Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 19 July 2022 to Question 36138 on Cost of Living Payments, how many Universal Credit claimants who had the minimum income floor applied to them during the qualifying period for the first round of cost of living payments; and how many claimants (a) had a zero payment, (b) earned below the minimum income floor and (c) earned above the minimum income floor.

During the qualifying period for the first Cost of Living Payment there were 67,350 gainfully self-employed Universal Credit claimants subject to the minimum income floor. Of these:

a) 8,820 had a zero payment.

b) 33,520 earned below the minimum income floor.

c) 33,830 earned above the minimum income floor.

Numbers with a zero payment (a) are not excluded from numbers above (b) or below (c) the minimum income floor.

Note: the figures in (a), (b) and (c) do not sum to the total number of gainfully self-employed as some individuals will have a zero payment and earn above or below the minimum income floor.

These figures are from internal Management Information subject to retrospective changes and are rounded to the nearest 10.