe Disability Premium (SDP). The judgment quashed the SDP related parts of the draft Universal Credit (Managed Migration Pilot and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2019. The Department is currently considering the options open to us and will respond in due course.</p><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 09/07/2019 15:01:08 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	4234 label Biography information for Baroness Lister of Burtersett

1136764

	registered interest
	date	03/07/2019
	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, further to the answer by Baroness Buscombe on 25 June (HL Deb, col 1004), what sources they used to inform their statements that the UK (1) delivers the fourth most generous level of welfare support in the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), (2) spends more on family benefits than any other country in the G7, and (3) spends the second highest amount on family benefits as a share of GDP, in the OECD.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Lister of Burtersett
	uin	HL16914
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/07/2019 answer text <p>(1) This statement was due to official error. We are the fourth most generous country according to the UN 2019 World Happiness Report. The UK spends £220bn on welfare each year, providing vital financial support for the most vulnerable in society.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>(2) and (3) These two statements come from OECD 2015 data (<a href="https://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?datasetcode=SOCX_AGG" target="_blank">https://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?datasetcode=SOCX_AGG</a>). 2015 data is used as it is the most recent full data set. Please note that OECD definitions do not always match UK definitions, but insure data is comparable across OECD countries.</p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 17/07/2019 14:09:48 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	4234 label Biography information for Baroness Lister of Burtersett

1138288

	registered interest
	date	10/07/2019
	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: Uprating
	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 8 July (HL16599), what would (1) the weekly rates of Child Benefit, and (2) the monthly rates of Universal Credit standard allowances and child elements have been, if they had been raised in line with the Consumer Price Index.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Lister of Burtersett
	uin	HL17085
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/07/2019 answer text <p>If the weekly rates of child benefit had been uprated with CPI the rates would have been:</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p>Amount in 2019/20 if they had been uprated with CPI</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>First Child Rate</p></td><td><p>22.05</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Subsequent Child Rate</p></td><td><p>14.60</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>If the monthly rates for the Universal Credit standard allowance and child element had been uprated with CPI from 2016/17 to 2019/20 the rates would have been:</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p>Amount in 2019/20 if they had been uprated with CPI</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Single under 25</p></td><td><p>268.21</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Single 25 and over</p></td><td><p>338.57</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Joint claimants both under 25</p></td><td><p>420.99</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Joint claimants one or both over 25</p></td><td><p>531.46</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Child amount (standard amount)</p></td><td><p>246.79</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>More information on benefit uprating can be found at: <a href="https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/CBP-8458/CBP-8458.pdf" target="_blank">https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/CBP-8458/CBP-8458.pdf</a></p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 23/07/2019 13:37:41 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe attachment 1 file name Briefing Paper -Benefits Uprating 2019.pdf title Briefing Paper -Benefits Uprating 2019
	tabling member	4234 label Biography information for Baroness Lister of Burtersett

1141929

	registered interest
	date	24/07/2019
	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: Pilot Schemes
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the statement by Baroness Buscombe on 23 July (HL Deb, cols 680–691), what plans they have to ensure that Parliament will debate the report of the evaluation of the pilot to move existing welfare claimants to Universal Credit before regulations are laid concerning the full roll-out of managed migration; and how long that pilot is scheduled to last.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Lister of Burtersett
	uin	HL17473
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/09/2019 answer text <p>We have already said that following the pilot we will report back to Parliament on progress and findings, and at that point will determine the process for bringing forward further legislation to move claimants beyond the pilot phase.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>The Universal Credit (Managed Migration Pilot and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2019 introduced in July 2019 allow the Department to pilot moving no more than 10,000 claimants across to Universal Credit from legacy benefits and is expected to last until November 2020.</p><p>Draft regulations were sent for scrutiny to the independent Social Security Advisory Committee (SSAC) in 2018. The Committee submitted them for a formal public consultation, receiving 455 responses - the Government accepted, in whole or in part, all but one of the Committee’s recommendations.</p><p>The revised regulations mean claimants, who are potentially eligible for Severe Disability Premium (SDP) transitional payments, can now start receiving payment. As the recently published statistics show we have paid over 6,300 claims worth over £16 million<strong>. </strong>Eligible claimants may receive up to an additional £405 per month on top of their existing Universal Credit award, depending on their specific circumstances. The Department estimates that by 2024-25, approximately 45,000 of the most vulnerable claimants will benefit from this package of support for those former SDP recipients, worth an estimated £600 million over the next six years.</p> answering member printed Baroness Stedman-Scott question first answered 02/09/2019 15:49:50 answering member 4174 label Biography information for Baroness Stedman-Scott
	tabling member	4234 label Biography information for Baroness Lister of Burtersett

1144170

	registered interest
	date	03/09/2019
	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
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government why the objectives listed in the departmental plan for the Department for Work and Pensions makes no reference to (1) reducing poverty, and (2) the Sustainable Development Goal on poverty.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Lister of Burtersett
	uin	HL17658
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/09/2019 answer text <p><del class="ministerial">It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.</del></p><p><ins class="ministerial">As clearly set out in the Government’s published response to the Voluntary National Review of the Sustainable Development Goal 1, we are committed to delivering a sustainable, long-term solution to reducing poverty through welfare reforms that ensure that the benefits system works with the tax system and the labour market to support employment and higher pay. There is clear evidence that full-time work dramatically reduces the risk of poverty for working families; for example, there is only a 7% chance of a child being in poverty (relative, after housing costs) if both parents work full-time compared with 66% for children in (two-parent) families with only part-time work. </ins></p><p><ins class="ministerial"><ins class="ministerial"><ins class="ministerial">Although not directly referenced, our approach to reducing poverty is already reflected in our Single Departmental Plan which sets out how we plan to achieve our key strategic objectives including delivering an effective labour market strategy that boosts employment among under-represented and disadvantaged groups and facilitating progression; and consolidating the delivery of Universal Credit so that it works for everyone.</ins></ins></ins></p><p><ins class="ministerial"><ins class="ministerial"><ins class="ministerial"><ins class="ministerial"><ins class="ministerial">Universal Credit, at the heart of our reforms, has already shown that it is more effective in getting people into work than the legacy benefits it replaces. Nine months into a UC claim, 40% of claimants are working for an employer in a paid role, compared with only 23% at the start of their claim. This is a key approach to provide a sustainable solution to reducing poverty.</ins></ins></ins></ins></ins></p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Baroness Stedman-Scott question first answered 09/09/2019 15:42:45 question first ministerially corrected 03/10/2019 13:26:53 answering member 4174 label Biography information for Baroness Stedman-Scott previous answer version 134986 answering member printed Baroness Stedman-Scott answering member 4174 label Biography information for Baroness Stedman-Scott
	tabling member	4234 label Biography information for Baroness Lister of Burtersett