Our Ministerial Correspondence Team has not received any letters relating to claimants facing technical or administrative problems when transferring from Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) to Universal Credit.<\/p>
However, Universal Credit Programme colleagues have received representations from various customer support groups seeking clarification of the ESA to UC journey for their service users. These concerns have been raised informally at engagement events as well as through more formal routes into the Programme.<\/p>
<\/p>
As a result, the Department has worked to produce a set of communications, to help local partnership managers better explain the ESA to UC journey to our stakeholders.<\/p>
In addition we are improving the learning for work coaches and case managers to better understand the process and how to support claimants effectively.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/3969", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Damian Hinds"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "East Hampshire"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Damian Hinds"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2017-12-20", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2017-12-20T15:41:04.527Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "29"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2017-12-14", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Universal Credit"} , "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, whether he has received any representations on technical and administration problems regarding the transfer of claimants from employment and support allowance to universal credit.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4672", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Ged Killen"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Rutherglen and Hamilton West"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Ged Killen"} ], "uin" : "119738"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/806670", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Work and Pensions"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/806670/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
The Work and Pensions Secretary of State has a duty to review the Lower Benefit Cap levels once in each Parliament with regard to the national economic situation and any other matters he considers relevant, as set out in the 2016 Welfare Reform and Work Act. New lower and tiered Benefit Cap rates were introduced from November 2016 prior to the election in June 2017. We intend to review the Lower Benefit Cap during this Parliament.<\/p>
<\/p>
For context, outside of London, around 4 in 10 households have net earnings less than the £20,000 cap level. In London around 4 in 10 households have net earnings of less than the £23,000 cap level.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4008", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Dame Caroline Dinenage"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Gosport"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Caroline Dinenage"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2017-12-19", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2017-12-19T16:39:48.63Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "29"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2017-12-14", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Social Security Benefits: Uprating"} , "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 estimate he has made of the change in the real terms value of the maximum amount of benefit entitlement as a result of inflation since the introduction of the benefit cap in November 2016.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4672", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Ged Killen"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Rutherglen and Hamilton West"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Ged Killen"} ], "uin" : "119746"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/804370", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "HM Treasury"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/804370/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
The Government recognises that widespread free access to cash remains extremely important to the day-to-day lives of many consumers and businesses in the UK, and will continue to work with industry to ensure continued free access to cash. Since 1998, the number of free to use ATMs has more than doubled, from 24,600 to over 53,000.<\/p>
Government has not made an assessment of the relative poverty of areas where there are no free to use ATMs. However LINK, the organisation behind the ATM network in the UK, carries out an assessment of areas where there are no free to use ATMs as part of the financial inclusion programme it runs, in collaboration with Toynbee Hall, to ensure the provision of ATMs in areas of deprivation, where demand would not otherwise make one viable. LINK is intending to strengthen its financial inclusion programme even further to ensure that the need for ATMs continue to be met.<\/p>
HM Treasury has not had discussions with the Bank of England or the Financial Conduct Authority about imposing a cap on charges to customers for ATMs which are not free to use or introducing powers to prevent the development of areas where there are no free-to-use ATMs. The Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) is monitoring developments within ATM provision, and is conducting ongoing internal work on the impact that changes to interchange fees may have. The Government set the PSR up in 2015 with the statutory objective to ensure that the UK\u2019s payment systems work in the interests of their users. Government is confident that the PSR will use its powers to act should any of the firms it regulates behave in a way that conflicts with its statutory objectives.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4095", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Steve Barclay"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "North East Cambridgeshire"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Stephen Barclay"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2017-12-19", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "groupedQuestionUIN" : [{"_value" : "118573"} , {"_value" : "118580"} ], "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2017-12-19T15:39:48.777Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "14"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Treasury"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "CaTreasury"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2017-12-11", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Cash Dispensing: Fees and Charges"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment he has made of relative poverty of areas where ATMs which are not free to use are located.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4672", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Ged Killen"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Rutherglen and Hamilton West"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Ged Killen"} ], "uin" : "118586"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/804373", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "HM Treasury"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/804373/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
The Government recognises that widespread free access to cash remains extremely important to the day-to-day lives of many consumers and businesses in the UK, and will continue to work with industry to ensure continued free access to cash. Since 1998, the number of free to use ATMs has more than doubled, from 24,600 to over 53,000.<\/p>
Government has not made an assessment of the relative poverty of areas where there are no free to use ATMs. However LINK, the organisation behind the ATM network in the UK, carries out an assessment of areas where there are no free to use ATMs as part of the financial inclusion programme it runs, in collaboration with Toynbee Hall, to ensure the provision of ATMs in areas of deprivation, where demand would not otherwise make one viable. LINK is intending to strengthen its financial inclusion programme even further to ensure that the need for ATMs continue to be met.<\/p>
HM Treasury has not had discussions with the Bank of England or the Financial Conduct Authority about imposing a cap on charges to customers for ATMs which are not free to use or introducing powers to prevent the development of areas where there are no free-to-use ATMs. The Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) is monitoring developments within ATM provision, and is conducting ongoing internal work on the impact that changes to interchange fees may have. The Government set the PSR up in 2015 with the statutory objective to ensure that the UK\u2019s payment systems work in the interests of their users. Government is confident that the PSR will use its powers to act should any of the firms it regulates behave in a way that conflicts with its statutory objectives.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4095", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Steve Barclay"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "North East Cambridgeshire"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Stephen Barclay"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2017-12-19", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "groupedQuestionUIN" : [{"_value" : "118573"} , {"_value" : "118586"} ], "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2017-12-19T15:39:48.667Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "14"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Treasury"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "CaTreasury"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2017-12-11", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Cash Dispensing: Fees and Charges"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions he has had with (a) the Bank of England and (b) the Financial Conduct Authority about imposing a maximum cap on charges to customers using ATMs.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4672", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Ged Killen"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Rutherglen and Hamilton West"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Ged Killen"} ], "uin" : "118580"} ], "itemsPerPage" : 10, "page" : 0, "startIndex" : 1, "totalResults" : 4, "type" : ["http://purl.org/linked-data/api/vocab#ListEndpoint", "http://purl.org/linked-data/api/vocab#Page"]} }