Asked by: Lord Bishop of Chelmsford (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the case for annually indexing Local Housing Allowance to rent levels.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Secretary of State (SoS) has recently completed his review of Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates for 2024/25. As announced by the Chancellor in the recent Autumn Statement, from April 2024 the Government will be investing £1.2 billion increasing LHA rates to the 30th percentile of local market rents. This ensures 1.6 million private renters in receipt of Housing Benefit, or the Housing Element of Universal Credit will gain, on average, nearly £800 per year in additional help towards their rental costs in 2024/25. This is a significant investment of £7bn over five years.
The SoS has committed to reviewing LHA rates annually, usually in the Autumn. The rates for 2025/26 have not yet been reviewed.
The department works closely with stakeholders, jobcentres, and local authorities to understand the impact of its policies.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Chelmsford (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the potential benefits of ending the freeze in Local Housing Allowance rates before April 2024.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
As announced by the Chancellor in the recent Autumn Statement, the Government will be investing £1.2 billion in 24/25 increasing LHA rates to the 30th percentile of local market rents. This is a significant investment of over £7 billion over the next five years.
Secondary legislation is required for this increase, which will be laid in January and will come into force by 31st January 2024. This allows the Department for Work and Pensions and local authorities sufficient time to implement the rates from April 2024 and ensure claimants are paid accurately. Increases to other benefits also apply from April 2024 onwards.
For those who face a shortfall in meeting their housing costs and need further support Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) are available from local authorities. Since 2011 the Government has provided nearly £1.7 billion in DHP funding to local authorities.
Since October 2021, Government has provided over £2 billion to local authorities in England via the Household Support Fund (HSF) for them to provide discretionary support with the cost of essentials to those most in need. As with all government spending in England, the HSF has led to consequential increases in Barnett funding, which the Devolved Administrations can spend at their discretion.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Chelmsford (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the number of private renters who receive housing benefit and (1) qualify for the £650 support grant, and (2) do not qualify for the £650 support grant.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott
No assessment has been made.
However, the vast majority of people receiving Housing Benefit will be in receipt of another qualifying benefit for the Cost-of-Living Payment.
To support people who need additional help, the Government is providing an extra £500 million of local support. In England this will be via the Household Support Fund, which will be extended from this October to March 2023 backed by £421m.
The Household Support Fund helps those in most need with payments towards the rising cost of food, energy, and water bills.
The government will issue additional guidance to Local Authorities to ensure support is targeted towards those most in need of support including those not eligible for the Cost-of-Living Payments set out on 26 May 2022. Guidance for local authorities on how to distribute the fund will be released soon.