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 question first answered answering member label
tabling member	label

Search

1147829

registered interest
date	02/10/2019
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: 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 she has made of the effect of the time taken for universal credit payments to be made to claimants on trends in the level of food bank use in Scotland.
tabling member constituency	Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill
tabling member printed	Hugh Gaffney
uin	293692
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/10/2019 answer text <p>The Department does not keep official statistics on food bank use, so no such assessment has been completed. Some food aid providers produce statistics on the number of food parcels distributed, but the Government has no plans to require individual food banks to keep records as this would place a significant burden on charitable and voluntary organisations.</p><p> </p><p>We have listened to feedback on how we can improve Universal Credit to support our claimants and acted quickly, making improvements such as extending advances, removing waiting days, and introducing housing benefit run on. These changes are giving support to vulnerable people who need it most, whilst at the same time helping people get into work faster.</p><p> </p><p>Furthermore, in Scotland, the Department delivers Universal Credit Scottish choices on behalf of the Scottish Government, providing the option of Universal Credit being paid twice a month rather than monthly, and having Universal Credit housing element being paid directly to landlords.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 08/10/2019 10:07:32 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4614 label Biography information for Hugh Gaffney

1130982

registered interest
date	10/06/2019
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: Scotland
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she has made an assessment of the effect of universal credit on the level of rent arrears owed to Scottish local authorities; and if she will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill
tabling member printed	Hugh Gaffney
uin	262433
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/06/2019 answer text <p>The Department has not made an assessment of this nature.</p><p> </p><p>Caution should be exercised when considering any assessment of arrears derived from local authority level data which seeks to compare the legacy and Universal Credit welfare systems. This is because they do not compare groups with the same characteristics; typically, the legacy benefit group have been on benefits for some time, where the arrears may be under long-term management. The Universal Credit group, on the other hand, are often new to benefits, and are likely to have experienced a change in their circumstances – for example, a debt-creating event like losing a job or separation. Any arrears for this group will not have been under management and had time to clear.</p><p> </p><p>The initial analytical work we have carried out with a housing provider suggests that many tenants are arriving on Universal Credit with pre-existing rent arrears, that their arrears tend to increase prior to making a claim for Universal Credit, and that Universal Credit actually appears to be helping to clear arrears over time. We are currently extending this analysis to include a number of other housing providers. It will be published when completed. Furthermore, according to latest figures in November 2018 about 8 per cent of social rented households were on Universal Credit; therefore, it is difficult to see how a national trend can be attributed to Universal Credit.</p><p> </p><p>We have, however, responded to concerns in this area by putting a number of safeguards in place, such as 100% advances repayable over 12 months, increasing to 16 months in October 2021; a two-week Transition to Universal Credit Housing Payment; a new Help to Claim service to assist people to make their claim more easily; and Managed Payment to Landlord Arrangements, which allow for payments direct to the landlord if the tenant is likely to have difficulty in managing their rent payments, is unlikely to pay their rent or is in rent arrears equivalent to two months.</p><p> </p><p>Furthermore, in Scotland, the Department delivers Universal Credit Scottish choices on behalf of the Scottish Government, providing the option of Universal Credit being paid twice a month rather than monthly, and having Universal Credit housing element being paid directly to landlords.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 18/06/2019 15:28:46 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4614 label Biography information for Hugh Gaffney

1105936

registered interest
date	28/03/2019
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	Universal Credit: Scotland
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in receipt of universal credit in Scotland have a mental health condition.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	238368
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/04/2019 answer text <p>Currently we do not report aggregate information about whether or not a claimant has a mental health condition and to collate and quality assure this information would incur disproportionate costs.</p><p> </p><p>Our work coaches receive training to ensure they can offer effective support to different claimant groups. This enables them to provide tailored support and gain an excellent understanding of whether their claimants have, have had in the past, or might cycle in and out of having a mental health condition or extra support needs.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 04/04/2019 15:49:43 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1105937

registered interest
date	28/03/2019
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	Universal Credit: Scotland
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what mental health training is provided to work coaches; and how many work coaches in Scotland have received mental health training to date.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	238369
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/04/2019 answer text <p>DWP is committed to providing the best possible support for all our claimants, including the most vulnerable in society. We are continuously reviewing and improving the service for vulnerable people to ensure that it is accessible and responsive to their needs.</p><p> </p><p>Work Coaches undergo a comprehensive training programme designed to equip them with the skills and knowledge required to provide a high quality service to all claimants. Specific training and guidance is provided for working with different vulnerable groups and those with complex needs including claimants with mental health conditions.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, Work Coaches have completed a two-day workshop, designed by experts in mental health and psychologists, and delivered where possible alongside external mental health partners. The training began in November 2017 and was completed at the end of March 2019. April 2019 will see the start of delivering this training to staff across the entire organisation who are employed in a claimant facing role, whether they engage with claimants by telephone, face to face or digitally.</p><p> </p><p>At the end of March 2019 all 1589 Work Coaches in Scotland had received Mental Health Training.</p><p> </p><p>* The data supplied is derived from unpublished management information, which was collected for internal Departmental use only and has not been quality assured to National Statistics or Official Statistics publication standard. The data should therefore be treated with caution</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 04/04/2019 16:37:06 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1060754

