‘No assessment has been made’ in respect of the potential effect of removing the £20 uplift, says Minister

Will Quince's response to series of written questions at odds with the DWP having said that it is not in the public interest for it to release its analysis of the impact on poverty of withdrawing the uplift

'No assessment has been made' in respect of the potential effect of removing the £20 uplift to universal credit, the Minister for Welfare Delivery Will Quince has said.

With the uplift to the universal credit standard allowance due to come to an end from October 2021, Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Jonathan Reynolds tabled eight written questions in the House of Commons asking what recent assessments the DWP has made of the potential effect of removing the uplift on - 

• the financial security of universal credit claimants with disabled children;
• the financial security of disabled universal credit claimants;
• the financial security of unpaid carers;
• the financial security of young universal credit claimants;
• food bank usage;
• rent arrears accrued by universal credit claimants;
• levels of parental employment; and
• the in-work progression of universal credit claimants.

Responding to each question in turn, Mr Quince said - 

'No such assessment has been made.

Universal credit has provided a vital safety net for six million people during the pandemic, and we announced the temporary uplift as part of a £400 billion package of measures put in place that will last well beyond the end of the roadmap.'

NB - responding to a Freedom of Information Request submitted by the Poverty Alliance requesting any analysis the Department had undertaken on the potential impact on poverty of withdrawing the £20 uplift, the DWP has recently said that it is 'not in the public interest' for it to be released.