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Written Question
Broadband
Thursday 21st March 2024

Asked by: Cat Smith (Labour - Lancaster and Fleetwood)

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether broadband access is classed as an essential utility.

Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

There is no standard definition of what constitutes a utility, with gas, water, electricity, and telecoms all regulated differently. The UK telecoms market features strong competition both at wholesale and retail levels which sets it apart from gas, water and electricity, which are regulated in such a way as to address competition concerns. However, the Government recognises that access to the internet is increasingly essential for full participation in society.

The Government has taken action to ensure as many people as possible are able to access the internet. Since 2021, we have worked closely with telecoms operators to ensure social tariffs are available across 99% of the UK. Available to nearly 5 million households on Universal Credit as well as other means tested benefits, social tariffs are available from 28 individual providers (including BT, Sky, Virgin Media and Vodafone) and start at £10 per month.

Over 80% of the UK can now access gigabit-capable broadband from at least one provider, and the Government is investing £5 billion via Project Gigabit to bring fast, secure and resilient connections to those parts of the country unlikely to be reached by commercial roll-out.

In March 2020, The Broadband Universal Service Obligation (USO) came into effect, giving consumers the right to request a decent broadband connection of at least 10Mbps download and 1Mbps upload. The USO is applicable in situations where access to decent broadband will cost more than £54 per month, the property isn’t due to be connected by an existing government scheme within 12 months and the cost of connection does not exceed a reasonable threshold of £3,400.


Written Question
Universal Credit
Thursday 21st March 2024

Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 26 March 2018 to Question 133803 on Universal Credit, what progress he has made on developing guidance for (a) Universal Credit claimants and (b) his Department's staff on the reporting and treatment of unreimbursed expenses.

Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Work Coach guidance was updated in 2018.


Written Question
Universal Credit
Wednesday 20th March 2024

Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Wirral South)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent estimate he has made of the non-claim rate for people migrating from legacy benefits to Universal Credit; and what the non-claim rate was estimated to be.

Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Following discovery, we are now able to use evidence to make a specific assumption of 26% for Tax Credit (TC) only claims and 4% for all other legacy benefit combinations.

No previous estimate of tax credits only claims was made therefore it is wrong to compare the current TC claim rate to a 2010 assumption.


Written Question
Childcare: Tax Allowances
Wednesday 20th March 2024

Asked by: Lord Weir of Ballyholme (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to increase Government contributions to Tax-free Childcare Allowance.

Answered by Baroness Vere of Norbiton - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)

Tax-Free Childcare provides financial support for working parents with their childcare costs. For every £8 parents pay into their childcare account, the Government adds £2 up to a maximum of £2,000 in top up per year for each child up to age 11 and up to £4,000 per disabled child until they’re 17.

The Government recognizes the importance of supporting parents with the costs of childcare and continues to support families with a range of other childcare offers, including the free hours offer, and support through Universal Credit childcare.


Written Question
Childcare
Wednesday 20th March 2024

Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the implications for her Department's policies of the press release on childcare costs published by Pregnant Then Screwed on 18 February 2024.

Answered by David Johnston - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)

By the 2027/2028 financial year, this government will expect to be spending in excess of £8 billion every year on free hours and early education. This is the single biggest investment in childcare in England ever.

From April 2024, eligible working parents of 2 year olds will be able to access 15 hours of free childcare per week (38 weeks of the year) from the term after the child’s 2nd birthday. Over 100,000 parents have already applied for the expansion starting in April, and my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, has confirmed that our latest projections show that more than 150,000 new funded places will be secured by early April.

From September 2024, the department will provide working parents with 15 hours of free childcare a week from when their child is 9 months until they start school. This will increase to 30 hours from September 2025.

Delivering that ambition includes increasing childcare funding rates, with an additional £204 million in this financial year, an additional £400 million in the coming financial year and guaranteed uplifts in line with cost pressures for two years after that. The department is providing grants to help new childminders enter the sector and, to make it easier for the sector, making changes to the early years foundation stage to provide more flexibility.

The department hears every day from families how significant this policy will be for their finances. Once the roll-out is completed, eligible families will save up to £6,500 per year. The roll out will help parents to return to work or increase their hours, and tens of thousands of parents have already successfully applied for their codes, ready to take up their places in April. To see the full range of support they are entitled to, parents should visit: https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/.

