{ "format" : "linked-data-api", "version" : "0.2", "result" : {"_about" : "http://eldaddp.azurewebsites.net/answeredquestions.text?answeringDeptShortName=Work+and+Pensions&answer.answeringMemberPrinted=Will+Quince&hansardHeading=Food+Banks", "definition" : "http://eldaddp.azurewebsites.net/meta/answeredquestions.text?answeringDeptShortName=Work+and+Pensions&answer.answeringMemberPrinted=Will+Quince&hansardHeading=Food+Banks", "extendedMetadataVersion" : "http://eldaddp.azurewebsites.net/answeredquestions.text?answeringDeptShortName=Work+and+Pensions&_metadata=all&answer.answeringMemberPrinted=Will+Quince&hansardHeading=Food+Banks", "first" : "http://eldaddp.azurewebsites.net/answeredquestions.text?answeringDeptShortName=Work+and+Pensions&_page=0&answer.answeringMemberPrinted=Will+Quince&hansardHeading=Food+Banks", "hasPart" : "http://eldaddp.azurewebsites.net/answeredquestions.text?answeringDeptShortName=Work+and+Pensions&answer.answeringMemberPrinted=Will+Quince&hansardHeading=Food+Banks", "isPartOf" : "http://eldaddp.azurewebsites.net/answeredquestions.text?answeringDeptShortName=Work+and+Pensions&answer.answeringMemberPrinted=Will+Quince&hansardHeading=Food+Banks", "items" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1352090", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Work and Pensions"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1352090/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
Foodbanks are independent, charitable organisations and the Department for Work and Pensions does not have any role in their operation. There is no consistent and accurate measure of food bank usage at a constituency or national level.<\/p>
<\/p>
This Government is wholly committed to supporting those on low incomes, and continues to do so through many measures, including by increasing the living wage, and by spending over £111 billion on welfare support for people of working age in 2021/22.<\/p>
<\/p>
This year, we are also investing up to £220m in the Holiday Activities and Food programme, which has been expanded to every Local Authority across England. Participating children will benefit from a range of support, including a healthy and nutritious meal as well as fun and engaging activities covering the Easter, summer and Christmas holidays in 2021. We also increased the value of Healthy Start Food Vouchers from £3.10 to £4.25 in April, which helps eligible low income households buy basic foods like milk, fruit and vitamins.<\/p>
<\/p>
As the economy recovers, our ambition is to help people move into and progress in work as quickly as possible based on clear evidence around the importance of employment, particularly where it is full-time, in substantially reducing the risks of poverty. Through Plan for Jobs, the Government is investing over £33bn in measures to create, support and protect jobs. This included over £2bn investment in the Kickstart programme and an additional 13,500 Work Coaches in our Jobcentres, as well as other measures focused on boosting work search, skills and apprenticeships.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4423", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Will Quince"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Colchester"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Will Quince"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2021-09-14", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2021-09-14T15:49:31.163Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "29"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2021-09-03", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Food Banks"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps the Government is taking to end the need for food banks in the UK.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4610", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Bambos Charalambous"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Enfield, Southgate"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Bambos Charalambous"} ], "uin" : "42063"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1346481", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Work and Pensions"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1346481/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
Local Authorities in England have powers to run Local Welfare Assistance Schemes at their discretion, which may include emergency support. It is for Local Authorities to assess need in their area and to determine the design of any such scheme, including eligibility, access and nature of provision, giving due consideration to their duties under the Equality Act and other relevant legislation. No assessment has been made by DWP of the suitability of local authority-run emergency food support schemes for people with special dietary requirements.<\/p>
<\/p>
Since 1 December 2020, DWP has allocated funding to upper tier Local Authorities in England, through the Covid Winter Grant Scheme and the Covid Local Support Grant, to provide additional support to families and individuals who may be struggling with the cost of food and essential utility bills due to the pandemic. We have now extended this temporary scheme for a final time with an additional £160 million in funding between 21 June and 30 September, taking total funding under the scheme to £429 million. This brings the end date for this scheme past the lifting of restrictions, supporting families who might need additional help to get back on their feet as the vaccine rollout continues and our economy recovers. This scheme recognises that Local Authorities are best placed to understand needs in their area.<\/p>
<\/p>
This year, we are also investing up to £220m in the Holiday Activities and Food programme which has been expanded to every Local Authority across England. Participating children will benefit from a range of support, including a healthy and nutritious meal that takes into account dietary needs as well as fun and engaging activities and it is for the Local Authority who delivers the programme in their area to give due consideration to their duties under the Equality Act and other relevant legislation.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4423", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Will Quince"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Colchester"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Will Quince"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2021-07-21", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "groupedQuestionUIN" : {"_value" : "32496"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2021-07-21T15:16:09.397Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "29"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2021-07-13", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Food Banks"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the suitability of local authority-run emergency food support schemes for people with special dietary requirements.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4641", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Alex Norris"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Nottingham North"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Alex Norris"} ], "uin" : "32495"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1346482", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Work and Pensions"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1346482/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
