Select committee: Scottish Affairs Committee
Conclusion 140
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)
The Scottish Federation of Housing Associations also highlights that the policy choice of building in this wait time for Scottish Choices does not align with other DWP policies: the rationale given by the DWP for the one month wait to take up the Choices is on ‘the basis that it might not be in the interests of the claimant until the first assessment had verified the claimant’s entitlement.’340 We heard, however, that waiting for verification policy is ‘at odds with the DWP’s readiness to offer an advance payment of up to 100% of the claimant’s estimated monthly award at the start of the claim, prior to verification of entitlement.’341 Initial administration issues
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".