Universal Credit

Imran Hussain Excerpts

Tuesday 13th March 2018 Commons Chamber

[Angela Rayner]

I absolutely agree with my hon. Friend.

As I was saying, people should not just take our word for it. They should look at what the Children’s Society has said about those 1 million children who will not receive free school meals if the regulations come into force.

[Imran Hussain (Bradford East) (Lab)]

My hon. Friend is making a very persuasive case. In the Bradford district, more than 10,000 children who are living in poverty will miss out on free school meals, but Northern Ireland will be exempt from the same policy. Are not the Government putting their own political benefit before child poverty?

[Angela Rayner]

My hon. Friend makes an excellent point, which I will come on to later in my contribution. As I said, those who are just above—

Oral Answers to Questions

Imran Hussain Excerpts

Monday 18th December 2017 Commons Chamber

[Mr Gauke]

My hon. Friend makes a very good point. One of the areas of good news about universal credit is the fact that it will enable us to reduce fraud by over £1 billion. That in itself is an important step, and there are of course many other very positive reasons why universal credit is a good thing.

[Imran Hussain (Bradford East) (Lab)]

T7. I recently met Hope Rising action group, which works in my constituency to support those affected by the Government’s benefit cap, and heard stories about just how hard people are being hit by a policy that is so cruel the High Court found it unlawful and guilty of causing misery. Will the Minister tell me how many people in Bradford will be affected by this policy?

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Caroline Dinenage)]

We must ensure we have a welfare system that is fair not only to those in receipt of welfare, but to those who pay for it. The lower cap is fair to both working households and the taxpayer. Before the cap, the Department for Work and Pensions disproportionately spent £10 million a year on just 300 families.