registered interest
date	13/02/2019
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: Scotland
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 effect of the roll-out of universal credit in Scotland on provision of services for lone parents and disadvantaged families by (a) local authorities and (b) third sector organisations.
tabling member constituency	Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath
tabling member printed	Lesley Laird
uin	221025
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/02/2019 answer text <p>We have not made an assessment of the effect of the roll-out of universal credit in Scotland on provision of services for lone parents and disadvantage families by Local Authorities and third party sector organisations.</p><p>We are committed to helping parents into work. Childcare is essential in enabling parents to work, although we recognise that this can cause additional financial difficulty.</p><p>Universal Credit claimants are able to claim up to 85 per cent of their childcare costs, compared to 70 per cent on the legacy system. People with an offer of paid work can also get childcare costs paid a month in advance.</p><p>On 11 January 2019, Secretary of State Rt. Hon Amber Rudd MP announced measures that will provide increased support for Universal Credit (UC) claimants. This included piloting a more flexible approach to claimants reporting childcare costs, which will allow people to be reimbursed for childcare even when they aren’t able to provide immediate evidence.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 21/02/2019 14:07:46 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
tabling member	4660 label Biography information for Lesley Laird

1002030

registered interest
date	05/11/2018
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: Scotland
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 Government news release of 1 October 2018 entitled Citizens Advice to provide support to Universal Credit claimants, how much funding she plans to allocate to Citizens Advice in Scotland to provide that support; and what plans she has to provide funding for areas that do not have a Citizens Advice office.
tabling member constituency	Inverclyde
tabling member printed	Ronnie Cowan
uin	188154
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/11/2018 answer text <p>For Citizens Advice Scotland the grant award is £1,323,412 in 2018/19 and £4,085,919 in 2019/20. Citizens Advice Scotland is committed to providing a Universal Support service across Scotland</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 16/11/2018 14:42:10 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
tabling member	4465 label Biography information for Ronnie Cowan

992803

registered interest
date	22/10/2018
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: Scotland
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what her Department’s timetable is for providing automatic split payments of universal credit in Scotland.
tabling member constituency	Midlothian
tabling member printed	Danielle Rowley
uin	182288
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/10/2018 answer text <p>Universal Credit Scottish Choices (Flexibilities), including split payments, are a matter for the Scottish Government as part of the Scotland Act 2016. We continue to work closely with the Scottish Government to support the development and implementation of this policy.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 25/10/2018 14:00:38 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
tabling member	4628 label Biography information for Danielle Rowley

967937

registered interest
date	04/09/2018
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: Scotland
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions her Department has had with (a) Glasgow Housing Association, (b) Southside Housing Association, (c) Elderpark Housing Association, (d) Glenoaks Housing Association, (e) Govan Housing Association, (f) Linthouse Housing Association, (g) Rosehill Housing Association, (h) Sanctuary Scotland Housing Association, (i) Home Group Scotland and (j) Blackwood Housing on (i) service rollout of universal credit and (ii) access to the Landlord Portal; and if she will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Glasgow South West
tabling member printed	Chris Stephens
uin	170371
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/09/2018 answer text <p>Following the successful pilot of the Landlord Portal Service, DWP is enrolling more landlords in stages, in tandem with the expansion of Universal Credit Full Service. Priority has been placed on enrolling the largest landlords that are eligible where possible in order to maximise the number of Universal Credit claimants that can be handled via the portal. By December 2018 we will have covered 90% of social tenancies on the portal, and we are looking at how best to complete rollout for small landlords.</p><p> </p><p>Representatives from all the organisations listed have been invited to Universal Credit Full Service events, jointly hosted by DWP and Glasgow City Council, with the vast majority attending. Those that have not attended have had follow up calls or visits and will be invited to future events. All Registered Social Landlords have now been given escalation contacts for each Jobcentre, and we will continue to work closely with landlords, local authorities, housing associations and other organisations to ensure the successful rollout of Universal Credit.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 10/09/2018 16:33:01 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
tabling member	4463 label Biography information for Chris Stephens

934831

registered interest
date	04/07/2018
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: Scotland
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 effect on low-income families of the roll-out of universal credit in Scotland.
tabling member constituency	Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill
tabling member printed	Hugh Gaffney
uin	160813
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/07/2018 answer text <p>I refer the hon. Member to the answer I provided to Question <a href="https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2018-02-26/129558/" target="_blank">129558</a> on 1 March 2018.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 12/07/2018 14:51:57 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
tabling member	4614 label Biography information for Hugh Gaffney

933970

registered interest
date	02/07/2018
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: Scotland
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 cost to the public purse of administering split payments of universal credit for claimants in Scotland.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Frank Field
uin	159520
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/07/2018 answer text <p>The information requested is not currently available.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 05/07/2018 15:26:29 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
tabling member	478 label Biography information for Lord Field of Birkenhead