Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 25 June 2019 to Question 267343 on Universal Credit, if her Department will (a) investigate the practice of loansharks applying on behalf of an individual for a universal credit advance payment which is then issued as a loan to the individual and (b) review the application process for universal credit advance payments to tackle such practices.

The Department is committed to reducing fraud and error and considers information from a range of sources to progress our investigations. We work hard to identify perpetrators of fraud and ensure we take appropriate prosecution action.

We routinely gather intelligence to assist our understanding of anyone seeking to abuse the safety net that Universal Credit offers. Any exploitation of advance payments is not acceptable, and we are seeking to identify the perpetrators and ensure we take appropriate prosecution action. We have a dedicated team of investigators working on this issue and we regularly raise awareness with our front line staff who understand the risks and raise concerns as appropriate through referrals to Fraud colleagues.

We are committed to keeping all Universal Credit services and processes, including advance payments, under review and will make improvements to address any vulnerabilities in the system. The protection of our most vulnerable claimants remains of paramount importance to us.