Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to support women affected by changes to the state pension age with the cost of living.
Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government is committed to ensuring that older people can live with the dignity and respect they deserve, and the State Pension is the foundation of state support in retirement. Last year the State Pension saw its biggest ever cash rise, increasing by 10.1%. From April, the basic and new State Pensions will increase by 8.5%, in line with the Triple Lock.
The Government is delivering a comprehensive package of support to help those aged 50 and over to remain in and return to work. We are also committed to providing a financial safety net for those who need it, including when they near or reach retirement, through the welfare benefits system. Support is available to those who are unable to work or are on a low income but are not eligible for pensioner benefits because of their age.
In addition, the government has provided support from 2022-23 to 2023-2024 to help households with the cost of living totalling £96 billion. We are providing further support for 24/25, including uprating working age benefits by 6.7%, raising the National Living Wage and uplifting Local Housing Allowance to the 30th percentile of local rents which will benefit 1.6 million private renters by, on average, £800 a year.
The government is also providing an additional £500m to enable the extension of the Household Support Fund, including funding for the Devolved Administrations through the Barnett formula to be spent at their discretion. This means that Local Authorities in England will receive an additional £421m to support those in need locally through the Household Support Fund. This will enable further targeted support for people who require assistance to get back to a stable financial position as inflation continues to fall.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 26 March 2018 to Question 133803 on Universal Credit, what progress he has made on developing guidance for (a) Universal Credit claimants and (b) his Department's staff on the reporting and treatment of unreimbursed expenses.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Work Coach guidance was updated in 2018.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a repayable advance for Universal Credit claimants who are awaiting a payment correction following an assessment error.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
No assessment has been made.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has made an assessment of trends in the level of demand for local crisis support.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Over £2bn in support has to date been allocated to Local Authorities in England through the Household Support Fund to support those most in need.
Councils continue to have the flexibility to use funding from the Local Government Finance Settlement to provide local welfare assistance.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of ending the Household Support Fund on 31 March 2024 on (a) the number of people experiencing destitution, (b) the NHS, (c) social care services, (d) homelessness services and (e) other public services.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The current Household Support Fund runs from April 2023 until the end of March 2024, and the Government continues to keep all its existing programmes under review in the usual way.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of trends in the numbers of children living in low-income households in Portsmouth.
Answered by Mims Davies - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Latest statistics for the levels of children who are in low income in the Portsmouth South constituency and Portsmouth are published “Children in Low Income Families”, and can be found here.
National and regional statistics on the number and percentage of children in low income are published annually in the “Households Below Average Income” publication, and can be found here.
Due to methodological differences, the figures in these two publications are not comparable.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential effect of (a) increasing the child element of Universal Credit by at least £15 a week and (b) ending the benefit cap on levels of children living in poverty.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
No. It is not possible to produce a robust assessment of the impacts of increasing the child element of Universal Credit and ending the benefit cap on the numbers of people in low income.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make it his policy to uprate benefits annually in line with prices and living standards.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Successive Governments have used the Social Security Administration Act 1992 which places a statutory duty on the Secretary of State to review the rates of State Pension and benefits each year, following a review of trends in prices and earnings over the previous year.
The Secretary of State’s review ahead of 2023/34 has been completed and State Pensions and benefits will rise by 10.1% in April 2023, in line with the increase in the Consumer Prices Index in the year to September 2022.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to Action for Children’s latest report entitled, All worked out, what recent assessment his Department has made of trends in the level of children living in poverty in Portsmouth South; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Mims Davies - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The latest statistics on the number and proportion of children who are in low income families by local area are for 2020/21 and can be found in the annual publication: Children in low income families: local area statistics 2014 to 2021 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)(opens in a new tab).
This Government is committed to a sustainable, long-term approach to tackling poverty and supporting people on lower incomes in this country. In 2022/23 we will spend £245 billion through the welfare system in Great Britain including £111 billion on people of working age. In 2023/24, subject to parliamentary approval, we are uprating all benefit rates and State Pensions by 10.1%, and in order to increase the number of households who can benefit from these uprating decisions, the benefit cap levels are also increasing by the same amount.
With over 1.16 million vacancies across the UK, our focus is firmly on supporting people into and to progress in work. Our approach is based on clear evidence about the importance of employment, particularly where it is full-time, in substantially reducing the risk of poverty.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate his Department has made of the proportional uptake of Housing Benefit by people of pension age in Portsmouth South constituency; and what steps he is taking to help ensure that Housing Benefit is paid to all such people entitled to it.
Answered by Mims Davies - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The information on the uptake of Housing Benefit by pensioners is not available at constituency level. The Department publishes estimates of benefit take-up in the Official Statistics series Income-related benefits: estimates of take-up.
Gov.uk provides information on the availability of Housing Benefit and advice on how to claim. Local Authorities determine any take-up activity locally to ensure those who require housing support make the necessary application as required by legislation.