Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the £20 a week uplift to universal credit introduced during the covid-19 outbreak will be made permanent.

The standard allowance in Universal Credit has been increased by £87.67 a month (equivalent to £20 per week) on top of the planned annual uprating. All Universal Credit households will see an increase in their payment and this additional increase means claimants will be up to £1040 better off over the next 12 months.

This uplift is part of a wider package of measures which represent an investment of over £6.5 billion into the welfare system. These measures, along with the other job and business support programmes announced by the Chancellor, represent one of the most comprehensive packages of support by an advanced economy in response to the coronavirus outbreak.