Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of local discretionary council housing payments being made available people who are in work but do not have savings.

Discretionary Housing Payments are administered by Local Authorities who are best placed to make informed judgements about relative priorities and needs in their area to ensure that the most vulnerable are supported and the funds are targeted effectively. They are available to people who are in receipt of benefits or are working and entitled to either Housing Benefit or the housing element of Universal Credit, and experiencing a shortfall in their housing costs.