Neil Gray – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Neil Gray on 2016-05-25.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if his Department will provide additional financial support to disabled people whose income will be reduced as a result of (a) changes in the employment and support allowance work-related activity group and (b) the universal credit work allowance as a result of provisions in the Welfare Reform and Work Act 2016.

Priti Patel

No existing Employment and Support Allowance or Universal Credit claimants will be affected by the change to the work-related activity or limited capability for work components. We have committed to providing £60m a year from 2016/17, rising to £100m a year by 2020/21, in new, practical support for claimants with limited capability for work to help them move closer to the labour market and, when they are ready, into work. If a disabled person in work is affected by the recent changes to work allowances, additional help has been made available to help them overcome specific barriers to increasing their earnings.