Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment with his Cabinet colleagues of the potential impact of the No Recourse to Public Funds policy on levels of (a) poverty and (b) inequality.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department has made no recent assessments, and it has no plans to do so in the future.
DWP has no powers to award public funds benefits to an individual whose Home Office immigration status restricts access to public funds. Those on certain visa routes, including the family and human rights routes, can apply, for free, to have public funds access restrictions lifted if they are destitute or at risk of destitution, if the welfare of their child is at risk due to their low income, or where there are other exceptional financial circumstances.
Section 17 of the Children Act 1989 imposes a general duty on local authorities to safeguard and promote the welfare of “children in need” in their area. Support provided to a child by local authorities under Section 17 of the Children Act 1989 is not dependent on the immigration status of the child or their parent(s). In addition, individuals with no recourse to public funds can also benefit from the Household Support Fund and may be able to receive support in limited circumstances, as determined by Local Authorities.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment the Government has made of the (a) financial and (b) mental health impacts on families of the removal of the spare room subsidy during the cost of living crisis; and if he will make it his policy to abolish that penalty.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
No assessment has been made.
The removal of the spare room subsidy policy applies to claims for housing support where the claimant is living in the social rented sector in a property that is deemed too large for their needs. The policy aims to strengthen work incentives and seeks to encourage greater mobility within the social rented sector.
There are no plans to abolish the policy, and certain easements are available which allow for the provision of an additional bedroom in certain circumstances, such as to support the needs of disabled people.
Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) are available for those who face a shortfall in meeting their housing costs. Since 2011 we have provided nearly £1.6 billion in funding to local authorities for DHPs.
We are doing more to help households who may be struggling. The government announced substantial cost of living support for 2023/24 in the Autumn Statement. This is intended to provide stability and certainty for households and includes Cost of Living Payments for the most vulnerable, meaning around 8 million households on eligible means-tested benefits will get up to a further £900 in Payments in 2023/24. Benefits and state pensions will also be uprated by 10.1% in 2023-24.
For those who need additional support the Government is providing an additional £1 billion of funding, including Barnett impact, to enable a further extension to the Household Support Fund in England over the 2023/24 financial year. In England, this scheme will be backed by £842 million, running from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024, which local authorities will use to help households with the cost of essentials. It will be for the devolved administrations to decide how to allocate their additional Barnett funding. Local Authorities are expected to support households in the most need, and in particular those who may not be eligible for the other support government has recently made available.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps the Government is taking to support older people who lost their jobs as a result of shielding during the Covid-19 pandemic with (a) finances (b) employment opportunities and (c) access to training.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The Government recognises the challenges faced by some aged 50 and over. This is why we are providing over £20m over the next three years for an enhanced offer for people aged 50 and over to remain in and return to work.
Eligible older job seekers on Universal Credit will receive more intensive, tailored support during the first nine months of their claim, on top of the support that work coaches offer all claimants on skills provision and job search support.
37 full-time 50 PLUS Champions are now in every JCP district across Great Britain, to upskill Work Coaches in supporting over 50s return to work.
The Government is investing in re-skilling and up-skilling opportunities to make sure adults, at any age, can upskill to reach their potential, transforming lives and delivering on the National Skills Fund commitment. As part of this investment, we have introduced the Free Courses for Jobs scheme, which enables learners without a level 3 qualification (or learners with any qualification level but earning below the National Living Wage) to gain a qualification free.
In addition, learners who want to upskill in their role, are looking for work or are changing career can take part in Skills Bootcamps. Skills Bootcamps are free, flexible courses of up to 16 weeks, giving people the opportunity to build up sector-specific skills and fast track to an interview with an employer. Skills Bootcamps have the potential to transform the skills landscape for adults and employers.
The Government is committed to providing financial support for those who are unable to work or who are on a low income. More information can be found at Benefits - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the retirement age of 66 years old on the (a) financial situation, (b) mental health and (c) overall wellbeing of people aged 60-66.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Successive government have given due consideration to the impact of the proposals made in the Pensions Acts of 1995, 2007 and 2011 that made changes to the State Pension age.
The Pensions Act 1995 legislated to equalise men and women’s SPa at 65, over a 10 year period between 2010 and 2020. Standardised impact assessments had not been introduced at the time, but an overview of the options and evidence considered when developing the policy is provided in the 1993 white paper ‘Equality in State Pension age’ - https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/283975/response/692460/attach/html/3/Equality%20in%20State%20Pension%20age%201993.pdf.html
The Pensions Act 2007 legislated to introduce a timetable for the increase of SPa to 66, 67 and 68, so that these rises took place by 2026, 2036 and 2046.
