Jonathan Reynolds: ...of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of new universal credit claims made since 3 May 2020 were unsuccessful; what proportion of those claims were unsuccessful because of income and capital rules; and what proportion of (a) successful and (b) unsuccessful universal credit claimants were eligible for contributory (i) jobseekers allowance and (ii) employment and...
Will Quince: We currently spend over £95 billion a year on working age benefits including Universal Credit and remain committed to supporting the most vulnerable in society. Recent changes to Universal Credit include temporarily increasing the standard allowance by up to £1,040 per year and increasing the Local Housing Allowance rates, including the Shared Accommodation element, so that it covers the...
Jesse Norman: The Seafarers Earnings Deduction (SED) offers a 100 per cent reduction in income tax on maritime employment income for UK and EEA resident seafarers who have a qualifying period of time absent from the UK. The qualifying period must be made up of at least 365 days, but return visits to the UK during that time up to a maximum of 183 consecutive days can count towards the qualifying period....
Lord Callanan: ...will continue to play a critical role in delivering local and national economic prosperity, but of course they have been hard hit by COVID-19. That is why we have announced a range of measures to support universities at this difficult time. From the autumn, the Government will provide a package consisting of low-interest loans with long pay-back periods, supplemented by a small amount of...
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay: ...OfS at the earliest opportunity. They are now also able and encouraged to contact the Department for Education’s Restructuring Unit directly. The government has already put a number of financial support measures in place. We have announced a package of measures which combines different ways to give further support to providers at this time of financial pressure. We have pulled forward an...
Lord Greenhalgh: Councils across the country are supporting communities, protecting the most vulnerable and helping the NHS in our efforts to combat Covid-19. We are providing local authorities with an unprecedented package of support, allocating £4.3 billion of support for?spending?pressures, including £3.7 billion of un-ringfenced grants and the £600 million Infection Control Fund. In total, the...
Nicola Sturgeon: ...about reopening indoor sport and leisure facilities. The finance secretary has also been engaged in discussion with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities to finalise the details of a lost-income scheme and has stipulated that that should cover additional financial support for councils’ arm’s-length organisations, including leisure trusts. The finance secretary confirmed that we...
Liam McArthur: ...Government’s offer to childminders as “completely out of step” with what has been given to other parts of the sector. In Orkney, 26 childminders have been excluded from the transitional support fund, and that picture has been repeated across the country. After I shared the latest response from the Minister for Children and Young People, Maree Todd, one local childminder contacted me...
Johann Lamont: Although any support is welcome, industry representatives still have serious concerns about the long-term survival of our much-loved venues and potential redundancies are just around the corner. Glasgow cannot afford to lose those vitally important venues. More than 16,000 jobs in Glasgow depend on the night-time economy, which generates £2.16 billion per year in income. Can the minister...
Maurice Golden: No, I am going to make progress. More than 2,600 firms have received support worth almost £600 million from the coronavirus business interruption loan scheme. VAT has been slashed to just 5 per cent to help our hospitality industry, and hospitality businesses and families got another boost with the eat out to help out scheme, which has served up more than 8,500 half-price meals in Scotland....
Sadiq Khan: GLA Economics produces two key products as part of its ongoing monitoring of the labour market, and the analysis included will inform City Hall’s recovery work to support Londoners into good jobs: Research shows that those on low incomes, who are disproportionately from BAME backgrounds and women, are most at risk of jobs losses, or reduced hours and pay.
Sadiq Khan: ...statistics and a labour market roundup analysing available evidence on the impacts of COVID-19 on London’s labour market. Past roundups include GLA Economics analysis of jobs at greatest risk, supported by research of those on low incomes, showing BAME workers and women are most at risk of jobs losses or reduced pay. Smaller pay increases for women would slow progress to close the gender...
Sadiq Khan: I’m both very aware and deeply concerned about the effect lockdown is having on low-income families. My officers are continually gathering data and intelligence to understand the problem and I’m determined to do all I can to help. Throughout the pandemic the Employment Rights Hub on London.gov.uk has been regularly updated with accessible advice relevant to low-income working families....
Leonie Cooper: ...place in London (including redundancies of permanently employed staff and lay-offs of casual workers and zero hours contract staff). Has the Government responded to your call for targeted sector support through schemes such as the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme or Self-Employed Income Support Scheme or are these workers being hung out to dry?...
Sadiq Khan: ...less than the National Minimum Wage while on furlough. GLA Economics estimates that there could be around 118,000 self-employed Londoners missing out in part or entirely on the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme. I have consistently said that this crisis will require long-term economic intervention from the Government on an unprecedented scale. I have called on the Government to...
Sadiq Khan: ...to see the Government has finally mandated their use in enclosed spaces. My face coverings task and finish group continues to monitor the availability of affordable, reusable face coverings for low income groups. Our research has shown that these are widely available across a range of price points, ensuring accessibility for low-income groups. Officers also held discussions with...
Sadiq Khan: I welcome the proposed actions in the recently published National Food Strategy, particularly those aiming to support children and families experiencing food insecurity. Food insecurity is a symptom of broader poverty, and I am working to help all Londoners to access healthy, sustainable food, no matter where they live or their income. The Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated food insecurity in...
Baroness Janke: My Lords, I will speak in support of Amendments 84 and 85 and of Clause 5 being deleted from the Bill. As other noble Lords have said, the amendments in this group seek to restrain the Government in their objective of transferring wide-scale powers to Ministers to take action that could have a major impact on the lives of UK citizens living in EEA countries and on EEA citizens living in the...
Hannah Blythyn: ...the debate, each of us here knows all too well how the COVID-19 pandemic has led to difficult times for our communities and for our country. We've worked hard as a Government to step in and provide support where we can, particularly to the most vulnerable individuals and families. We saw early on in the pandemic the UK Government's Department for Work and Pensions making some changes to...
Baroness Greengross: ...for EU immigration and to establish an office for demographic change which would examine and report on the impact of the Government’s demographic objectives in relation to immigration. I strongly support these objectives and congratulate the noble Lord, Lord Hodgson, on his extremely important report. The report highlights that the population of the UK has grown by 6.6 million since 2001...