Welfare rights news and case law

8 July, 2021

DWP completes ‘reassessment journey’ for all 600,000 incapacity benefit claimants who were potentially underpaid on their migration to ESA

New DWP statistics confirm that more than £600 million has been paid to 118,000 claimants

8 July, 2021

Local authorities in England and Wales spent 98 per cent of their allocated DHP funding during 2020/2021

However, new DWP statistics show that while some councils spent more than their allocated amount, more than a third spent less than 95 per cent

8 July, 2021

Ensuring no overlapping payments of DLA, PIP or AFIP with the Scottish child disability payment

New statutory instrument

7 July, 2021 Open access

Select Committee suggests decision to end £20 universal credit uplift is being led by ‘dates not data’

However, also confirming that suspension of the MIF will be phased out gradually, Secretary of State says government's focus has shifted to moving people into work as the economy starts opening up

7 July, 2021

Telephone assessments have led to better quality reports as assessors have to ask better questions and ‘can’t just make judgments on what they see’, DWP Permanent Secretary tells MPs

Asked by Select Committee about the future direction of assessments, Secretary of State adds that health and disability Green Paper will consider ways to improve claimants' experiences and is due 'very soon'

7 July, 2021

‘Voluntary move’ to universal credit to ‘start in earnest’ after the autumn and continue through 2022, says DWP

Department will then seek to 'reach a scale' on managed migration in 2023 with a view to completion by the end of 2024, Permanent Secretary tells Select Committee

7 July, 2021 Open access

DWP issues updated guidance to local authorities on the extended Covid Local Support Grant

Updates to existing guidance reflect new funding amounts and amended reporting dates, although general guidance, including on eligibility, remains broadly the same

5 July, 2021 Open access

‘Additional resources’ put into universal credit should be maintained, say six Conservative former Work and Pensions Secretaries

However, David Gauke cautions that 'in normal times' there are better ways to improve the way universal credit works than the £20 uplift

5 July, 2021

Extra-statutory payments to be available to benefit claimants who failed to apply to EU Settlement Scheme by 30 June deadline

DWP advises local authorities that support for existing claimants will continue while it carries out a 'signposting' exercise in September 2021

5 July, 2021

High Court rules that provision for refugees to make a backdated child tax credit claim from the date they sought asylum continues to apply where that date was before introduction of full service universal credit

DK, R (On the Application Of) v Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs [2021] EWHC 1845 (Admin)

5 July, 2021

Conversion of transitional SDP amount into universal credit transitional element

New DWP memo includes guidance on when additional amount will be subject to reduction or termination after conversion

5 July, 2021

Consultation launched on increasing the upper age for NHS prescription exemptions in England so it aligns with state pension age

Prescription charges are an important source of income for the NHS, says Health Minister

5 July, 2021 Open access

MSPs consider plans to make second coronavirus-related Carer’s Allowance Supplement double payment in December 2021

Social Justice and Social Security Committee launches consultation seeking views by 12 August 2021

2 July, 2021 Open access

Government announces additional £2 million in Covid-19 funding for advice sector in England and Wales

New funding will be allocated through the Community Justice Fund over the next 12 months, providing 'timely support' for the sector

2 July, 2021

MoJ provides update on advice partnerships across England and Wales funded as part of its £3.1 million Legal Support for Litigants in Person programme

Collective approach being taken across eight local and regional partnerships is something to be celebrated, says Justice Minister

2 July, 2021

National Audit Office to conduct investigation into systematic underpayment of state pension to women whose husbands reached pensionable age before 2008

Inquiry to focus on who has been underpaid, why underpayment happened, and what the DWP is doing to put it right

2 July, 2021

DWP invites local authorities to take part in trial of exchanging information about care home admissions and funding via email rather than post

New system to be piloted in light of 'significant delays' caused by increased numbers of local authority and Department staff working from home

2 July, 2021

Local authorities to receive new alerts about fluctuating non-state pensions through Verify Earnings and Pensions Service

DWP advises that change will lead to increased detection of pension-age fraud and error in housing benefit system

2 July, 2021

Treating child disability payment as a qualifying benefit for premiums and other payments where child relocates from Scotland to another part of the UK

New statutory instrument