Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending the number of days for which a person can claim new style job seekers allowance during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
A person’s entitlement to contribution-based Jobseeker’s Allowance is limited to a maximum of 182 days in any period for which entitlement is established by reference to the person’s National Insurance record in the same two income tax years relevant to the claim or claims. The time limit strikes a balance in providing support whilst keeping the cost of this and other contributory benefits affordable based on the overall income to the National Insurance Fund each year.
People who are entitled to contribution-based Jobseeker’s Allowance, or whose entitlement ends before they find employment, may have access to income-related support through Universal Credit. Entitlement will depend on individual circumstances.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Streatham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of (a) making the uplift to universal credit and working tax credit permanent and (b) extending that uplift to legacy benefits.
Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The temporary £20 per week increase to the Universal Credit standard allowance and Working Tax Credit basic element forms just one part of a wide-ranging package of measures to protect people’s jobs and incomes. The welfare measures announced in March, which the Office for Budget Responsibility estimates are worth £9 billion this year, are specifically aimed at providing significant temporary support to low-income families who have seen their income fall due to the immediate impact of Coronavirus.
Making the £20 per week increase permanent would require a substantial ongoing increase in public expenditure, with 2020-21 spending on working-age benefits set to be the highest since records began as a share of national income.
The Government has focused on measures that can be introduced and operationalised quickly – the most straightforward way to increase benefits for claimants during this period was to temporarily increase the Universal Credit standard allowance and the Working Tax Credit basic element. In addition, Employment and Support Allowance, Jobseeker's Allowance, and Income Support were increased by 1.7 per cent in April 2020 as part of the annual uprating exercise.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent discussions she has had with the Chancellor if the Exchequer on extending six month eligibility for jobseeker’s allowance during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
There have been no discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on extending eligibility for contribution-based Jobseeker’s Allowance during the covid-19 outbreak.
People who are entitled to contribution-based Jobseeker’s Allowance, or whose entitlement ends before they find employment, may have access to income-related support through Universal Credit. Entitlement will depend on individual circumstances.
Asked by: Lord Hylton (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to extend the £20 per week increase in the standard rate of Universal Credit to people remaining on legacy benefits such as Jobseeker's Allowance and Income Support.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott
The Government introduced a package of temporary welfare measures worth around £9.3 billion this year to help with the financial consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. This included the £20 weekly increase to the Universal Credit Standard Allowance rates as a temporary measure for the 20/21 tax year.
We are continuing to work with the Treasury on the best ways to support those receiving benefits.
Asked by: Navendu Mishra (Labour - Stockport)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how he plans to implement the measures relating to supporting jobs announced in the Summer Economic Updates in Stockport constituency and the North West region.
Answered by Steve Barclay - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
In its Plan for Jobs, the Government has announced unprecedented support to help unemployed people in Great Britain find a job. We are providing £1.2bn to significantly expand and enhance work search support, including doubling the number of work coaches, additional investment into the Flexible Support Fund to provide direct support at a local level, and using externally contracted provision to expand support even further.
Recognising that young people are particularly at risk, the government has also launched a new £2bn Kickstart Scheme, creating hundreds of thousands of new, fully subsidised jobs for young people across Great Britain, as well as a guaranteed foundation of support to all 18-24 year olds on Universal Credit in the Intensive Worksearch group, through its new youth offer.
The support is available across Great Britain, including the Stockport constituency and the North West region. As of August 2020, approximately 330,000 people are receiving worksearch support through Universal Credit and Jobseeker's Allowance in the North West. The support includes measures, such as the Flexible Support Fund, that will be delivered at a local level through DWP’s extensive network of over 600 Job Centre Plus branches. This means the additional discretionary support work coaches have to remove barriers to work will be allocated based on local needs. The Rapid Response Service can also be rapidly mobilised anywhere in the country and is based on understanding of local labour market.
Asked by: Baroness Lister of Burtersett (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment, if any, they have made of the potential cost in financial year 2021/22 of (1) maintaining the current uplift to Universal Credit, Working Tax Credits and Housing Benefit, and (2) introducing a similar uplift to income-related Employment and Support Allowance, income-based Jobseeker's Allowance and Income Support.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott
The information requested is not available.
The Government has introduced a package of temporary welfare measures worth around £9.3 billion this year to help with the financial consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Chancellor announced a series of policies to support people, jobs and businesses on 20 March 2020 during which he confirmed an increase to the Universal Credit standard allowance for 12 months until March 2021, in addition to planned uprating of 1.7 percent. Further decisions on spending will be made at the next fiscal event.
Asked by: Colleen Fletcher (Labour - Coventry North East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average length of time was for the Tribunals Service to administer a First-tier Tribunal-Social Security and Child Support appeal for (a) personal independence payment, (b) employment and support allowance, (c) income support, (d) jobseeker's allowance and (e) tax credits, (f) universal credit in (i) Coventry, (ii) the West Midlands and (iii) England in the most recent period for which figures are available.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
Information about clearance times for appeals in the First-tier Tribunal (Social Security and Child Support) (SSCS) is published at:
www.gov.uk/government/collections/tribunals-statistics.
