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1354215

registered interest
date	09/09/2021
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 estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of retaining the £20 uplift to the standard allowance of universal credit.
tabling member constituency	Ynys Môn
tabling member printed	Virginia Crosbie
uin	45952
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/09/2021 answer text <p>We expect this would cost around £6bn per year. The cost of funding one year of the uplift is the equivalent of adding 1p on the basic rate of income tax in addition to a 3p increase in fuel duty.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 14/09/2021 17:10:22 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4859 label Biography information for Virginia Crosbie

1354221

registered interest
date	09/09/2021
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	Child Maintenance Service
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to tackle issues raised in the Independent Case Examiner's Annual Report 2020 on the Child Maintenance Service, including the findings on the way that Service presents its accounts information.
tabling member constituency	Haltemprice and Howden
tabling member printed	Mr David Davis
uin	45796
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/09/2021 answer text <p>Since the report was published in October 2020 the Child Maintenance Service has been running at a reduced level and has been focussed on frontline activity serving our customers due to the Coronavirus Pandemic.</p><p>However, we are now starting to increase that service and have introduced a Transformation Programme that will constantly review how we work and help to automate lots of processes.</p><p>We are continually improving our contact channels and we plan to improve our calculation letters in line with our online portal and system. This is so that all lines of communication between Child Maintenance Group and customers present information to customers in the same way to reduce confusion.</p><p>There are also proposed changes to our online portal that surround explaining the calculation and explaining the payment plan to our customers, these changes are planned for Quarter 3 of the financial year.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 16/09/2021 13:54:31 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	373 label Biography information for Sir David Davis

1354227

registered interest
date	09/09/2021
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 his Department has made of the effect of ending the £20 uplift to Universal Credit on (a) levels of poverty (b) levels of homelessness and (c) foodbank usage.
tabling member constituency	Birkenhead
tabling member printed	Mick Whitley
uin	45929
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/09/2021 answer text <p>It is not possible to produce a robust estimate of the impact of removing the £20 uplift on poverty or related issues. This is particularly the case at the moment given the uncertainty around the speed of the economic recovery, and how this will be distributed across the population.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>In addition, 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> </p><p>The latest poverty figures (2019/20) demonstrate that absolute poverty rates (both before and after housing costs) for working-age adults in working families have fallen since 2009/10. In 2019/20, 8% of working age adults in working families were in absolute poverty (before housing costs), compared to 9% in 2009/10.</p><p> </p><p>Discretionary Housing Payments provide critical support to vulnerable claimants, including those who are at risk of homelessness, that need help with their housing costs.</p><p>For 2021-22 the Government has made available £140m in Discretionary Housing Payments funding for local authorities in England and Wales. In 2020-21 we boosted investment in the Local Housing Allowance by almost £1 billion and have maintained rates in cash terms for 2021-22. In addition, earlier this year we extended the exemptions from the shared accommodation rate of Local Housing Allowance for care leavers and those who have spent at least three months in a homeless hostel. From 31st May 2021 the care leavers exemption applies up to age 25 and the homeless hostel exemption applies up to age 35.</p><p> </p><p>Work Coaches support claimants to address their housing issues by signposting to relevant housing services. Under “duty to refer” legislation, Jobcentres in England offer a voluntary referral to claimants who may be homeless, or threatened with homelessness, to local housing teams for support.”</p><p> </p><p>The Chancellor announced a temporary six-month extension to the £20 per week uplift at the Budget on 3 March to support households affected by the economic shock of Covid-19. Universal Credit has provided a vital safety net for six million people during the pandemic, and the temporary uplift was part of a COVID support package worth a total of £407 billion in 2020-21 and 2021-22.</p><p> </p><p>There have been significant positive developments in the public health situation since the uplift was first introduced. With the success of the vaccine rollout and record job vacancies, it is right that our focus is on helping people back into work.</p><p> </p><p>Through our Plan for Jobs, we are targeting tailored support schemes of people of all ages to help them prepare for, get into and progress in work. These include: Kickstart, delivering tens of thousands of six-month work placements for UC claimants aged 16-24 at risk of unemployment; Restart, which provides 12 months’ intensive employment support to UC claimants who are unemployed for a year; and JETS, which provides light touch employment support for people who are claiming either Universal Credit or New Style Jobseekers Allowance, for up to 6 months, helping participants effectively re-engage with the labour market and focus their job search. We have also recruited an additional 13,500 work coaches to provide more intensive support to find a job. In total, our Plan for Jobs interventions will support more than two million people.</p> answering member constituency Macclesfield answering member printed David Rutley question first answered 20/09/2021 15:12:00 answering member 4033 label Biography information for David Rutley
tabling member	4755 label Biography information for Mick Whitley

