Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Budget 2021: Departmental Policies

Monday 8 March 2021 · 5 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 4 Not answered 0

Key points

  • The government's priority has been to protect lives and people's livelihoods since the start of the pandemic.
  • Discussions between Ministers are normally confidential, but the Chancellor was not asked to extend the 20 uplift to legacy benefits in the Budget.
  • I do not accept that increasing universal credit by 20 a week as soon as lockdown was imposed is a clear indication that its underlying rate is inadequate.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Peter Grant SNP
Economy Benefits & Welfare
Context

The MP is concerned about the government's support measures in response to the pandemic and their impact on welfare spending.

Question

What assessment she has made of the implications for her Department's policies of Budget 2021. The MP noted that since the start of the pandemic, the government's priority has been protecting lives and livelihoods with ongoing support measures like extending the temporary £20 a week increase in universal credit. He referenced total welfare spending standing at an estimated £238 billion for 2020-21, representing 11.4% of GDP. He also mentioned the Budget confirmed ongoing measures including the restart programme.

Answer from Therese Coffey

Since the start of the pandemic, our priority as a Government has been to protect lives and people's livelihoods. We are continuing to give support by extending the temporary £20 a week increase in universal credit for a further six months. Total welfare spending in Great Britain is estimated at £238 billion for 12.4% of GDP in 2020-21. The Budget confirmed ongoing measures including the restart programme.

Answered
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Q2 Marion Fellows SNP
Benefits & Welfare
Context

The MP has raised concerns about the Budget denying an extra £20 per week in support for people claiming legacy benefits, which she argues is unjust.

Question

The SNP has pressed UK Ministers on this countless times. Will the Secretary of State now answer a simple yes or no question: Did she ask the Chancellor to extend the £20 uplift to legacy benefits in the Budget? The MP stated that people claiming legacy benefits have been denied the extra £20 per week since March last year.

Answer from Therese Coffey

Discussions between Ministers are normally confidential, but the answer is no. We have a process in place as a temporary measure relating to covid with rationale set out last year.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Did not address whether she asked for an extension explicitly, only provided context about discussions being confidential and a temporary measure rationale.

How: Discussions Between Ministers Are Normally Confidential

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Q3 Peter Grant SNP
Benefits & Welfare
Context

The MP has criticized the refusal to extend the £20 uplift to legacy benefits and argues that universal credit rates are inadequate.

Question

Does the Secretary of State not accept that increasing universal credit by £20 a week as soon as lockdown was imposed is a clear indication that its underlying rate is inadequate? I defy anyone on the Conservative Benches to live on universal credit for more than a few weeks, never mind two to three years. Will she now accept that the underlying rate of universal credit is utterly inadequate and should be made permanent with immediate effect?

Answer from Therese Coffey

No, I do not accept that. Universal credit has been a huge success during the last 12 months and particularly shown its worth during this pandemic by going up for those who have had their hours reduced.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Did not directly address whether universal credit rate is inadequate, only defended its performance during lockdown.

How: Universal Credit Has Been A Huge Success

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Q4 Matt Rodda Lab Reading Central
Benefits & Welfare
Context

The MP is concerned about the mounting evidence of abuses by pension scammers and wants to know if the Government will take further action.

Question

Pensioners have seen their life savings disappear after becoming victims of dreadful scams online and on the telephone. The Government says they want to protect savers, but there is mounting evidence that they are failing to act sufficiently. Will she explain how these scams happened and commit to taking further action against scams online?

Answer from Therese Coffey

We have passed the Pension Schemes Act 2021, with aspects of scams considered in that legislative process. The suggestion we are not doing things to tackle scams is far from the case.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Did not directly address how scams happen or commit to additional actions against online scams, only referenced existing legislation.

How: We Have Passed The Pension Schemes Act 2021

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Q5 David Linden SNP
Benefits & Welfare
Context

The MP is concerned about the impact of removing the £20 uplift from universal credit and whether moving from legacy benefits to universal credit will mean being worse off.

Question

In extending the £20 uplift for six months, the Government concedes that without it, universal credit is insufficient. The MP wants clarification on why claimants should move from legacy benefits to universal credit when disabled people were not worthy of the £20 uplift and might be worse off.

Answer from Therese Coffey

I encouraged people who are on legacy benefits to get an independent assessment through online calculators or organisations rather than waiting for the managed migration process.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Did not clarify whether moving from legacy to universal credit will mean being worse off, only suggested getting an independent assessment.

How: I Encouraged People Who Are On Legacy Benefits To Get An Independent Assessment

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