Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment on the potential merits of reviewing Universal Credit rates to provide a protected minimum amount of support based on the cost of essentials.

There are currently no plans to make such an assessment.

The Government recognises the critical role Universal Credit has to play in tackling poverty and making work pay and has already taken steps to help those in need.

The Fair Repayment Rate, to be introduced from April, will reduce Universal Credit overall cap on deductions from 25% to 15%. This measure will help approximately 1.2 million of the poorest households benefit by an average of £420 a year.

Benefit rates are reviewed each year, increasing by 6.7% in April 2024 and by a further 1.7% from April 2025, in line with inflation. Around 5.7 million Universal Credit families are forecast to benefit from uprating in financial year 2025 to 2026, with an average annual gain for a family estimated to be £150.