Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on (a) single parent families, (b) low-income workers, and (c) young people, and (2) the adequacy of the support provided to those groups through the welfare system to address COVID-19 issues.

This Government has taken unprecedented action to support people financially and protect jobs, with over 9.5 million people being supported through the furlough scheme alone since the start of the pandemic. We have injected £9.3 billion of additional support to the welfare system including increases to the Universal Credit and Working Tax Credit standard allowances that will benefit four million of the most vulnerable households by up to £1040 this financial year, as well as permanent uplifts to the Local Housing Allowance rates to cover the lowest 30 per cent of market rents.

A direct assessment of the impact of COVID-19 on specific groups has not been undertaken. However, HM Treasury’s distributional analysis of COVID-19’s impact on working households published in July, showed that the actions this Government has taken to date have supported poorest working households the most, with those in the bottom ten per cent seeing no income reduction.

Our long-term ambition remains to build an economy that will support work, and ensure everyone has the opportunity to enter and progress in work where possible. Our £30 billion Plan for Jobs is the first step on the ladder to achieving this, as well as new schemes such as Kickstart, Job Entry Targeted Support and Job Finding Support.