Question to the Wales Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what recent assessment he has made of the effect of universal credit on the cost of living of low-income families in (a) Newport West and (b) Wales.
Universal Credit is helping parents to move into and remain in work, offering the best opportunity for families to move out of poverty and to improve children’s long-term outcomes. Universal Credit helps families with the cost of living by providing budgeting support and paying up to 85% of childcare costs.
Since the introduction of Universal Credit to Newport West at the end of 2017, unemployment has fallen by over 40%, with 1,000 fewer people unemployed. The employment rate in Newport West is above the average for Great Britain.
Universal Credit continues to have a positive effect on the labour market in Wales with 34.4% of claimants in Wales in employment. Unemployment in Wales is at a new record low, with an unemployment rate of 3.0%, below the UK average of 3.8%.