Benefits: Eligibility

Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick Excerpts

Thursday 9th January 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Cryer (Lab)]

I cannot disagree with much of what the noble Viscount said, but I cannot give a particularly full answer to every question he asked because, as I think he is aware, a Green Paper is due in the spring. This will include a consultation on various changes to benefits, including UC and ESA. At the moment, the system remains much the same. However, there have been certain changes. The Get Britain Working White Paper was released a while ago and it includes about £245 million directed at a group he talked about—18 to 24 year-olds. That includes personal support and a youth guarantee, which promises 18 to 24 year-olds in the pilot areas an apprenticeship, a route to work or full-time education.

[Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick (Lab)]

My Lords, the move to universal credit is impacting income-based ESA claimants. Will my noble friend the Minister and his ministerial colleagues in DWP, noting that these claimants would always be the most vulnerable, provide your Lordships’ House with assurances that all efforts will be made to put in place adequate safeguards to protect them?

[Lord Cryer (Lab)]

I appreciate everything that the noble Baroness said. I was a Member of the other place when universal credit was introduced, which is some years ago now, and the process was very complicated. I am not making a party-political point—although I could—but the process was extremely complicated, every time a new cohort was moved on to UC. However, the particular issue she raised is about claimants on ESA only or ESA with housing benefit, who started receiving migration notices from September last year. This gave them a reasonable amount of notice that they would be moving to UC, the aim of which was to give individual assistance to those experiencing difficulties in the move to UC by the end of December 2025. The window is fairly wide; it gives a lot of opportunities to iron out any difficulties. In addition, the department provides what is now called the enhanced support journey—ESJ—for claimants moving to UC from ESA. That supports the more vulnerable claimants to make the transition to universal credit.