Asked by: Gerald Jones (Labour - Merthyr Tydfil and Aberdare)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department has taken to promote the take up of pension credit to help tackle the cost of living crisis.
Answered by Guy Opperman
We have already undertaken a range of actions to raise awareness of Pension Credit and increase take-up. We are now putting all our efforts into the substantial and sustained take-up campaign, which was launched on 3 April. This has included print advertising and promotion in the national press, across social media, via internet search engines and on screens in Post Offices and GP surgeries across Great Britain. Our digital toolkit has been updated with information and resources, as well as leaflets and posters which advice organisations, charities and other stakeholders working across local communities can use to help promote Pension Credit
Most recently, on 15 June DWP held another Pension Credit day of action with broadcasters, regional and national newspapers and other partners encouraged to reach out to pensioners, as well their family and friends, through their channels. Although not all claims can be directly attributed to the campaign, early indications are that the day of action has been highly effective. Our internal management information suggests there have been over 10,000 Pension Credit claims made during the week of the media day – an increase of 275% compared to the same week in 2021, which itself was an enhanced week due to the 2021 Pension Credit Action Day.
The impact of these claim volumes on numbers of successful awards and on Pension Credit take up will take longer to establish given the usual cycle involved in producing those statistics. However, the campaign is ongoing including a particular focus on getting the private sector to drive forward efforts to enhance claims, and specific effort to reach out to communities who have traditionally not claimed Pension Credit. That work is very much ongoing.
Asked by: Gerald Jones (Labour - Merthyr Tydfil and Aberdare)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the impact of the rise in the cost of living on levels of in-work poverty; and what steps the Government is taking to mitigate that impact.
Answered by David Rutley
The latest available statistics for in-work poverty are for 2019/20.
The Treasury published distributional analysis which shows that the full package of measures announced on May 26th is well targeted at households on low incomes.
Asked by: Gerald Jones (Labour - Merthyr Tydfil and Aberdare)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when she plans to respond to the enquiry of 12 April 2022 from the hon. Member for Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney, reference POSCMP2022/29080.
Answered by Guy Opperman
A reply was sent to the hon. Member by the Director for Retirement Services, on behalf of the Secretary of State, on 8 June 2022.
Asked by: Gerald Jones (Labour - Merthyr Tydfil and Aberdare)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when she plans to respond to the enquiry of 10 March 2022 from the hon. Member for Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney, reference POSCMP2022/20265.
Answered by Guy Opperman
DWP contacted the office of Gerald Jones Labour MP for Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney on Friday 13 May 2022, to provide a response in relation to his constituent’s enquiry.
Asked by: Gerald Jones (Labour - Merthyr Tydfil and Aberdare)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when she plans to respond to the enquiry of 18 January 2022 from the hon. Member for Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney with the reference number MC2022/03672.
Answered by Guy Opperman
A reply was sent to the hon. Member by the Minister for Welfare Delivery, on behalf of the Secretary of State, on 17 March 2022.
Asked by: Gerald Jones (Labour - Merthyr Tydfil and Aberdare)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the number of people who have been affected by the under payment of benefits after transitioning from incapacity benefit to employment and support allowance in Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney constituency.
Answered by Chloe Smith
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 19th January to question number 104377.
Asked by: Gerald Jones (Labour - Merthyr Tydfil and Aberdare)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney who have reached state pension age were awaiting an initial payment after (a) one month, (b) two months or (c) more than two months after qualifying for that pension.
Answered by Guy Opperman
This information is not collated as a matter of normal business under this, or previous governments and is only available at disproportionate cost to the Department.
Asked by: Gerald Jones (Labour - Merthyr Tydfil and Aberdare)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make it her policy to reconsider the cessation of the temporary universal credit £20 uplift in response to the impact on household finances of rising energy prices.
Answered by David Rutley
The Chancellor announced a temporary six-month extension to the £20 per week uplift at the Budget on 3 March to support households affected by the economic shock of Covid-19. Universal Credit has provided a vital safety net for six million people during the pandemic, and the temporary uplift was part of a COVID support package worth a total of £407 billion in 2020-21 and 2021-22.
There have been significant positive developments in the public health situation since the uplift was first introduced. With the success of the vaccine rollout and record job vacancies, it is right that our focus is on helping people back into work.
Through our Plan for Jobs, we are targeting tailored support schemes of people of all ages to help them prepare for, get into and progress in work. These include: Kickstart, delivering tens of thousands of six-month work placements for Universal Credit claimants aged 16-24 at risk of unemployment; we have also recruited an additional 13,500 work coaches to provide more intensive support to find a job; and introduced Restart which provides 12 months’ intensive employment support to Universal Credit claimants who are unemployed for a year. Our Plan for Jobs interventions will support more than two million people.
We recognise that some people continue to require extra support, which is why we have introduced a £421 million Household Support Fund to help vulnerable people in England with essential household costs over the winter as the economy recovers. The Barnett Formula will apply in the usual way, with the devolved administrations receiving almost £80 million (£41m for the Scottish Government, £25m for the Welsh Government and £14m for the NI Executive), for a total of £500 million.
The Cold Weather Payment scheme also helps vulnerable people in receipt of certain income-related benefits to meet the additional costs of heating during periods of severe cold weather. Cold Weather Payments are targeted at those in receipt of eligible benefits with a pension element or disability component or where there is a child under five in the household.