Asked by: Thelma Walker (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made on the financial effect of the withdrawal of carer's allowance on carers at state-pension age.
Answered by Sarah Newton
It is a basic principle of the social security system that only one benefit at a time can be paid for the same purpose. Both Carer’s Allowance and State Pension are designed to provide a degree of replacement for income lost or foregone; Carer’s Allowance where the duties of caring for a severely disabled person prevent the prospect of full-time work and the earnings it would yield; and State Pension to provide a replacement income in retirement.
The overlapping benefits rules, which prevent both benefits being paid, were established to reflect the general principle that flat-rate benefits designed to help with income maintenance e.g. Carer’s Allowance and State Pension, should not be added together and paid in full, even though a person may qualify for both.
Where Carer’s Allowance cannot be paid, the person will keep underlying entitlement to the benefit, which means if they are on a low income, they may be entitled to any advantages arising from that, e.g. the additional amount for carers in Pension Credit, worth up to £36.00 a week and, in some cases, Housing Benefit.
Asked by: Thelma Walker (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans the government has to include household food insecurity in the evaluation of the effectiveness of Universal Credit.
Answered by Lord Sharma
The Department currently has no plans to include household food insecurity in the evaluation of the effectiveness of Universal Credit. However, we do continue to evaluate Universal Credit as it is delivered. Research and analysis is conducted to assist and inform the evaluation and the expansion of Universal Credit, focusing specifically on the effects of Universal Credit on claimants’ behaviours and outcomes.
The Universal Credit Evaluation Framework can be accessed at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/universal-credit-evaluation-framework-2016
Asked by: Thelma Walker (Labour - Colne Valley)
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 reduce its use of single-use plastics .
Answered by Kit Malthouse
The Department’s catering supplier Compass Group UK & Ireland top priority is reducing single-use plastic packaging. They are working closely with their industry partners to stay abreast of the issues and address the challenges, and are working with their suppliers to provide solutions to help our sites reduce single-use plastics and maximise recycling.
The Government’s 25 year environment plan outlined a range of measures on how we will reduce the amount of plastic waste in circulation through reducing demand for single use plastic. This included a commitment to removing all single use plastics from the central government estate offices.
Asked by: Thelma Walker (Labour - Colne Valley)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she plans to publish new guidance to personal independence payment assessors on personal independence payment mobility claims.
Answered by Sarah Newton
The Department is working at pace and engaging with stakeholders to make the necessary guidance changes, in order to implement the MH judgment safely and effectively. New guidance will be published in due course. For more information on this topic I refer the Hon. Member to a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document that the Secretary of State has laid in the House Library (Deposit reference: DEP2018-0345).