Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on the impact on the Exchequer of ending the £20 uplift to universal credit.

The Government has always been clear that the £20 per week increase to Universal Credit was a temporary measure to support households whose incomes and earnings were affected by the economic shock of Covid-19. Extending the uplift permanently would come at a very significant annual cost, equivalent in 2022-23 to adding 1p on the basic rate of income tax, in addition to a 3p increase in fuel duty.

The Government is maintaining its focus on helping people back into work. As part of the comprehensive Plan for Jobs, the Government announced the new three year Restart programme, which will provide intensive and tailored support to over one million unemployed Universal Credit claimants across England and Wales, and the £2 billion Kickstart scheme, which will create hundreds of thousands of new, fully subsidised jobs for young people at risk of long-term unemployment.