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 impact of the end of the £20 universal credit uplift on young people living independently.

The £20 uplift to Universal Credit was temporary. There was no need to make an assessment when it was withdrawn.

The government understands the current cost of living pressures many are facing, particularly young people, and has taken action to support and help families with a total package worth £37 billion in 2022-23.

This includes helping all domestic electricity customers in Great Britain to cope with the impact of higher energy bills, with £400 off their bills from October through the expansion of the Energy Bills Support Scheme (EBSS). This is a doubling of the £200 of support announced in February, and there will no longer be any repayments. In addition, as part of the governments targeted response to rising energy bills, the government also introduced the £150 council tax rebate.

Over 8 million households across the UK in receipt of eligible means tested benefits will receive a one-off Cost of Living Payment of £650, paid in two instalments from 14^th of July.

The Government is also providing an additional £500 million to help households bringing total funding for this support to £1.5 billion. In England, this will take the form of an extension to the Household Support Fund backed by £421m and is administered by Local Authorities. Devolved administrations will receive £79 million through the Barnett formula.