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1648103

registered interest
date	27/06/2023
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: Poverty
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what fiscal steps he is taking to (a) tackle the impact of the benefit cap on low-income families and (b) help prevent increases in child poverty.
tabling member constituency	Dundee West
tabling member printed	Chris Law
uin	191327
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/07/2023 answer text <p>The Government is committed to reducing child poverty and supporting low-income families. We will spend around £276bn through the welfare system in Great Britain in 2023/24 including around £124bn on people of working age and their children.</p><p> </p><p>The Secretary of State reviewed the benefit cap levels in November 2022 and decided they should be increased from April 2023. The Secretary of State has a statutory obligation to review the benefit cap levels at least once every five years.</p><p> </p><p>With 1.05 million job vacancies across the UK, our focus remains firmly on supporting individuals, including parents, to move into, and progress in work, an approach which is based on clear evidence about the importance of employment - particularly where it is full-time - in substantially reducing the risks of child poverty and in improving long-term outcomes for families and children. The latest statistics show that in 2021/22 children living in workless households were around 5 times more likely to be in absolute poverty after housing costs than those where all adults work.</p><p> </p><p>To support those who are in work, from 1 April 2023, the National Living Wage (NLW) increased by 9.7% to £10.42 an hour for workers aged 23 and over - the largest ever cash increase for the NLW.</p><p> </p><p>At the Spring Budget, the Chancellor announced an ambitious package of measures designed to support people wherever they live in the UK to enter work, increase their working hours and extend their working lives.</p><p> </p><p>The Government recognises that high childcare costs can affect parents’ decisions to take up paid work or increase their working hours which is why, from 28 June, the changes to the Universal Credit (UC) childcare element announced in Spring Budget 2023 will provide generous additional financial support to parents moving into paid work and/or increasing their working hours.</p><p> </p><p>This government understands the pressures people are facing with the cost of living which is why we are providing total support of over £94bn over 2022-23 and 2023-24 to help households and individuals with the rising bills.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 03/07/2023 10:50:22 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4403 label Biography information for Chris Law

1646784

registered interest
date	22/06/2023
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	Private Rented Housing: York
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make a comparative assessment of (a) the adequacy of the Local Housing Allowance and (b) the average rental costs for accommodation in the geographical area covered by the Broad Rental Market Area for York; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	York Central
tabling member printed	Rachael Maskell
uin	190869
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/06/2023 answer text <p>The Department monitors the proportion of households in receipt of the Local Housing Allowance (LHA) whose monthly rent exceeds their LHA rate and the value of this shortfall.</p><p> </p><p>In York Central constituency, 63% of households have a shortfall averaging £180 a month. In York Outer constituency, 74% of households have a shortfall averaging £199 a month.</p><p> </p><p>The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions reviews LHA rates annually, usually in the Autumn, and in 2020 we spent almost £1 billion increasing LHA rates to the 30th percentile. The significant investment at that time has been maintained ensuring that everyone who benefited continues to do so. However, LHA rates are not intended to cover all rents in all areas.</p><p> </p><p>For those who require additional support, Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) can be paid to those entitled to Housing Benefit or the housing element of Universal Credit who face a shortfall in meeting their housing costs. Since 2011 the Government has provided nearly £1.6 billion to local authorities for households who need additional support with their housing costs.</p><p> </p><p>The Department does not collect data on rental costs for accommodation in each Broad Rental Market Area (BRMA), the Valuation Office Agency collects data on rental costs in England to produce the 30th percentile of market rents and publishes the list of rents utilised to calculate this. The latest list of rents for the period 1st October 2021 to 30th September 2022 is published <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/local-housing-allowance-list-of-rents-2023-24" target="_blank">here.</a></p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies grouped question UIN 190356 question first answered 27/06/2023 13:01:30 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
tabling member	4471 label Biography information for Rachael Maskell

1645671

registered interest
date	19/06/2023
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	Parental Pay: Labour Turnover
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of raising levels of (a) Statutory Maternity Pay and (b) Statutory Paternity Pay on staff retention.
tabling member constituency	York Central
tabling member printed	Rachael Maskell
uin	190119
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/06/2023 answer text <p>The standard rate of Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) and Statutory Paternity Pay (SPP) is reviewed annually. From April 2023, we increased the rate of SMP and SPP by September's CPI figure of 10.1 per cent to £172.48. There are no plans to review the impact of raising the rates outside of the annual uprating process.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 27/06/2023 12:42:16 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
tabling member	4471 label Biography information for Rachael Maskell

