Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what support she is putting in place for people (a) awaiting a face-to-face assessment for employment and support allowance, (b) whose contributory employment and support allowance is due to expire and (c) who earn above the threshold eligible for universal credit.

The health and safety of our claimants and staff is our key priority. We suspended all face-to-face assessments for sickness and disability benefits in March 2020. This temporary suspension, brought in to protect people from unnecessary risk of coronavirus at the outset of the pandemic, remains in place, and is being kept under review in line with the latest public health guidance. Any re-introduction of face-to-face assessments would involve stringent Covid-19 related safety measures, supported by guidance for claimants and assessment providers to ensure compliance with the relevant public health guidance.

However, throughout the pandemic we have continued to assess people on paper evidence, using this route whenever possible. We also introduced telephone assessments, providing limited outcomes, in June 2020. We have continued building our capacity and capability since June enabling us to provide the full range of outcomes at volume from this February. This action will ensure that claimants receive their correct benefit entitlement as quickly as possible and reduce the time claimants who may be entitled to a higher award are waiting for their assessment.

Where an individual’s contributory ESA ends if they require further financial support they may be eligible for Universal Credit, depending on their personal circumstances.

For people who are ineligible for Universal Credit they may be eligible for other assistance such as Discretionary Housing Payments provided by their Local Authority, which helps the most vulnerable and supports renters with housing costs in the private and social rented sectors.

In addition, the Government has introduced a raft of temporary measures to support those hardest hit:

• Extension of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme to support individuals and businesses who are impacted by disruption caused by coronavirus (COVID-19) this winter. The CJRS (also known as the furlough scheme) will remain open until 31 March 2021
• The Self-Employment Income Support Scheme grant extension provides critical support to the self-employed in the form of 2 further grants, each available for 3-month periods covering November 2020 to January 2021 and February 2021 to April 2021.
• Affected self-employed claimants will also not have a Minimum Income Floor (an assumed level of income) applied for a period of time within UC.
• Working people on low incomes who are required to remain at home by NHS Test and Trace to help stop the spread of the virus and cannot work from home can now receive £500 to financially support them while self-isolating.
• Local housing allowance rates have been increased to cover the lowest 30th percent of local rents. This £1bn investment will benefit over 1 million households with an average increase of £600 this year, and help alleviate the pressure on Discretionary Housing Payments.
• People in England can also apply to their Local Authority for support from the £170 million Covid Winter Grant Scheme that we have introduced to help with food and essential utility bills to the end of March. Devolved Administrations have received equivalent funding.

In addition, there is a Flexible Support Fund, which has been increased by £150 million, to support customers facing redundancy.