Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 12 January 2021 to Question 109278, for what reasons parents or guardians who are unable to work from home and will lose income as a result of the requirement for their children or dependents to self-isolate because of contact with someone outside their household who has tested positive for covid-19 are not eligible for the support payment of £500 to support people on low incomes.

The Test and Trace Support Payment Scheme will continue into the summer and will be expanded to cover parents who are unable to work because they are caring for a child who is self-isolating. The funding made available for local authorities as part of this to make discretionary support payments will be increased to £20 million per month.