Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will take steps to ensure that local councils in England do not count Universal Credit Transitional Protection as income when calculating council tax payment in cases prior to 10 November 2025.

Councils are responsible for designing local council tax support schemes for working age people in consultation with their residents. The Government is aware of the variations in the way schemes assess legacy benefits, Universal Credit and transitional protection payments. The Government has recently written to billing authorities on this issue, encouraging them to reflect on the impact of their approach on low-income households. The letter can be found here.

Councils also have discretion, under section 13A of the Local Government Finance Act 1992, to provide council tax discounts where they consider this appropriate.