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1109970

	registered interest
	date	05/04/2019
	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	Children: Maintenance
	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 consultation on changes to the collection of child maintenance arrears, launched in December 2017, how many responses her Department received, and how many of those responses opposed the proposal to write off historical arrears.
	tabling member constituency	North Tyneside
	tabling member printed	Mary Glindon
	uin	241426
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/04/2019 answer text <p>The consultation closed on 8 February 2018. We received a total of 99 responses, 11 from organisations and 88 from private individuals (of which 21 identified themselves as paying parents, and 24 as receiving parents). Respondents were asked 15 question, four of which discussed the proposal to write off historical arrears.</p><p>Accurately assessing the number of responses opposed specifically to the proposal to write off historical arrears is not straightforward. Not all respondents chose to answer the specific questions, and a large number of responses were about individual case circumstances, and didn’t raise issues within the scope of the consultation. Of the nine responses which were focused on the scope of the consultation, four opposed the write off and three had a mixed view.</p><p>The Government published a detailed response to this consultation on 12 July 2018, accessible through the link below.</p><p><a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/724358/response-child-maintenance-compliance-and-arrears-strategy-consultation.pdf" target="_blank">https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/724358/response-child-maintenance-compliance-and-arrears-strategy-consultation.pdf</a></p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 15/04/2019 10:44:41 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4126 label Biography information for Mary Glindon

1109365

	registered interest
	date	03/04/2019
	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	Children: Maintenance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the Child Maintenance Service's Financial Investigations Unit has the power in cases where the paying parent's assets and/ or income are outside the UK to investigate foreign (a) tax returns and (b) bank accounts.
	tabling member constituency	Vauxhall
	tabling member printed	Kate Hoey
	uin	240473
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/04/2019 answer text <p>The Child Maintenance Service Financial Investigations Unit in either scenario (a) or (b) has no powers where paying parents are outside of the UK. In terms of tax returns we do ask Paying Parents that we believe are overseas for their tax status and details of tax payments. The Department has no powers to compel if a response is not received. However, rigorous checks are undertaken to confirm that the Paying Parent is not resident in the UK.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 09/04/2019 10:44:07 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	210 label Biography information for Baroness Hoey

1109364

	registered interest
	date	03/04/2019
	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	Children: Maintenance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether section 69A of the Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2018 defines cash as an asset which can be factored into a paying parent's assessment.
	tabling member constituency	Vauxhall
	tabling member printed	Kate Hoey
	uin	240472
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/04/2019 answer text <p>Section 69A of the Child Support (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2018 specifies money, whether deposited or in cash, should be treated as an asset for the purposes of calculating notional income. The maintenance liability will then be adjusted where a notional annual income of £2,500 or more has been identified.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 09/04/2019 10:38:24 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	210 label Biography information for Baroness Hoey

1109967

	registered interest
	date	05/04/2019
	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	Children: Maintenance
	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 has plans to conduct an equality impact assessment in relation to the child maintenance service arrears strategy, and if she will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	North Tyneside
	tabling member printed	Mary Glindon
	uin	241423
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/04/2019 answer text <p>DWP considered the impact of the compliance and arrears strategy on those with the relevant protected characteristics in line with the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED).</p><p>We determined that there would be no direct discrimination from this strategy across the eight protected characteristics as none of the characteristics are a factor in how the regulations are applied.</p><p> </p><p>Some groups may be indirectly affected more than others as a result of the caseload demographic.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 11/04/2019 14:38:43 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4126 label Biography information for Mary Glindon

1109465

	registered interest
	date	03/04/2019
	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: Private Rented Housing
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether an assessment has been made of the standard of accommodation that universal credit claimants are able to rent in the private sector; and if she will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Selly Oak
	tabling member printed	Steve McCabe
	uin	240483
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/04/2019 answer text <p>No assessment has been made in respect of the standard of accommodation for specific types of tenant.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 08/04/2019 16:42:51 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	298 label Biography information for Steve McCabe

1109464

	registered interest
	date	03/04/2019
	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: Private Rented Housing
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what support is available to individuals on universal credit who are able to afford accommodation in private sector but are unable to find landlords who will rent to them.
	tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Selly Oak
	tabling member printed	Steve McCabe
	uin	240482
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/04/2019 answer text <p>We know that there are people who have experienced difficulties when trying to rent a property whilst claiming benefit.</p><p> </p><p>That is why the Government recently announced its intention to work with the sector to ensure those in receipt of housing support are able to access properties. This work has already begun and we have seen meaningful change from key market players to ensure tenants in receipt of housing support can find the properties they need.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, the Government has awarded nearly £20m to local authorities through the Private Rented Sector Access Fund to help vulnerable people access and sustain tenancies in the private rented sector.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 09/04/2019 10:50:07 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	298 label Biography information for Steve McCabe

1105461

	registered interest
	date	27/03/2019
	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	Social Security Benefits
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what support her Department provides to families who have been reunited through refugee family reunion to access the social security system.
	tabling member constituency	Bristol West
	tabling member printed	Thangam Debbonaire
	uin	237691
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/04/2019 answer text <p>Those who have joined a family member in the UK through refugee family reunion are entitled to the same support as any other person. As with anyone else, they will be assessed to ascertain whether they have complex needs and whether they require additional support to access DWP services.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 05/04/2019 11:10:01 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4433 label Biography information for Thangam Debbonaire

