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 effect of universal credit on the wellbeing of claimants who are also in receipt of maternity allowance, during the covid-19 outbreak.

No assessment has been made of the effect of Universal Credit on the wellbeing of claimants who are also in receipt of maternity allowance, during the covid-19 outbreak.

Universal Credit is replacing a complex system of six legacy benefits with a single monthly payment and through a simple taper system ensures claimants are better off in work, keeping more of what they earn compared to the legacy benefit system. It is a longstanding principle of the welfare system that benefits are not paid to claimants with income available from other sources to support themselves.

Where claimants have income available to meet their everyday living costs, their entitlement to Universal Credit is adjusted accordingly. This includes other benefits such as new style Jobseeker’s Allowance and Employment and Support Allowance and Maternity Allowance.

Maternity Allowance is a health and safety measure to enable women to stop work in the later stages of pregnancy and after childbirth in the interest of their own, and their baby’s, health and wellbeing.