1645147

registered interest
date	15/06/2023
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	Maternity Pay: Minimum Wage
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing the rate of statutory maternity pay to the level of the national minimum wage.
tabling member constituency	Enfield North
tabling member printed	Feryal Clark
uin	189903
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/06/2023 answer text <p>The standard rate of Statutory Maternity Pay (SMP) is reviewed annually. From April 2023, we increased the rate of SMP by September's CPI figure of 10.1 per cent to £172.48. There are no plans to review the rate of SMP outside of the annual uprating process.<strong><br> <br> </strong></p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 23/06/2023 13:44:55 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
tabling member	4822 label Biography information for Feryal Clark

1645149

registered interest
date	15/06/2023
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	Maternity Pay
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he is taking steps with the Secretary of State for Business and Trade to raise awareness among new mothers of all employment status types about their rights to maternity pay.
tabling member constituency	Enfield North
tabling member printed	Feryal Clark
uin	189905
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/06/2023 answer text <p>Information about Statutory Maternity Pay and Maternity Allowance entitlement is available on GOV.UK.</p><p> </p><p>Some employers however may choose to offer more than the statutory minimum required, sometimes referred to as Occupational Maternity Pay.</p><p> </p><p>This is a matter between employer and employee.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 23/06/2023 13:46:53 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
tabling member	4822 label Biography information for Feryal Clark

1644583

registered interest
date	14/06/2023
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	Cold Weather Payments
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 effectiveness and targeting of Cold Weather Payments.
tabling member constituency	Solihull
tabling member printed	Julian Knight
uin	189537
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/06/2023 answer text <p>Cold Weather Payments are targeted at those most vulnerable to the cold including, older people in receipt of Pension Credit, disabled adults and children, and families with children under five who receive an income-related benefit.</p><p> </p><p>The Met Office review the Cold Weather Payment scheme each year to assess whether the linkages between postcode areas and weather stations remain the best available. The Department continues to monitor Cold Weather Payment policies and procedures to review the scheme's effectiveness.</p> answering member constituency Sevenoaks answering member printed Laura Trott question first answered 21/06/2023 13:29:34 answering member 4780 label Biography information for Laura Trott
tabling member	4410 label Biography information for Julian Knight

1642657

registered interest
date	07/06/2023
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	State Retirement Pensions: National Insurance Contributions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has made an estimate of the number of people who have purchased extra state pension top-ups since 12th October 2015.
tabling member constituency	North East Fife
tabling member printed	Wendy Chamberlain
uin	188378
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/06/2023 answer text <p>The State Pension top up was a scheme introduced on 12 October 2015 and ran until 5 April 2017. The scheme allowed people who reached State Pension age before 6 April 2016 to obtain extra State Pension income for life by making a voluntary lump sum National Insurance contribution (class 3A). Data was published <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/666282/state-pension-top-up-12-oct-2015-to-17-sept-2017.pdf" target="_blank">State Pension top up: 12 Oct 2015 to 17 Sept 2017 (publishing.service.gov.uk)</a> that shows that 13,200 people purchased State Pension top ups. The scheme ended on 5 April 2017, so no further people will be eligible to purchase State Pension top ups by 31 July 2023.Please note, this is a different scheme to VNICs.</p> answering member constituency Sevenoaks answering member printed Laura Trott grouped question UIN 188377 question first answered 15/06/2023 09:13:51 answering member 4780 label Biography information for Laura Trott
tabling member	4765 label Biography information for Wendy Chamberlain