1108887

	registered interest
	date	01/04/2019
	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	Employment: Veterans
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps the Government is taking to support armed forces veterans into employment.
	tabling member constituency	Romford
	tabling member printed	Andrew Rosindell
	uin	239329
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/04/2019 answer text <p>The Armed Forces Covenant has been in place since May 2011 and sets out the relationship between the nation, the Government and the Armed Forces. The covenant is a written and publicised voluntary pledge from businesses and other organisations who wish to demonstrate their support for the armed forces community.</p><p> </p><p>The covenant can be signed by a business or other organisation of any size, and from any industry whether they are an employer of a member of the armed forces community or simply wish to acknowledge publically their support for the armed forces.</p><p> </p><p>The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) National Employer and Partnership Team (NEPT) actively promote the Armed Forces Covenant to those employers and partner organisations they work with. This has been adopted into routine business to ensure that those new to DWP’s employer portfolio are aware of the opportunity and benefits of support to the Armed Forces community.</p><p> </p><p>Every Jobcentre Plus District has an Armed Forced Champion (AFC) who is key to delivering our commitments under the covenant. The AFC will ensure that any concerns and issues raised which affect Service Personnel and their families are integrated within the wider work of Jobcentre Plus. AFCs ensure Work Coaches and other DWP staff can effectively support serving personnel, service leavers, veterans and their families.</p><p> </p><p>In addition to the local activity in Jobcentres to support veterans our National Employer and Partnership Team (NEPT) also work closely with the Ministry of Defence to align engagement activity in support of the veteran’s strategy. In particular NEPT work closely with the MOD Careers Transition Partnership (CTP) and the Defence Relationship Management (DRM) team to encourage large employers, trade body associations and partner organisations to provide practical support to the Armed Forces Covenant, particularly the employment of veterans.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 05/04/2019 12:15:41 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	1447 label Biography information for Andrew Rosindell

1110573

	registered interest
	date	09/04/2019
	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: Housing
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to ensure that universal credit adequately supports social housing tenants paying rent weekly to meet their obligations in relation to the 53 week year.
	tabling member constituency	East Ham
	tabling member printed	Stephen Timms
	uin	242667
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/04/2019 answer text <p>No year contains 53 weeks. This perceived issue of their being 53 weeks in a year arises where a landlord charges rent weekly on a Monday and, because of the way the calendar falls every 5 or 6 years, seeks 53 rent payments in a year, with the 53rd payment in part covering the tenancy for the first few days of the following year.</p><p>Universal Credit payments are designed to mirror the world of work, with monthly payments reflecting the way many working people are paid. This model of monthly payments allows claimants to take responsibility for budgeting their own income and helps prepare them for getting back to work. The Money and Pension Service can provide debt advice and money guidance to claimants if they need support managing their monthly Universal Credit payments.</p><p>We are aware of a separate issue with respect to the way the calculation in the Universal Credit regulations converts a weekly liability into a monthly allowance. The conversion is achieved by multiplying the weekly rent by 52 and then dividing by 12. This effectively means one day’s rent a year (two days in a leap years) are not covered by UC. We are currently considering whether this formulation around weekly rents, and potentially other weekly amounts in the UC calculation, should be amended.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 15/04/2019 14:48:11 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms

1110004

	registered interest
	date	05/04/2019
	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: Croydon
	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 had made of the effect of the roll out of universal credit on levels of homelessness in the London borough of Croydon .
	tabling member constituency	Croydon North
	tabling member printed	Mr Steve Reed
	uin	241435
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/04/2019 answer text <p>We do not track homelessness at Jobcentre level so the assessment asked for is not available, but statutory homelessness and rough sleeping figures for Croydon are available within Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government’s homelessness statistical release: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-homelessness" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-homelessness</a>.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>The causes of homelessness are numerous, varied and complex.. A joint study between the Department and the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government, has shown that there is not a direct causal link between welfare and homelessness. This report was published on 25 March 2019 and can be found at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/causes-of-homelessness-and-rough-sleeping-feasibility-study" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/causes-of-homelessness-and-rough-sleeping-feasibility-study</a>. Attributing homelessness to a single Governmental policy would simplify the issue, and this approach would wrongly deny it the multi-faceted approach which we’re committed to delivering.</p><p> </p><p>It is our priority to ensure that those who are homeless, or at risk of homelessness, get the appropriate support to stabilise their lives and move into work. We have provided around £1 billion in Discretionary Housing Payment funding since 2011 to protect the most vulnerable claimants.</p><p> </p><p>There is a range of support available for people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, such as access to Alternative Payment Arrangements, easements to work-search requirements and partnerships between Jobcentres and homeless charities and housing services. By law, work coaches in England must offer a voluntary referral to claimants they consider may be homeless or threatened with homelessness to a Local Housing Authority.</p><p> </p><p>Data on homelessness by local authority level, provided by the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government, is available at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/homelessness-statistics" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/homelessness-statistics</a>.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 10/04/2019 12:03:09 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4268 label Biography information for Steve Reed