Select committee: Scottish Affairs Committee
Conclusion 119
Second Report - Welfare policy in Scotland
Published 23 Jun 2021
Addressed to Scotland Office
Scottish Affairs Committee Welfare policy in Scotland All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
Again, the UK Government provides an example on their website: • Your first estimated payment is £344 and you get £344 as an advance. 291 Department for Work and Pensions, Universal Credit: How you’re paid, accessed 14 April 2021 292 Q46 293 Q115 294 The Trussell Trust (WPS0006) 295 The Poverty Alliance (WPS0018) 296 The Poverty Alliance (WPS0018) 297 Citizens Advice Scotland (WPS0014) 298 Citizens Advice Scotland (WPS0014) 299 Department for Work and Pensions, Universal Credit: Get an advance on your first payment, accessed 14 April 2021 300 Q196 301 HM Treasury, Budget 2021, accessed 23 April 2021 Welfare policy in Scotland 45 • You choose to pay back your advance over 24 months, which is £14.33 per month. You’ll get £329.67 on your first payment date - this is your first payment minus the bit you’re repaying (£344 minus £14.33).302
From: Scottish Affairs Committee, Second Report - Welfare policy in Scotland (HC 55), 23 June 2021
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 19 November 2021 (deadline 23 August 2021).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The UK Government "notes the Committee's recommendations" and responds to each in turn, accepting little of the report's welfare-policy proposals and referring several to the Scottish Government.
- On the £20 uplift and legacy benefits, it states "There was never any plan to extend the uplift to legacy benefits."
- On work allowances, it states it "has no plans to extend the work allowance to single adults".
- On Help to Claim funding, it "considers the existing resource to be sufficient", and says DWP agreed to fund Citizens Advice Scotland for another year, "up to 31 March 2022".
- On data sharing and Recommendations 2, 7 and 8, it says each data request "must be examined" by DWP as Data Controller, and treats several recommendations as "for the Scottish Government".