Asked by: David Nuttall (Conservative - Bury North)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answers of the 24 June 2015 to Questions 4118 and 4121 and the statement of the Minister for Europe of 10 November 2015, Official Report, column 239, in which he stated that 'roughly like 40 per cent of the people from elsewhere in the EU who live in the UK are in receipt of benefits or tax credits of some sort,' how this figure was calculated; how many EU citizens have been in the UK for less than four years; and of those people how many have made individual claims for tax credits.
Answered by Priti Patel - Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs
Details on how the proportion of EEA nationals who were in receipt of benefits or tax credits was calculated is detailed in the DWP ad hoc statistical publication “UK benefit and tax credit claims by recently arrived EEA migrants”. This can be accessed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/uk-benefit-and-tax-credit-claims-by-recently-arrived-eea-migrants
It was not possible to provide a more detailed breakdown within this ad hoc statistical publication on the claims made by individuals for different benefits or tax credits.
Asked by: David Nuttall (Conservative - Bury North)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, which external organisations he has met to discuss the consequences of the UK leaving the EU in each of the last three years; and how many times he has met each such organisation.
Answered by Priti Patel - Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs
The Government is focused on delivering a successful renegotiation: it believes it can and will succeed in reforming and renegotiating our relationship with the EU and campaigning to keep the UK in the EU on that basis. The Secretary of State regularly meets with a range of external organisations to discuss the Government's objectives in Europe.
Details of Ministerial meetings with external organisations are published quarterly on Gov.UK.
Asked by: David Nuttall (Conservative - Bury North)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, which external organisations officials in his Department have met to discuss the consequences of the UK leaving the EU in each of the last three years; and how many meetings such officials have had with each such organisation.
Answered by Priti Patel - Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs
The Government is focused on delivering a successful renegotiation: it believes it can and will succeed in reforming and renegotiating our relationship with the EU and campaigning to keep the UK in the EU on that basis. Officials regularly meet with a range of external organisations to discuss the Government's objectives in Europe.
Asked by: David Nuttall (Conservative - Bury North)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many officials in his Department are engaged in research into the effects of the UK leaving the EU.
Answered by Priti Patel - Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs
The Government is focused on delivering a successful renegotiation: it believes it can and will succeed in reforming and renegotiating our relationship with the EU and campaigning to keep the UK in the EU on that basis. Departments are appropriately resourced to support the Government’s priorities in Europe.
Asked by: David Nuttall (Conservative - Bury North)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of whether EU nationals are entitled under EU law to claim universal credit on the same basis as UK nationals.
Answered by Priti Patel - Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs
EEA national jobseekers are not entitled to Universal Credit.
However, EEA nationals who are employed or self-employed in the UK and those who become involuntarily unemployed or temporarily incapable of work after having worked here are entitled to claim Universal Credit.