Local Authorities in England have powers to run Local Welfare Assistance Schemes at their discretion, which may include emergency support. It is for Local Authorities to assess need in their area and to determine the design of any such scheme, including eligibility, access and nature of provision, giving due consideration to their duties under the Equality Act and other relevant legislation. No assessment has been made by DWP of the suitability of local authority-run emergency food support schemes for people with special dietary requirements.<\/p>
<\/p>
Since 1 December 2020, DWP has allocated funding to upper tier Local Authorities in England, through the Covid Winter Grant Scheme and the Covid Local Support Grant, to provide additional support to families and individuals who may be struggling with the cost of food and essential utility bills due to the pandemic. We have now extended this temporary scheme for a final time with an additional £160 million in funding between 21 June and 30 September, taking total funding under the scheme to £429 million. This brings the end date for this scheme past the lifting of restrictions, supporting families who might need additional help to get back on their feet as the vaccine rollout continues and our economy recovers. This scheme recognises that Local Authorities are best placed to understand needs in their area.<\/p>
<\/p>
This year, we are also investing up to £220m in the Holiday Activities and Food programme which has been expanded to every Local Authority across England. Participating children will benefit from a range of support, including a healthy and nutritious meal that takes into account dietary needs as well as fun and engaging activities and it is for the Local Authority who delivers the programme in their area to give due consideration to their duties under the Equality Act and other relevant legislation.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4423", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Will Quince"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Colchester"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Will Quince"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2021-07-21", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "groupedQuestionUIN" : {"_value" : "32495"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2021-07-21T15:16:09.433Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "29"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2021-07-13", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Food Banks"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department has taken to ensure that people with special dietary requirements are able to access appropriate emergency food support from their local authority.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4641", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Alex Norris"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Nottingham North"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Alex Norris"} ], "uin" : "32496"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1342322", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Work and Pensions"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1342322/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
Food banks are independent charitable organisations and there is no consistent and accurate measure of food bank usage. We take the issue of food insecurity seriously, which is why we added internationally used food security questions to the Family Resources Survey in 19/20 and published the data in March this year.<\/p>
<\/p>
In addition, from April 2021 we introduced a set of questions into the Family Resources Survey (FRS) on food bank usage. The first results of these questions are expected to be published in March 2023 subject to usual quality assurance.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4423", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Will Quince"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Colchester"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Will Quince"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2021-07-07", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2021-07-07T14:57:30.223Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "29"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2021-06-30", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Food Banks"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will publish data on the number of welfare benefit claimants who use food banks.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4515", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Kate Osamor"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Edmonton"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Kate Osamor"} ], "uin" : "25107"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1336561", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Work and Pensions"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1336561/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
The Department reallocated resources to prioritise work to help the COVID-19 effort. This caused delays to some work, including this literature review. The review summarises publicly available information and does not contain any new research carried out by the Department.<\/p>
<\/p>
The Department has recently published new data from the Family Resources Survey on household food security, giving us a better understanding of who is most at risk. This underlines how seriously we take the issue of food insecurity.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4423", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Will Quince"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Colchester"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Will Quince"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2021-06-21", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2021-06-21T12:36:03.97Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "29"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2021-06-15", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Food Banks"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when she expects to publish her Department's review of the drivers of food bank demand.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4463", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Chris Stephens"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Glasgow South West"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Chris Stephens"} ], "uin" : "16143"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1328085", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Work and Pensions"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/1328085/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
Foodbanks are independent, charitable organisations and the Department for Work and Pensions does not have any role in their operation. There is no consistent and accurate measure of food bank usage at a constituency or national level.<\/p>
<\/p>