1354229

registered interest
date	09/09/2021
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	State Retirement Pensions: Telephone Services
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 (a) appropriateness of access rights to claimant information when third parties make alternative enquiry requests to the State Pension Claim phoneline and (b) adequacy of support available under those rules from third party organisations for claimants who are unable to make applications independently to the phoneline.
tabling member constituency	Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey
tabling member printed	Drew Hendry
uin	45867
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/09/2021 answer text <p>The DWP Agents, Appointees, Attorneys, Deputies and third parties guide is used by staff to ensure that communications from customer representatives are processed in line with guidance. This includes the instances when State Pension claims are made by a customer’s official representative.</p><p> </p><p>Official customer representatives can make enquiries to DWP via our helplines, as well as making written requests to the DWP Mail Opening Unit address, which is available online at GOV.UK</p><p> </p><p>DWP also operates secure email links with Local Authorities in the instances when they act as Corporate Appointee to make a claim on behalf of a customer or to share information.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 14/09/2021 15:22:46 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4467 label Biography information for Drew Hendry

1354237

registered interest
date	09/09/2021
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	Cold Weather Payments
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of increasing the level of the Cold Weather Payment to help offset (a) the suspension of the pension triple lock in the 2022-23 financial year and (b) increasing fuel costs.
tabling member constituency	Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey
tabling member printed	Drew Hendry
uin	45868
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/09/2021 answer text <p>The Social Security (Up-rating of Benefits) Bill ensures those who rely on the new State Pension, basic State Pension and Pension Credit Standard Minimum Guarantee have their spending power preserved. They will be protected from the higher costs of living by increasing at least with the rise in inflation or 2.5%, whichever is higher. This was also the case last year when we took legislative action to increase State Pension rates despite the fall in earnings which would otherwise have meant that they would have been frozen.</p><p> </p><p>The UK Government is committed to supporting older people and vulnerable households to keep warm, and it has a strong package of policies already delivering to those in need.</p><p> </p><p>This includes Winter Fuel Payments and Cold Weather Payments available in Scotland until the Scottish Government has built the capacity to deliver replacements for them.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 14/09/2021 16:56:16 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4467 label Biography information for Drew Hendry

1354239

registered interest
date	09/09/2021
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	Fuel Poverty: Scottish Highlands
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 on the levels of fuel poverty of the suspension of the pension triple lock in the Scottish Highlands.
tabling member constituency	Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey
tabling member printed	Drew Hendry
uin	45870
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/09/2021 answer text <p>The Social Security (Up-rating of Benefits) Bill ensures those who rely on the new State Pension, basic State Pension and Pension Credit Standard Minimum Guarantee have their spending power preserved. They will be protected from the higher costs of living by increasing at least with the rise in inflation or 2.5%, whichever is higher. This was also the case last year when we took legislative action to increase State Pension rates despite the fall in earnings which would otherwise have meant that they would have been frozen.</p><p> </p><p>The UK Government is committed to supporting older people and vulnerable households to keep warm, and it has a strong package of policies already delivering to those in need.</p><p> </p><p>This includes Winter Fuel Payments and Cold Weather Payments available in Scotland until the Scottish Government has built the capacity to deliver replacements for them.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 15/09/2021 11:46:29 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4467 label Biography information for Drew Hendry

1354260

registered interest
date	09/09/2021
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	Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia: Community Development
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether officials in her Department have had recent discussions with representatives from the congenital adrenal hyperplasia community.
tabling member constituency	Linlithgow and East Falkirk
tabling member printed	Martyn Day
uin	45888
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/09/2021 answer text <p>The Department has not had any recent meetings with representatives from the congenital adrenal hyperplasia community. We meet regularly with disabled people, people with health conditions and their representatives, to ensure their voices are put at the heart of policy making and service design. To support the Health and Disability Green Paper we are currently running public events in locations around the country to hear about people’s experiences with our services and to get their views on the Green Paper proposals. These are accompanied by a series of virtual public events for those who would prefer to engage with us in that way.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p /> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 14/09/2021 16:14:44 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
tabling member	4488 label Biography information for Martyn Day

1354264

registered interest
date	09/09/2021
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: Families
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the findings of research conducted by Action for Children and Child Poverty Action Group on the effect of the £20 per week universal credit increase on recipient working families.
tabling member constituency	Kingston upon Hull North
tabling member printed	Dame Diana Johnson
uin	45817
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/09/2021 answer text <p>The latest poverty figures (2019/20) demonstrate that absolute poverty rates (both before and after housing costs) for working-age adults in working families have fallen since 2009/10. In 2019/20, 8% of working age adults in working families were in absolute poverty (before housing costs), compared to 9% in 2009/10.</p><p> </p><p>The Chancellor announced a temporary six-month extension to the £20 per week uplift at the Budget on 3 March to support households affected by the economic shock of Covid-19. Universal Credit has provided a vital safety net for six million people during the pandemic, and the temporary uplift was part of a COVID support package worth a total of £407 billion in 2020-21 and 2021-22.</p><p> </p><p>There have been significant positive developments in the public health situation since the uplift was first introduced. With the success of the vaccine rollout and record job vacancies, it is right that our focus is on helping people back into work.</p><p> </p><p>Through our Plan for Jobs, we are targeting tailored support schemes of people of all ages to help them prepare for, get into and progress in work. These include: Kickstart, delivering tens of thousands of six-month work placements for UC claimants aged 16-24 at risk of unemployment; and introduced Restart which provides 12 months’ intensive employment support to UC claimants who are unemployed for a year. JETS provides light touch employment support for people who are claiming either Universal Credit or New Style Jobseekers Allowance, for up to 6 months; helping participants effectively re-engage with the labour market and focus their job search. We have also recruited an additional 13,500 work coaches to provide more intensive support to find a job. In total, our Plan for Jobs interventions will support more than two million people.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 14/09/2021 16:46:26 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	1533 label Biography information for Dame Diana Johnson