The impact assessment for the Pensions Act 2007 can be found here: http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20121204130650/http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/pensions-bill-ria.pdf
The Pensions Act 2011 brought forward the equalisation of the male and female State Pension age at 65 by 18 months, so that it takes place by November 2018 rather than April 2020. It also brought forward the increase from 65 to 66 by five and a half years, so that it takes place by October 2020 rather than March 2026.
The impact assessment for the Pensions Act 2011 can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/181462/pensions-bill-2011-ia-annexa.pdf”
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent steps the Government has taken to address child poverty.
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 over £242bn through the welfare system in 2022/23 including £108bn on people of working age and over £134 billion on pensioners. Of the total amount, around £64 billion will be spent on supporting disabled people and people with health conditions in Great Britain.
From 10 April 2023 we are uprating benefits for working age households and disabled people, as well as the basic and new State Pensions, all by 10.1%. In order to increase the number of households who can benefit from these uprating decisions the benefit cap will also be increased by 10.1%.
With over 1.22 million job vacancies across the UK, our focus remains firmly on supporting 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.
To help people into work, including parents, our Plan for Jobs is providing broad ranging support for all Jobseekers with our Sector Based Work Academy Programmes (SWAP), Job Entry Targeted Support and Restart scheme. We are also extending the support Jobcentres provide to people in work and on low incomes. Through a staged roll-out, which started in April 2022, around 2.1 million low-paid benefit claimants will be eligible for support to progress into higher-paid work.
The government is also increasing the National Living Wage by 9.7% to £10.42 an hour from April 2023, representing an increase of over £1,600 to the annual earnings of a full-time worker on the National living wage, benefitting over 2 million low paid workers.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much ministerial severance pay has been (a) paid out by his Department and (b) accepted since 1 June 2022.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The provision of payments connected to the loss of ministerial office is set out in legislation. Outturn figures will be published in the department’s audited annual reports and accounts in due course.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the proposed expansion of the FareShare Surplus with Purpose scheme.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions has no plans to make an assessment.
Surplus food distribution sits with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of relinking Local Housing Allowance rates to the lowest 30 per cent of local rents.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions reviews Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates annually and a decision will be announced in due course.
In April 2020 LHA rates were increased to the 30th percentile of local rents. This investment of nearly £1 billion provided 1.5 million claimants with an average £600 more housing support in 2020/21.
For those who require additional support with housing costs, Discretionary Housing Payments (DHP) are available from local authorities. Since 2011 we have provided almost £1.5 billion in DHPs.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has made a recent assessment of the impact of repaying debt owed to the Government, including Council Tax and benefit overpayments, on the financial situations of people receiving benefits, in the context of the cost of living crisis.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The Department for Work and Pensions remains committed to working with anyone who is struggling with their repayment terms.
Where a person has been overpaid benefit and feels they cannot afford the proposed rate of recovery, they are encouraged to contact the department to discuss a temporary reduction in their rate of repayment.
The department has a well-established process for working with individuals to support them to manage any debts. Our agents will always look to negotiate affordable and sustainable repayment plans. This includes working with individuals to review their financial circumstances and, in most instances, a temporary reduction in their rate of repayment can also be agreed.
There is no minimum amount that a claimant has to pay, and we have recently extended the time period for any reduced repayment to remain in place.
The Government understands the pressures people are facing with the cost of living and has taken further decisive action to support people with their energy bills. The Energy Price Guarantee is supporting millions of households with rising energy costs, and the Chancellor made clear it will continue to do so from now until April next year. This is in addition to the over £37bn of cost of living support announced earlier this year, which includes the £400 non-repayable discount to eligible households provided through the Energy Bills Support Scheme.
This also includes up to £650 in Cost of Living Payments (paid in 2 lump sums of £326 and £324) which have targeted support at around 8 million low-income households on means-tested benefits. In addition, 6 million eligible disabled people have received a one-off Disability Cost of Living Payment of £150 and pensioner households will receive a one-off payment of £300 through, and as an addition to, the Winter Fuel Payment from November.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps the Government is taking to ensure people with disabilities are not disproportionately affected by the cost-of-living crisis.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The Government is providing extensive support to disabled people and those with a health condition to help them live independent lives.
In 2022/23 we will spend over £64bn on benefits to support disabled people and people with health conditions in Great Britain.
In response to cost of living pressures, the Government announced over £37bn of cost of living support earlier this year, which includes: