Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the differences are between the (a) Connect to Work and (b) Universal support schemes.

Connect to Work will use the funding that was initially reserved for the Universal Support Programme. There are aspects of Connect to Work that have similarities with that previously announced programme, such as it being an evidence-based Supported Employment programme targeted at economically inactive disabled people, those with health conditions and those with complex barriers to employment. This is to help ensure that we keep the positive impacts that the Office for Budget Responsibility scored for Universal Support. Connect to Work, however, has been co-designed with Local Authorities and has flexibility to meet local needs at its core.