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

1187482

registered interest
date	24/03/2020
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Employee Ownership
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what plans he has to promote employee share ownership schemes; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	34354
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/04/2020 answer text <p>I refer the Honourable Member to my written answer of 24 March 2020:</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-03-16/29951/" target="_blank">https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-03-16/29951/</a></p><p> </p> answering member constituency Hereford and South Herefordshire answering member printed Jesse Norman question first answered 21/04/2020 14:13:17 answering member 3991 label Biography information for Jesse Norman
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1187483

registered interest
date	24/03/2020
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Employee Ownership
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he plans to protect participants in employee share ownership schemes from losing their tax relief when a trustee acts in breach of trust; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	34355
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/04/2020 answer text <p>I refer the Honourable Member to my written answer of 19 March 2020:</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-03-16/29950/" target="_blank">https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2020-03-16/29950/</a></p> answering member constituency Hereford and South Herefordshire answering member printed Jesse Norman question first answered 21/04/2020 14:14:20 answering member 3991 label Biography information for Jesse Norman
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1182692

registered interest
date	04/03/2020
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	Jobcentres: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what contingency plans her Department has made in the event of a covid-19 outbreak in job centres; and if she will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	25116
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/03/2020 answer text <p>DWP has contingency plans in place that prioritise activities to protect payments to claimants and access to new claims when capacity is compromised.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 09/03/2020 17:02:53 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1182693

registered interest
date	04/03/2020
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	Social Security Benefits: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department plans to enforce conditionality on people claiming benefits who have been affected by covid-19; and if she will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	25117
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/03/2020 answer text <p>Claimants who are self-isolating as a result of Covid-19 will have their mandatory work search and work availability requirements removed to account for a period of sickness.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 09/03/2020 17:06:15 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1178359

registered interest
date	13/02/2020
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, whether her Department plans to introduce a work allowance for all universal credit claimants who do not meet the existing criteria; and if she will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	1945
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/02/2020 answer text <p>Universal Credit is a modern, flexible, personalised benefit reflecting the rapidly changing world of work and replaces six outdated and complex benefits with one. It is simplifying the benefits system and making work pay. Monthly assessment periods align to the way the majority of people are paid and also allows Universal Credit to be adjusted each month. This means that if a claimant’s income falls, they will not have to wait several months for a rise in their Universal Credit.</p><p> </p><p>The Government has made significant investment to improve work incentives including: the reduction in the Universal Credit taper rate from 65% to 63% in 2017, and an extra £1.7 billion a year put into work allowances for working parents and disabled claimants to increase them by £1,000 a year from April 2019. This is providing a boost to the incomes of the lowest paid and result in 2.4 million families keeping an extra £630 per year of what they earn.</p><p> </p><p>We are committed to helping the most vulnerable to improve their life chances by tackling the root causes of poverty, and ensuring that children have the best possible start in life continue to reform the welfare system so that it promotes work as the most effective route out of poverty and is fairer towards those who receive it and the taxpayers who pay for it. We also want to identify opportunities to create a highly productive workforce, improving progression prospects for the lowest paid people so everyone has the right skills to meet the UK’s future demand.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 24/02/2020 18:08:40 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1178360

registered interest
date	13/02/2020
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: Self-employed
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if her Department will review the minimum income floor used to estimate earnings for universal credit claimants that are self-employed.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	1946
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/02/2020 answer text <p>The Department supports people to be self-employed when it is the right thing for them to do to be financially self-sufficient. Key to this is continuing to help claimants in, or considering, self-employment to progress to a level of sustained financial self-sufficiency that does not exclude the possibility of better paid work elsewhere. This ensures fairness to claimants, but also taxpayers who fund the welfare system.</p><p> </p><p>Work coaches offer tailored support to our claimants who are in self-employment through to help them to increase their productivity and earnings. Work coaches can refer low-earning claimants to mentoring support from New Enterprise Allowance providers and sign-post claimants to the other extensive business support which is already funded by the Government.</p><p> </p><p>We recognise that it takes time for new businesses to grow and that even established businesses can experience difficulties. From September 2020, all self-employed Universal Credit claimants will be given the same 12 months’ exemption period to provide them with time and support needed to grow their businesses.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 24/02/2020 18:04:07 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1173675

registered interest
date	27/01/2020
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 assessment her Department has made of the effect of the five-week wait for a first payment of universal credit on levels of poverty.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	8322
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/01/2020 answer text <p>No one has to wait five weeks for their first payment of Universal Credit. New claim advances are available to support those in financial need until their first payment is made. The Department has learnt from where we did not get things right in the past in the legacy benefit system. Too often, the desire to pay quickly meant claimants not receiving their correct entitlement as we did not have an appropriate timeframe to review household circumstances.</p><p> </p><p>Claimants can access up to 100% of the total expected monthly award, which they can pay back over a period of up to 12 months. We have announced that from October 2021, the repayment period for these advances will be extended further, to 16 months. Proposed repayments of the advance are explained, and all claimants are advised to request a level of advance which is manageable both now and when considering the repayments required.</p><p> </p><p>The best way to help people improve their lives is through employment. Households where all adults are in work are around 6 times less likely to be in relative poverty than adults in a household where nobody works. This improves further if all the adults are working full time, reducing a child’s risk of being in poverty from 66% for (two-parent) families with only part-time work to 7%. Universal Credit allows households the freedom from the ‘cliff edges’ which featured in the legacy benefits system, where money was lost when working more than 16, 24 or 30 hours.</p><p> </p><p>There are many reasons people use foodbanks and their growth cannot be linked to a single cause. We have listened to feedback on how we can support our Universal Credit claimants and acted quickly, making improvements such as 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> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 8327 8329 question first answered 30/01/2020 12:24:46 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1173676

