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<p><strong> </strong></p><p>Ministers have met with the Committee and provided their
evidence about the welfare system and the Department’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Department will continue to work constructively with the Committee, including
the responses it received in response to their claimant survey. The Department’s Ministers
meet regularly with stakeholders to listen and hear about their experiences first
hand.</p><p> </p><p>Since mid-March, the Department has received 2.9 million individual
declarations for Universal Credit claims. Despite that surge, the system is standing
up to the challenge and demonstrating that resilience is part of its design, whilst
maintaining levels of payment timeliness.</p><p> </p><p>And, for those claimants who
felt that they could not wait for their first routine payment, New Claim Advances
are available online and by telephone, with the majority receiving money within 72
hours.</p>
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