Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of families subject to the two-child benefit cap that are in absolute poverty.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
No such estimation has been made of the number of families subject to the two-child benefit cap that are living in absolute poverty.
Statistics related to the policy to provide support for a maximum of two children were published in July 2022 and are available at: Universal Credit and Child Tax Credit claimants: statistics related to the policy to provide support for a maximum of 2 children, April 2022 (opens in a new tab).
Statistics on poverty levels by family size in 20/21 are available at: https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/(opens in anew tab) on the HBAI dataset.
The Government is committed to reducing poverty and supporting low-income families. We will spend around £276bn through the welfare system in Great Britain in 2023/24 including around £124bn on people of working age and children.
From April, we uprated benefit rates by 10.1%. In order to increase the number of households who can benefit from these uprating decisions the benefit cap levels have also increased by the same amount.
With 1.05 million job vacancies across the UK, our focus remains firmly on supporting individuals, including parents, to move into, and progress in work, an approach which is based on clear evidence about the importance of employment - particularly where it is full-time - in substantially reducing the risks of child poverty and in improving long-term outcomes for families and children. The latest statistics show that in 2021/22 children living in workless households were around 5 times more likely to be in absolute poverty after housing costs than those where all adults work.
To support those who are in work, from 1 April 2023, the National Living Wage (NLW) increased by 9.7% to £10.42 an hour for workers aged 23 and over - the largest ever cash increase for the NLW.
At the Spring Budget, the Chancellor announced an ambitious package of measures designed to support people wherever they live in the UK to enter work, increase their working hours and extend their working lives.
The Government recognises that high childcare costs can affect parents’ decisions to take up paid work or increase their working hours which is why, from 28 June, the changes to the Universal Credit (UC) childcare element announced in Spring Budget 2023 will provide generous additional financial support to parents moving into paid work and/or increasing their working hours.
This government understands the pressures people are facing with the cost of living which is why we are providing total support of over £94bn over 2022-23 and 2023-24 to help households and individuals with the rising bills.
For people who require additional support, the Household Support Fund has been extended until March 2024. This year long extension allows Local Authorities in England to continue to provide discretionary support to those most in need in response to the significantly rising cost of living. The Devolved Administrations will receive consequential Barnett funding, as with all England-only investment, to spend at their discretion.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to (a) ensure regular and adequate uprating of benefits and (b) mitigate the risk of families falling into poverty.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government is committed to reducing poverty and supporting low-income families. We will spend around £276bn through the welfare system in Great Britain in 2023/24 including around £124bn on people of working age and children, and around £152 billion on pensioners. Of this, around £79 billion will be spent on benefits to support disabled people and people with health conditions.
With respect to up-rating, the Social Security Administration Act 1992 places an obligation on the Secretary of State to review increases in prices and earnings each tax year, and to increase certain State pensions, additional-needs disability benefits and carers benefits at least in line with the relevant index. In the case of the new and basic State Pensions, the Government is committed to increasing these in line with the triple lock for the remainder of this Parliament. This is the highest of the increase in prices, the increase in earnings, or 2.5%.
Once he has completed his review of the increase in prices, he must also decide whether to up-rate other benefit rates, and if so by how much. In the up-rating for the tax year 2023/24, all relevant State pension and benefit rates were increased by 10.1%, in line with the increase in the Consumer Prices Index in the year to September 2022.
With 1.05 million job vacancies across the UK, our focus remains firmly on supporting individuals, including parents, to move into, and progress in work, an approach which is based on clear evidence about the importance of employment - particularly where it is full-time - in substantially reducing the risks of poverty. The latest statistics show that in 2021/22 working age adults living in workless families were 7 times more likely to be in absolute poverty after housing costs than working age adults in families where all adults work.
To support those who are in work, from 1 April 2023, the National Living Wage (NLW) increased by 9.7% to £10.42 an hour for workers aged 23 and over - the largest ever cash increase for the NLW.
At the Spring Budget, the Chancellor announced an ambitious package of measures designed to support people wherever they live in the UK to enter work, increase their working hours and extend their working lives.
The Government recognises that high childcare costs can affect parents’ decisions to take up paid work or increase their working hours which is why, from 28 June, the changes to the Universal Credit (UC) childcare element announced in Spring Budget 2023 will provide generous additional financial support to parents moving into paid work and/or increasing their working hours.
This government understands the pressures people are facing with the cost of living which is why we are providing total support of over £94bn over 2022-23 and 2023-24 to help households and individuals with the rising bills.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of establishing a sick pay scheme for the self-employed.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) is paid for by employers and there is no mechanism to include the self-employed in SSP.
The Government does have a wider safety net to ensure self-employed people are supported through the welfare system. Where an individual’s income is reduced while off work sick and they require further financial support, they may be able to claim Universal Credit and new style Employment and Support Allowance, depending on their personal circumstances.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what fiscal steps he is taking to (a) tackle the impact of the benefit cap on low-income families and (b) help prevent increases in child poverty.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government is committed to reducing child poverty and supporting low-income families. We will spend around £276bn through the welfare system in Great Britain in 2023/24 including around £124bn on people of working age and their children.