1627777

registered interest
date	15/05/2023
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: Greater London
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department have made of trends in the distribution of food parcels in (a) Enfield North constituency, (b) the London Borough of Enfield and (c) London.
tabling member constituency	Enfield North
tabling member printed	Feryal Clark
uin	185157
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/05/2023 answer text <p>Foodbanks are independent, charitable organisations and HM Government does not have any role in their operation. As such, data on trends in the distribution of food parcels in Enfield North constituency, the London Borough of Enfield and London is not available.</p><p> </p><p>This government is committed to understanding and addressing poverty which is why we have published official estimates of foodbank use for the first time in March 2023.</p><p> </p><p>National statistics on food bank use for 2021/22 are available <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/family-resources-survey-financial-year-2021-to-2022" target="_blank">here</a>. We aim to publish statistics for 2022/23 in March 2024.</p><p> </p><p>In 2021/22, 3% of individuals, or 2.1m people, were living in households where a food bank has been used in the 12 months prior to the interview.</p><p> </p><p>In 2021/22, 2% of households in London used a foodbank in the 12 months prior to the interview.</p><p> </p><p>Statistics are not available at the constituency level.</p><p> </p><p>This Government is committed to a sustainable long-term approach to tackling poverty and supporting people on lower incomes. We will spend around £276bn through the welfare system in 2023/24, including around £124bn on people of working age and children and around £152 billion on pensioners. Of this, around £79 billion will be spent on benefits to support disabled people and people with health conditions. (GB, includes non-DWP spend, prices in 23-24 terms).</p><p> </p><p>Over 8 million UK households on eligible means tested benefits will receive additional Cost of Living Payments totalling up to £900 this financial year. Over 99% of initially eligible households have now been sent their first payment of £301 and more than eight million pensioner households across the UK will receive an additional £300 Cost of Living Payment during winter 2023-24 and over 6 million people across the UK on eligible ’extra-costs’ disability benefits will receive a further £150 Disability Cost of Living Payment this summer 2023, to help with the additional costs they face.</p><p> </p><p>For those who require extra support Government is also providing an additional £1 billion of funding, including Barnett impact, to enable a year-long extension of the Household Support Fund in England this financial year. This is on top of what we have already provided since October 2021, bringing total funding to £2.5 billion. It will be for the devolved administrations to decide how to allocate their additional Barnett funding. The London borough of Enfield been allocated £5,695,989 for the period 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024 to support those most in need with the cost of essentials, including those who may not be eligible for other Government support.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 23/05/2023 10:53:41 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
tabling member	4822 label Biography information for Feryal Clark

1625116

registered interest
date	02/05/2023
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
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 paragraph 3.30 of the Spring Budget 2023, HC 1183, published on 15 March 2023, whether the Government has set a target number of inactive individuals (a) of all ages and (b) aged over 50 to help return to work.
tabling member constituency	York Central
tabling member printed	Rachael Maskell
uin	183474
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/05/2023 answer text <p>The Government is committed to supporting inactive people of all ages into work and at the Spring Budget, announced substantial new investment to boost workforce participation.</p><p> </p><p>DWP measures at the Spring Budget represent an investment of £3.5bn over 5 years to boost workforce participation. This includes investment to support disabled people and those with long-term health conditions, parents, over-50s, unemployed people and people on Universal Credit and working fewer than full-time hours.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 15/05/2023 10:58:22 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4471 label Biography information for Rachael Maskell

1624179

registered interest
date	26/04/2023
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	Local Housing Allowance and Private Rented Housing: Cost of Living
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the increased rate of inflation and cost of living on (a) the adequacy of the Local Housing Allowance and (b) private renters.
tabling member constituency	North Down
tabling member printed	Stephen Farry
uin	182990
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/05/2023 answer text <p>The Government recognises the financial pressures tenants are facing and is providing total support of over £94bn over 2022-23 and 2023-24 to help households and individuals with the rising cost of living. Individuals who need help to make their rent payments may be eligible for a range of financial support through the welfare system.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>LHA determines the maximum amount of housing support for Housing Benefit and Universal Credit claimants renting in the private rented sector. LHA is not intended to meet all rents in all areas.</p><p> </p><p>In April 2020 LHA rates were raised to the 30th percentile of local market rents, a significant investment of almost £1 billion. We have maintained the increase since then so that everyone who benefited continues to do so.</p><p> </p><p>The Local Housing Allowance (LHA) policy is kept under regular review. We monitor average rents and housing support levels provided to claimants to assess the impact of the policy. Any assessment made is always within the context of the economic landscape at the time.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>For those who face a shortfall in meeting their housing costs and need further support, Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) are available from local authorities. Since 2011 the Government has provided nearly £1.6 billion in DHP funding to local authorities</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 09/05/2023 16:18:05 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
tabling member	4856 label Biography information for Stephen Farry