Hundreds of thousands of children aged 3 and 4 are already registered for a 30-hour place, which can save eligible working parents up to £6,500 per child per year. Expanding this entitlement to younger children across the country will help even more working parents with the cost of childcare and make a real difference to the lives of those families.

In addition to the expanded entitlements, the government has also taken action to support parents on Universal Credit with childcare costs upfront when they need it, rather than in arrears. The department has increased support for these parents by increasing the childcare cost maximum amounts to £950 for one child and £1,629 for two children.

Tax-Free Childcare remains available for working parents of children aged 0-11, or up to 17 for eligible disabled children. This can save parents up to £2,000 per year, or up to £4,000 for eligible children with disabilities and has the same income criteria as 30 hours free childcare.


Written Question
Universal Credit: Adult Education
Wednesday 20th March 2024

Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to support people who are on Universal Credit to access free adult education.

Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Universal Credit (UC) claimants are required to undertake activity to address skills needs if this will help them enter and retain employment or find better paid work. Jobcentre Plus Work Coaches engage with claimants to identify and address these needs through options ranging from the Department for Education’s Skills Bootcamps; careers advice from National Careers Service advisors, many of whom are co-located in Jobcentre offices or DWP’s successful (Sector Based Work Academy Programmes).

DWP’s Sector-based Work Academy Programmes (SWAPs) help employers who have immediate and future employment needs by providing short work focussed opportunities to fill local job vacancies. Through the adult education budget, Government funds the skills training that employers require and in return employers agree to offer work experience placements and a guaranteed offer of an interview for a live vacancy. Data for the financial years 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2023/24 to date shows that, as of 28 January 2024, there were a total of 266,330 starts to a Sector-based Work Academy Programme. Final start figures for 2023/24 will be available early next financial year.

For claimants who need vocational and essential skills training (English/maths/digital), to support their work search goals, it was announced at Spring budget 2023 that the length of time UC claimants can undertake full time work-related training has been extended to up to 16 weeks. This means eligible claimants are able to access a wider range of courses, including those made available through the DfE Free Courses for Jobs initiative.

Additionally, local Jobcentre Plus partnership teams work directly with colleges and training providers in their area to ensure claimants have access to the right skills support. Jobcentre Plus partnership leads also participate in DfE’s employer representative body led Local Skills improvement Partnerships across England, which are articulating local employer skills needs for consideration by colleges and local training providers.


Written Question
Employment Schemes: Young People
Wednesday 20th March 2024

Asked by: Duncan Baker (Conservative - North Norfolk)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many starts by region have been recorded for the youth offer as of 01 March 2024.

Answered by Mims Davies - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Youth Offer launched on the 20 September 2020 and provides support for 16–24-year-olds who are on Universal Credit to help them move into employment. It includes three elements:

  • The Youth Employment Programme, which provides young people dedicated intensive Work Coach support in finding & applying for jobs, with additional assistance available for those who have recently begun their Universal Credit claim.
  • Youth Hubs, which bring together in one location DWP services with local support provided by youth experts. This ensures that the needs of young people are matched to services that help them tackle barriers to employment.
  • Youth Employability Coaches, who are focused on supporting young people furthest from the labour market overcome complex challenges so that they can move into work.

As of 01 March 2024, there have been 1,123,000 starts on the Youth Offer.

Starts by strand nationally:

Starts between dates

Youth Employment Programme

Youth Hub

Youth Employability Coach

Youth Offer

21/09/2020 – 31/03/2021

206,700

206,700

01/04/2021 – 31/03/2022

259,300

14,800

21,700

295,800

01/04/2021 – 31/03/2023

272,700

15,100

18,300

306,200

01/04/2023 – 29/02/2024

282,800

13,000

18,500

314,300

Total Starts

1,021,500

43,000

58,500

1,123,000

Starts by strand and region:

