Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to reduce delays in renewals of Personal Independent Payments (PIP).
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
DWP continues to prioritise new claims to Personal Independence Payment (PIP) ensuring claims are processed and awarded as soon as possible. However, with limited capacity and resources, this means some customers are waiting longer than expected for their PIP review.
To help address this, and to speed up the process and increase efficiency, the majority of reviews are now completed in-house. This means a DWP Case Manager can make a decision where sufficient evidence and information is provided or available.
Where we cannot deal with a review in-house, and where an award may possibly end, we have robust measures in place to ensure all claims remain in payment, including those awards which rely on PIP to access Motability vehicles or automatic entitlement to a Blue Badge.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the minimum income floor on self-employed workers that are unable to work for brief periods due to (a) health issues and (b) care responsibilities.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
No assessment has been made.
The level of the MIF is equivalent to what a person in employed work in similar circumstances to the customer could expect to earn at living or minimum wage for their age. The MIF is therefore tailored to a customer’s individual circumstances; where a person has limitations on the hours they can reasonably be expected to work, for example because they have a health condition or caring responsibilities, the level of their MIF can be reduced.
Short-term health conditions experienced by a customer, such as colds, flu, strains, and sprains, are regarded as part of the normal pattern of self-employment. Therefore, customers must plan for these periods as part of their ordinary business cycle.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what additional support is available for self-employed workers in receipt of Universal Credit that experience a short-term fall in their earnings.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Customers who are new to gainful self-employment are eligible for a 12-month 'start-up period’, during which the Minimum Income Floor does not apply. This means that if a customer experiences a drop in their earnings, their Universal Credit award will increase. This gives customers the opportunity to adjust to the characteristics of the sector in which they work, such as seasonal or fluctuating earnings patterns.
Where a customer reports a loss from their self-employment, the value of the loss is considered when assessing earnings in future assessment periods. If the sum of any unused losses exceeds the amount of earnings in the subsequent monthly assessment period, the remaining value of the loss is carried forward to be offset against future earnings, until the loss is used up or the customer ceases self-employment. This may result in a customer receiving a higher Universal Credit award in the future.
Work Coaches can signpost customers in the start-up period to national and local support where available, such as business advice, mentoring or training. This may also include connecting self-employed customers with other government support including:
Local Growth Hubs in England, Business Wales and Find Business Support and Business Gateway in Scotland, which offer support, advice and guidance to new and existing businesses.
If a self-employed customer has earnings below £2,600 (or £3,600 if in a couple) in the six months prior to an application, they may be eligible for a budgeting advance to help finance intermittent/ unforeseen expenses or expenses. This ensures low-income families that have an emergency financial need and do not have access to adequate savings or affordable loans can access funding to meet the emergency.
Asked by: Claire Young (Liberal Democrat - Thornbury and Yate)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether entitlement to a defined benefit occupational pension affects entitlement to Universal Credit if that pension is not drawn.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
It has been a long-standing policy of successive governments to encourage people to save for their retirement. Universal Credit is a means-tested benefit and takes occupational and personal pensions into account when the customer receives that income under the scheme rules.
Where someone reaches the age where Pension Credit is payable, the pension may be treated as available under the long-standing notional income rules. This means that a notional income is taken into account which has the effect of reducing the award of Universal Credit.
Means-tested benefits are paid for out of general taxation, and it is only right that a customer avails themselves of their own financial resources before relying on benefits. These rules provide a fair balance between the needs of the customer and the taxpayer who pays for the cost of means-tested benefits.