Asked by: Lord Hamilton of Epsom (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the effect on the level of migration from the EU of the "emergency brake" proposed in the Decision of the European Council concerning a new settlement for the UK within the EU, and whether that proposal will affect any claims for non-contributory in-work benefits made by British citizens, including those returning from permanent residence abroad.
Answered by Lord Freud
The Decision of the European Council concerning a new settlement for the UK recognises, for the first time, that different social security systems across Member States can attract EU workers. Government figures show that around 40 per cent of recent EEA migrants are in households supported by the benefit system. On average, families with a recent EEA migrant claim almost £6,000 per year in tax credits, and of these, around 8,000 families receive more than £10,000.
The brake will apply to those moving from elsewhere in the EU to the UK for work. It will not apply to UK nationals living and working here.