Region

Youth Employment Programme

Youth Hub

Youth Employability Coach

Youth Offer

East Midlands

69,000

1,000

2,500

72,500

East of England

78,400

400

3,800

82,500

London

157,800

3,100

5,900

166,800

North East

51,100

2,800

3,300

57,200

North West

131,500

10,700

9,600

151,800

Scotland

85,300

3,000

7,900

96,200

South East

107,000

3,700

3,800

114,600

South West

64,700

700

4,100

69,500

Wales

51,500

300

2,200

54,000

West Midlands

108,900

8,900

7,800

125,600

Yorkshire and The Humber

96,400

8,200

7,300

112,000

Unknown

19,800

200

400

20,400

Total

1,021,500

43,000

58,500

1,123,000

Notes:

  1. Eligible claimants who have recently begun their Universal Credit claim, and are actively searching for work, start in the Youth Employment Programme element of the Youth Offer. A Work Coach may later refer them to a Youth Hub, Youth Employability Coach or other employment support as appropriate based on their needs.
  2. When a claimant starts on any of the three elements of the Youth Offer, this is recorded as a start on that element, as well as a start on the Youth Offer.
  3. A claimant may take part in multiple elements of the Youth Offer. They may start any element of the Youth Offer multiple times. Each of these starts is recorded as a start on the Youth Offer.
  4. Claimants do not take part in multiple elements of the Youth Offer simultaneously.
  5. Data for Youth Hubs and Youth Employability Coaches is not available prior to April-21.
  6. Youth Hub and Youth Employability Coach data is produced from a manual process and although care is taken when processing and analysing Youth Hub and Youth Employability Coach referrals, the data collected might be subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale recording system which features manual data. Therefore, Youth Hub and Youth Employability Coach figures are likely to underestimate the number of young people who have started at a Youth Hub and/or with a Youth Employability Coach.
  7. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 100. Therefore, the individual elements in the table may not sum to the total figure.
  8. Figures are subject to retrospective revision.
  9. Youth Offer starts are categorised as “unknown” in cases where limited data is available.

Written Question
Broadband: Social Tariffs
Tuesday 19th March 2024

Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her Department has set a target for (a) total provision and (b) provision in rural areas of broadband social tariffs.

Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Social tariffs are currently available in 99% of the UK which includes both urban and rural areas.

Social tariffs are commercial products which are offered voluntarily by telecoms providers to support those on low incomes. Social tariffs are currently offered by 28 different providers across the UK and are available to an estimated 5 million households on Universal Credit as well as other means-tested benefits. In December 2023, Ofcom’s Pricing Trends report showed that 380,000 UK households now take up a social tariff, an almost 160% increase from September 2022.

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology has not set a target for the provision of social tariffs. The Government and Ofcom continue to press operators to do more to raise awareness of social tariffs so that eligible households make use of them. Ofcom’s report also showed that just 45% of eligible households were aware of low-cost broadband offers. In July 2023, Ofcom’s Chief Executive wrote to the sector to set out the regulator’s expectation that they should do more to promote awareness, such as by highlighting tariffs on bills and end-of-contract notifications.


Written Question
Universal Credit
Tuesday 19th March 2024

Asked by: Alison McGovern (Labour - Wirral South)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of Universal Credit claimants who have no work requirements have been migrated from legacy benefits.

Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

We will continue to assess the feasibility of publishing data by conditionality groups at a future date.


Written Question
Telecommunications: Social Tariffs
Tuesday 19th March 2024

Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)

Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that there is adequate provision of social tariffs in rural areas.

Answered by Julia Lopez - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)

Social tariffs are currently available in 99% of the UK which includes both urban and rural areas.

Social tariffs are commercial products which are offered voluntarily by telecoms providers to support those on low incomes. Social tariffs are currently offered by 28 different providers across the UK and are available to an estimated 5 million households on Universal Credit as well as other means-tested benefits. In December 2023, Ofcom’s Pricing Trends report showed that 380,000 UK households now take up a social tariff, an almost 160% increase from September 2022.

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology has not set a target for the provision of social tariffs. The Government and Ofcom continue to press operators to do more to raise awareness of social tariffs so that eligible households make use of them. Ofcom’s report also showed that just 45% of eligible households were aware of low-cost broadband offers. In July 2023, Ofcom’s Chief Executive wrote to the sector to set out the regulator’s expectation that they should do more to promote awareness, such as by highlighting tariffs on bills and end-of-contract notifications.