Emily Thornberry – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Emily Thornberry on 2015-12-17.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the forecast number of people who will (a) move into work, (b) move out of poverty, (c) have increased income and (d) have increased of income of more than £25 a week following transition to universal credit.

Priti Patel

Universal Credit (UC)is fundamentally different from the current legacy benefit system and supports more people into work and encourages them to earn more. We expect up to 300,000 more people to be in work as a result of UC.

The Government has committed to transitional arrangements as we reform the benefits and Tax Credit system. Those transferred by DWP from tax credits to UC will receive Transitional Protection. In addition, estimates of entitlements under UC of the sort requested are not available as they will vary depending on assumptions on the level of earnings.