Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average waiting time is for claimants calling the universal credit helpline.

Internal management information data indicates that between April and December 2017, the average speed of answer across all Universal Credit helplines was 4 minutes and 45 seconds.

The Department operates a virtual telephony platform, which enables it to manage fluctuating call demands by increasing or decreasing the number of agents it uses to handle calls.

Each week, the Department matches the required capacity and resources to its telephony forecast to ensure it meets demand and delivers a good service across all channels. This capacity is designed to scale up in line with new claims as the service expands further this year.