1354265

registered interest
date	09/09/2021
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 potential impact of the planned end to the £20 per week uplift to universal credit on the (a) educational outcomes, (b) living standards and (c) economic opportunities for children in low-income households and deprived communities.
tabling member constituency	Kingston upon Hull North
tabling member printed	Dame Diana Johnson
uin	45818
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/09/2021 answer text <p>No such assessments have been made of the impact on poverty levels in those areas, on regional inequality or on educational outcomes, living standards and economic opportunities for children in low-income households.</p><p> </p><p>The latest poverty figures (2019/20) demonstrate that absolute poverty rates (both before and after housing costs) for working-age adults in working families have fallen since 2009/10. In 2019/20, 8% of working age adults in working families were in absolute poverty (before housing costs), compared to 9% in 2009/10.</p><p> </p><p>The Chancellor announced a temporary six-month extension to the £20 per week uplift at the Budget on 3 March to support households affected by the economic shock of Covid-19. Universal Credit has provided a vital safety net for six million people during the pandemic, and the temporary uplift was part of a COVID support package worth a total of £407 billion in 2020-21 and 2021-22.</p><p> </p><p>There have been significant positive developments in the public health situation since the uplift was first introduced. With the success of the vaccine rollout and record job vacancies, it is right that our focus is on helping people back into work.</p><p> </p><p>Through our Plan for Jobs, we are targeting tailored support schemes of people of all ages to help them prepare for, get into and progress in work. These include: Kickstart, delivering tens of thousands of six-month work placements for UC claimants aged 16-24 at risk of unemployment; Restart, which provides 12 months’ intensive employment support to UC claimants who are unemployed for a year; and JETS, which provides light touch employment support for people who are claiming either Universal Credit or New Style Jobseekers Allowance, for up to 6 months, helping participants effectively re-engage with the labour market and focus their job search. We have also recruited an additional 13,500 work coaches to provide more intensive support to find a job. In total, our Plan for Jobs interventions will support more than two million people.</p><p> </p><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 45819 45820 question first answered 14/09/2021 16:46:31 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	1533 label Biography information for Dame Diana Johnson

1354266

registered interest
date	09/09/2021
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: Equality
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 impact of the planned end to the £20 per week uplift to universal credit on regional inequality.
tabling member constituency	Kingston upon Hull North
tabling member printed	Dame Diana Johnson
uin	45819
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/09/2021 answer text <p>No such assessments have been made of the impact on poverty levels in those areas, on regional inequality or on educational outcomes, living standards and economic opportunities for children in low-income households.</p><p> </p><p>The latest poverty figures (2019/20) demonstrate that absolute poverty rates (both before and after housing costs) for working-age adults in working families have fallen since 2009/10. In 2019/20, 8% of working age adults in working families were in absolute poverty (before housing costs), compared to 9% in 2009/10.</p><p> </p><p>The Chancellor announced a temporary six-month extension to the £20 per week uplift at the Budget on 3 March to support households affected by the economic shock of Covid-19. Universal Credit has provided a vital safety net for six million people during the pandemic, and the temporary uplift was part of a COVID support package worth a total of £407 billion in 2020-21 and 2021-22.</p><p> </p><p>There have been significant positive developments in the public health situation since the uplift was first introduced. With the success of the vaccine rollout and record job vacancies, it is right that our focus is on helping people back into work.</p><p> </p><p>Through our Plan for Jobs, we are targeting tailored support schemes of people of all ages to help them prepare for, get into and progress in work. These include: Kickstart, delivering tens of thousands of six-month work placements for UC claimants aged 16-24 at risk of unemployment; Restart, which provides 12 months’ intensive employment support to UC claimants who are unemployed for a year; and JETS, which provides light touch employment support for people who are claiming either Universal Credit or New Style Jobseekers Allowance, for up to 6 months, helping participants effectively re-engage with the labour market and focus their job search. We have also recruited an additional 13,500 work coaches to provide more intensive support to find a job. In total, our Plan for Jobs interventions will support more than two million people.</p><p> </p><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 45818 45820 question first answered 14/09/2021 16:46:31 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	1533 label Biography information for Dame Diana Johnson