The Secretary of State reviewed the benefit cap levels in November 2022 and decided they should be increased from April 2023. The Secretary of State has a statutory obligation to review the benefit cap levels at least once every five years.
With 1.05 million job vacancies across the UK, our focus remains firmly on supporting individuals, including parents, to move into, and progress in work, an approach which is based on clear evidence about the importance of employment - particularly where it is full-time - in substantially reducing the risks of child poverty and in improving long-term outcomes for families and children. The latest statistics show that in 2021/22 children living in workless households were around 5 times more likely to be in absolute poverty after housing costs than those where all adults work.
To support those who are in work, from 1 April 2023, the National Living Wage (NLW) increased by 9.7% to £10.42 an hour for workers aged 23 and over - the largest ever cash increase for the NLW.
At the Spring Budget, the Chancellor announced an ambitious package of measures designed to support people wherever they live in the UK to enter work, increase their working hours and extend their working lives.
The Government recognises that high childcare costs can affect parents’ decisions to take up paid work or increase their working hours which is why, from 28 June, the changes to the Universal Credit (UC) childcare element announced in Spring Budget 2023 will provide generous additional financial support to parents moving into paid work and/or increasing their working hours.
This government understands the pressures people are facing with the cost of living which is why we are providing total support of over £94bn over 2022-23 and 2023-24 to help households and individuals with the rising bills.
Asked by: Holly Mumby-Croft (Conservative - Scunthorpe)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the extension to the Household Support Fund to March 2024, what other steps his Department is taking to help reduce child poverty in (a) North Lincolnshire and (b) the UK.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government is committed to reducing child poverty and supporting low-income families. We will spend around £276bn through the welfare system in Great Britain in 2023/24 including around £124bn on people of working age and their children.
From April, we uprated benefit rates by 10.1%. In order to increase the number of households who can benefit from these uprating decisions the benefit cap levels have also increased by the same amount.
With 1.05 million job vacancies across the UK, our focus remains firmly on supporting individuals, including parents, to move into, and progress in work, an approach which is based on clear evidence about the importance of employment - particularly where it is full-time - in substantially reducing the risks of child poverty and in improving long-term outcomes for families and children. The latest statistics show that in 2021/22 children living in workless households were around 5 times more likely to be in absolute poverty after housing costs than those where all adults work.
To support those who are in work, from 1 April 2023, the National Living Wage (NLW) increased by 9.7% to £10.42 an hour for workers aged 23 and over - the largest ever cash increase for the NLW.
At the Spring Budget, the Chancellor announced an ambitious package of measures designed to support people wherever they live in the UK to enter work, increase their working hours and extend their working lives.
We are investing billions in additional childcare support for parents of toddlers, investing in wraparound childcare in schools, and increasing financial support for, and expectations of, parents claiming Universal Credit.
This government understands the pressures people are facing with the cost of living which is why we are providing total support of over £94bn over 2022-23 and 2023-24 to help households and individuals with the rising bills.
For people who require additional support, the Household Support Fund has been extended until March 2024. This year long extension allows Local Authorities in England to continue to provide discretionary support to those most in need in response to the significantly rising cost of living. The Devolved Administrations will receive consequential Barnett funding, as with all England-only investment, to spend at their discretion.
For the period April 2023 to March 2024, the total Household Support Fund allocation for North Lincolnshire is £2,647,785.53.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published on 31 March 2022, what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the severe disability premium.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The Severe Disability Premium was abolished for claims to Universal Credit for working age people as a result of the Welfare Reform Act in 2012.
The Severe Disability Premium is currently still paid to eligible claimants in receipt of Employment and Support Allowance. It is being phased out as people move to UC.
Asked by: Mark Hendrick (Labour (Co-op) - Preston)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to reduce the levels of child poverty in Preston constituency.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The latest available data shows that the proportion of children in families in absolute low income in the Preston constituency in 2021/22 was 21.9%, a reduction of 3.5 percentage points compared with 2014/15 (the first year for which comparable data is available) and a reduction of 0.7 percentage points compared with 2020/21. Absolute poverty is the government’s preferred measure as the poverty line is fixed in real terms so is not affected by overall median income.
The Government is committed to reducing child poverty and supporting low-income families. We will spend around £276bn through the welfare system in Great Britain in 2023/24 including around £124bn on people of working age and their children.
From April, we uprated benefit rates by 10.1%. In order to increase the number of households who can benefit from these uprating decisions the benefit cap levels have also increased by the same amount.
With 1.08 million job vacancies across the UK, our focus remains firmly on supporting individuals, including parents, to move into, and progress in work, an approach which is based on clear evidence about the importance of employment - particularly where it is full-time - in substantially reducing the risks of child poverty and in improving long-term outcomes for families and children. The latest statistics show that in 2021/22 children living in workless households were around 5 times more likely to be in absolute poverty after housing costs than those where all adults work.
To further support those who are in work, from 1 April 2023, the National Living Wage (NLW) increased by 9.7% to £10.42 an hour for workers aged 23 and over - the largest ever cash increase for the NLW.
At the Spring Budget, the Chancellor announced an ambitious package of measures designed to support people wherever they live in the UK to enter work, increase their working hours and extend their working lives.
