Welfare rights news

20 September, 2023

HMRC to begin contacting the ‘several hundred thousand’ people who may be entitled to £1.3 billion of underpaid state pension caused by national insurance records error

MPs advised that the exercise expects to identify an estimated 210,000 people who claimed child benefit before May 2000 who may have errors in records that affect their pension entitlement

20 September, 2023

Determining competency where an economically inactive claimant is resident in one Member State and their economically active family member is resident in another Member State

New DWP guidance following the Court of Appeal decision in 'Harrington'

20 September, 2023

DWP issues guidance on change to underlying entitlement conditions for widowed parent’s allowance due to Bereavement Benefit (Remedial) Order 2023

New guidance advises that underlying entitlement will cease when surviving spouse, civil partner or cohabiting partner enters new cohabiting partnership on or after 9 February 2023

20 September, 2023

DWP announces start of second phase of its ‘enhanced daily support’ pilot for universal credit claimants

Minster says Additional Jobcentre Support Pilot will now test provision of an additional week of daily support for eligible claimants after their first assessment period

20 September, 2023

Chair of Standards Committee in Northern Ireland warns that ‘considerable thought’ needs to be given to implementation of managed migration to avoid a decline in decision-making standards

DfC Annual Report on decision-making and financial accuracy also highlights continued increased pressure on staff, and difficulties in recruiting and training new workers

19 September, 2023

Number of households subject to benefit cap decreased by more than 20 per cent in three months to May 2023

New DWP statistics also show that almost three-quarters of capped households were single parent families

19 September, 2023

More than 200,000 PIP claims were registered in England and Wales in the three months to July 2023, the highest level since the benefit was introduced

Meanwhile in Scotland, more than 125,000 claims for adult disability payment were registered between 21 March 2022 and 31 July 2023 with 93,880 people currently in receipt of benefit

19 September, 2023

Most universal credit telephone claimants report that moving to an online claim is not a realistic option for them

New DWP research finds that claimants often face multiple barriers to applying online, which together make the digital option 'prohibitively difficult'

19 September, 2023

Scottish Government sets out policy recommendations to ensure that its commitment to using supporting information to help determine disability benefit claims achieves anticipated outcomes

Research used to inform recommendations explores claimants' understanding of what supporting information should be provided and whether they feel it is considered fairly, in addition to looking at the impact it has on decision-making

19 September, 2023

Minister welcomes successful take-up of Basic Income for Care Leavers in Wales pilot

New figures show that 97 per cent of eligible care leavers signed up to pilot, with more than a quarter of participants opting to have payments made directly to landlords

18 September, 2023

Permission granted for judicial review challenge of HMRC rules for awarding child benefit where parents have 50/50 custody of their child

Law Centre Northern Ireland highlights that case concerns a low earning parent whose child benefit award was transferred to her ex-spouse who was subject to the high income child benefit tax charge

15 September, 2023

DWP releases operational guidance on considering hardship before refusing claims for universal credit from people with pre-settled status under EU Settlement Scheme

Information supplied in response to FOI request on how Department considers whether Upper Tribunal decision in SSWP v AT applies, and whether to unstay cases and pay universal credit pending outcome of its appeal to Court of Appeal

14 September, 2023

HMCTS had more than 70,000 social security and child support appeals outstanding at June 2023, up almost a third on the previous year

New statistics from the Ministry of Justice also highlight that the average time to dispose of a case is 27 weeks

14 September, 2023

DWP reassures that if the deletion of messages from a claimant's online journal were to result in benefit being withdrawn due to insufficient evidence, they would 'have the opportunity to provide the evidence again'

Minister says however that the situation shouldn't arise because the Department keeps a record where it has previously verified information or evidence

14 September, 2023

Almost 70 per cent of universal credit claimants with a health condition or disability were assessed as having limited capability for work and work-related activity at June 2023

New quarterly statistics also show that almost three in ten of all claimants are claiming universal credit on health grounds

14 September, 2023

DWP confirms closure of a further 26 temporary jobcentres in fourth phase of decommissioning programme

Minister provides update on further reduction in jobcentre estate bringing it towards target of reducing provision to pre-pandemic levels

14 September, 2023

Home Office confirms Social Security Scotland benefits to be added to the list of public funds set out in paragraph 6 of the Immigration Rules

Immigration minister says that updated list will be published on 5 October 2023 alongside redrafted guidance for Home Office caseworkers on applying the NRPF policy

14 September, 2023

New regulations confirm pilot of Scotland’s carer support payment will begin on 19 November 2023 in three local authority areas

Statutory instrument also makes consequential, miscellaneous and transitional provision in connection with the introduction of the new form of carer’s assistance

13 September, 2023

Treasury considering ‘tweak’ to earnings element of state pension triple lock

Reports that officials looking to adopt increase of 7.8 per cent to reflect annual growth in earnings without bonuses, rather than figure of 8.5 per cent which includes one-off bonuses to public sector staff

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