registered interest
date	27/01/2020
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	Homelessness: 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 assessment her Department has made of the effect of the five-week wait for a first payment of universal credit on levels of homelessness.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	8323
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/01/2020 answer text <p>No one has to wait five weeks for their first payment of Universal Credit. New claim advances are available to support those in financial need until their first payment is made. The Department has learnt from where we did not get things right in the past in the legacy benefit system. Too often, the desire to pay quickly meant claimants not receiving their correct entitlement as we did not have an appropriate timeframe to review household circumstances.</p><p> </p><p>Claimants can access up to 100% of the total expected monthly award, which they can pay back over a period of up to 12 months. We have announced that from October 2021, the repayment period for these advances will be extended further, to 16 months. Proposed repayments of the advance are explained, and all claimants are advised to request a level of advance which is manageable both now and when considering the repayments required.</p><p> </p><p>Our Work Coaches gauge claimants’ financial needs from their first interview. For those who need help with budgeting, we are able to signpost additional support, for example through the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS), who can help with personal budgeting and money management through its free helpline, printed guides and digital guidance.</p><p> </p><p>Alternative Payment Arrangements (APAs), such as a managed payment to landlord (MPTL), are available to enable the housing costs element to be paid directly to the landlord if the tenant is likely to have difficulty in managing their rent payments or is in rent arrears. APAs will only be considered where a lack of financial capability poses a risk to the claimant, or their family, and the decision to implement one is assessed on a case by case basis.</p><p> </p><p>Our own analysis shows that Universal Credit in fact reduces rent arrears, supporting research carried out by the National Federation of ALMOs which shows over three quarters of their tenants come onto Universal Credit with pre-existing rent arrears. It also shows that 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 housing providers. It will be published when completed.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 8324 8328 question first answered 30/01/2020 12:07:27 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1173677

registered interest
date	27/01/2020
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: Debts
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 five-week wait for a first payment of universal credit on levels of indebtedness.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	8324
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/01/2020 answer text <p>No one has to wait five weeks for their first payment of Universal Credit. New claim advances are available to support those in financial need until their first payment is made. The Department has learnt from where we did not get things right in the past in the legacy benefit system. Too often, the desire to pay quickly meant claimants not receiving their correct entitlement as we did not have an appropriate timeframe to review household circumstances.</p><p> </p><p>Claimants can access up to 100% of the total expected monthly award, which they can pay back over a period of up to 12 months. We have announced that from October 2021, the repayment period for these advances will be extended further, to 16 months. Proposed repayments of the advance are explained, and all claimants are advised to request a level of advance which is manageable both now and when considering the repayments required.</p><p> </p><p>Our Work Coaches gauge claimants’ financial needs from their first interview. For those who need help with budgeting, we are able to signpost additional support, for example through the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS), who can help with personal budgeting and money management through its free helpline, printed guides and digital guidance.</p><p> </p><p>Alternative Payment Arrangements (APAs), such as a managed payment to landlord (MPTL), are available to enable the housing costs element to be paid directly to the landlord if the tenant is likely to have difficulty in managing their rent payments or is in rent arrears. APAs will only be considered where a lack of financial capability poses a risk to the claimant, or their family, and the decision to implement one is assessed on a case by case basis.</p><p> </p><p>Our own analysis shows that Universal Credit in fact reduces rent arrears, supporting research carried out by the National Federation of ALMOs which shows over three quarters of their tenants come onto Universal Credit with pre-existing rent arrears. It also shows that 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 housing providers. It will be published when completed.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 8323 8328 question first answered 30/01/2020 12:07:27 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray

1173678

registered interest
date	27/01/2020
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 assessment her Department has made of the effect of the five-week wait for a first payment of universal credit on the mental health of applicants.
tabling member constituency	Airdrie and Shotts
tabling member printed	Neil Gray
uin	8325
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/01/2020 answer text <p>No one has to wait five weeks for their first payment of Universal Credit. New claim advances are available to support those in financial need until their first payment is made. The Department has learnt from where we did not get things right in the past in the legacy benefit system. Too often, the desire to pay quickly meant claimants not receiving their correct entitlement as we did not have an appropriate timeframe to review household circumstances. Universal Credit is calculated to reflect the claimant’s circumstances at the end of their monthly assessment period to accurately reflect circumstances at the point of payment.</p><p> </p><p>Claimants can access up to 100% of the total expected monthly award, which they can pay back over a period of up to 12 months. We have announced that from October 2021, the repayment period for these advances will be extended further, to 16 months. Proposed repayments of the advance are explained, and all claimants are advised to request a level of advance which is manageable both now and when considering the repayments required.</p><p> </p><p>Universal Credit is simpler and fairer than the legacy benefit system. It is designed to target resources at those that need them most and to provide support for people who can’t work or need help moving towards the labour market. Our work coaches all undertake a robust learning process which includes a focus on health conditions and disabilities, how to tailor service delivery according to needs, and has specific content on requirement setting for people with mental health conditions.</p><p> </p><p>Our Work Coaches gauge claimants’ financial needs from their first interview. For those who need help with budgeting, we are able to signpost additional support, for example through the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS), who can help with personal budgeting and money management through its free helpline, printed guides and digital guidance.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 8326 question first answered 30/01/2020 16:02:57 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4365 label Biography information for Neil Gray