We are investing billions in additional childcare support for parents of toddlers, investing in wraparound childcare in schools, and increasing financial support for, and expectations of, parents claiming Universal Credit.
This government understands the pressures people are facing with the cost of living which is why we are providing total support of over £94bn over 2022-23 and 2023-24 to help households and individuals with the rising bills.
For people who require additional support, whether they receive benefits or not, the Household Support Fund will continue until March 2024. This year long extension allows Local Authorities in England to continue to provide discretionary support to those most in need with the significantly rising cost of living. For the period April 2023 to March 2024, Lancashire County Council has been allocated funding of £19,356,470.44 through the Fund. The Devolved Administrations will receive consequential funding as usual to spend at their discretion.
Asked by: Catherine West (Labour - Hornsey and Wood Green)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what step his Department is taking to reduce the child poverty rate among families with three or more children.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government is committed to reducing child poverty and supporting all low-income families. We will spend around £276bn through the welfare system in Great Britain in 2023/24 including around £124bn on people of working age and their children.
From April, we uprated benefit rates by 10.1%. In order to increase the number of households who can benefit from these uprating decisions the benefit cap levels are also increasing by the same amount.
With 1.08 million job vacancies across the UK, our focus remains firmly on supporting individuals, including parents, to move into, and progress in work, an approach which is based on clear evidence about the importance of employment - particularly where it is full-time - in substantially reducing the risks of child poverty and in improving long-term outcomes for families and children. The latest statistics show that in 2021/22 children living in workless households were around 5 times more likely to be in absolute poverty after housing costs than those where all adults work.
To further support those who are in work, including parents, from 1 April 2023, the National Living Wage (NLW) increased by 9.7% to £10.42 an hour for workers aged 23 and over - the largest ever cash increase for the NLW.
At the Spring Budget, the Chancellor announced an ambitious package of measures designed to support people to enter work, increase their working hours and extend their working lives.
We are investing billions in additional childcare support for parents of toddlers, investing in wraparound childcare in schools, and increasing financial support for, and expectations of, parents claiming Universal Credit. For those who are on Universal Credit, we are increasing the childcare maximum (cap) to £951 for one child and £1,630 for two or more children and paying childcare costs up front when parents move into paid work or increase their hours.
This government understands the pressures people are facing with the cost of living which is why we are providing total support of over £94bn over 2022-23 and 2023-24 to help households and individuals with the rising bills. Included within this support is Cost of Living Payments totalling up to £900 in the 2023-24 financial year for over 8 million UK households on eligible means tested benefits and a £150 Disability Cost of Living Payment for over 6 million people across the UK on eligible ’extra-costs’ disability benefits.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate his Department has made of the cost to the public purse of benefits that were fraudulently claimed in each of the last ten financial years.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The Department for Work and Pensions’ (DWP) estimates on the value of both fraud and error in the benefit system, can be found in our annually published statistical report on the Monetary Value of Fraud and Error. Reports for each of the last ten financial years can be found at:
Fraud and error in the benefit system - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
This year’s figures show that the work we have been undertaking to reduce Fraud and Error is having an impact, with the headline rate of overpayment having decreased by 0.4% from 4.0% to 3.6%.
Our Fraud Plan, Fighting Fraud in the Welfare System, published on 19 May 2022, sets out our approach and explains how additional investment is allowing us to recruit 1,400 more staff into our counter-fraud teams and develop enhanced data analytics as a means of preventing and detecting fraud and error.
Additionally, we are creating a dedicated team to deliver Targeted Case Reviews of existing Universal Credit claims. This supports wider Government aims of strong oversight and control and efficiently managing the public purse. Over the next five years we expect to review millions of potentially high-risk claims, including suspicious cases which entered our system at the height of the pandemic.
More information on our Fraud Plan, which also explains our ambition to modernise and strengthen our legislative framework, can be found here:
Fighting Fraud in the Welfare System - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to (a) identify and (b) reduce fraud within the benefits system.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The Department for Work and Pensions’ (DWP) estimates on the value of both fraud and error in the benefit system, can be found in our annually published statistical report on the Monetary Value of Fraud and Error. Reports for each of the last ten financial years can be found at:
Fraud and error in the benefit system - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
This year’s figures show that the work we have been undertaking to reduce Fraud and Error is having an impact, with the headline rate of overpayment having decreased by 0.4% from 4.0% to 3.6%.
Our Fraud Plan, Fighting Fraud in the Welfare System, published on 19 May 2022, sets out our approach and explains how additional investment is allowing us to recruit 1,400 more staff into our counter-fraud teams and develop enhanced data analytics as a means of preventing and detecting fraud and error.
Additionally, we are creating a dedicated team to deliver Targeted Case Reviews of existing Universal Credit claims. This supports wider Government aims of strong oversight and control and efficiently managing the public purse. Over the next five years we expect to review millions of potentially high-risk claims, including suspicious cases which entered our system at the height of the pandemic.
More information on our Fraud Plan, which also explains our ambition to modernise and strengthen our legislative framework, can be found here:
Fighting Fraud in the Welfare System - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).