SSCS appeals are listed into the hearing venue nearest to the appellant’s home address. The published data (which can be viewed at the link above) provide information about the timeliness of (a) Personal Independence Payment (PIP), (b) Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) and (f) Universal Credit (UC) appeals for hearing venues covering (i) Coventry, (ii) the West Midlands and (iii) England for the period January – March 2020, the latest period for which data are available.
The table below contains the requested information for (c) Income Support (IS), (d) Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) and (e) Tax Credits:
Average length of time to administer appeals (in weeks) for the period January to March 2020 (the latest period for which data are available) | |||
| IS | JSA | Tax Credits1 |
Coventry | 0 | ~ | ~ |
West Midlands2 | 49 | 56 | 30 |
England3 | 41 | 43 | 29 |
1. Includes Working Family Tax Credit, Child Tax Credit, Working Tax Credit.
2. SSCS data are recorded by the office that dealt with the case, and if the case went to oral hearing, the location of the tribunal hearing, normally the hearing venue nearest to the appellant’s home address. Cases relating to the West Midlands region are attributed to the following SSCS venues: Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Walsall, Coventry, Nuneaton, Stoke, Shrewsbury, Hereford and Worcester.
3. Excludes SSCS Scotland and Wales Regions.
0 Equals zero appeals were heard during the period in question.
~ Equates to fewer than five appeals heard during the period in question.
Although care is taken when processing and analysing the data, the details are subject to inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale case management system and are the best data available.
The data may differ slightly to that of the published statistics as these data were run on a different date.
Waiting times are calculated from receipt of an appeal to its final disposal. An appeal is not necessarily disposed of at its first hearing. The final disposal decision on the appeal may be reached after an earlier hearing had been adjourned (which may be directed by the judge for a variety of reasons, such as to seek further evidence), or after an earlier hearing date had been postponed (again, for a variety of reasons, often at the request of the appellant). An appeal may also have been decided at an earlier date by the First-tier Tribunal, only for the case to have gone on to the Upper Tribunal, to be returned once again to the First-tier, for its final disposal.
Asked by: Colleen Fletcher (Labour - Coventry North East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of appeals to the tribunals service in (a) Coventry, (b) the West Midlands and (c) England which related to (i) personal independence payments, (ii) employment and support allowance, (iii) income support, (iv) jobseeker's allowance, (v) tax credits and (vi) universal credit were successful in the most recent period for which figures are available.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
Information about the outcomes of appeals in the First-tier Tribunal (Social Security and Child Support) (SSCS) is published at: www.gov.uk/government/collections/tribunals-statistics
SSCS appeals are listed into the hearing venue nearest to the appellant’s home address. The published data (which can be viewed at the link above) provide information about the outcomes of (i) Personal Independence Payment (PIP), (ii) Employment Support Allowance (ESA) and (vi) Universal Credit (UC) appeals for hearing venues covering (a) Coventry, (b) the West Midlands and (c) England for the period January – March 2020, the latest period for which data are available.
The table below contains the requested information for (iii) Income Support (IS), (iv) Job Seekers Allowance (JSA) and (v) Tax Credits:
Proportion1 of appeals decided in favour of the appellant for the period January to March 2020 (the latest period for which data are available) | |||
| IS | JSA | Tax Credits2 |
Coventry | 0% | ~ | 0% |
West Midlands3 | ~ | ~ | 41% |
England4 | 35% | 43% | 36% |
1. Proportion based on the number of cases found in favour of the appellant at a tribunal hearing, as a percentage of the cases heard at a tribunal hearing.
2. Includes Working Family Tax Credit, Child Tax Credit, Working Tax Credit.
3. SSCS data are recorded by the office that dealt with the case, and if the case went to oral hearing, the location of the tribunal hearing, normally the hearing venue nearest to the appellant’s home address. Cases relating to the West Midlands region are attributed to the following SSCS venues: Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Walsall, Coventry, Nuneaton, Stoke, Shrewsbury, Hereford and Worcester.
4. Excludes SSCS Scotland Region and Wales Region.
~ Equates to a value where cases heard were fewer than five.
Although care is taken when processing and analysing the data, the details are subject to inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale case management system and are the best data available.
The data may differ slightly to that of the published statistics as these data were run on a different date.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate her Department has made of the cost to the public purse of rolling on existing claims of (a) income support, (b) jobseeker's allowance and (c) employment and support allowance during the five week wait to receive universal credit.
Answered by Will Quince
As set out in section 1.11 of the National Audit Office’s report ‘Universal Credit: getting to first payment’, the Department estimates that it will spend £750 million on benefit run-ons from 2018-19 to 2023-24.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate her Department has made of the cost to the public purse of roll-on benefits for people in receipt of (a) income support, (b) jobseeker's allowance and (c) employment and support allowance during the migration of those claimants to universal credit.
Answered by Will Quince
As set out in section 1.11 of the National Audit Office’s report ‘Universal Credit: getting to first payment’, the Department estimates that it will spend £750 million on benefit run-ons from 2018-19 to 2023-24.