Temporary COVID-19-related increase in universal credit disproportionately benefits those who are less likely to claim disability benefits and younger people

New House of Commons Library briefing says that it would cost £1.38 billion to fund increases of £20 a week this year for all ESA, JSA and income support claimants

The temporary COVID-19-related increase in universal credit disproportionately benefits those who are less likely to claim disability benefits and younger people, according to a new briefing from the House of Commons Library.

In Coronavirus: Support for household finances, the House of Commons Library outlines the measures introduced by the government and other authorities to support household finances during the coronavirus outbreak.

In relation to support through the welfare system, the briefing reviews legislative and policy-related measures (and their impacts) in areas including changes to benefits assessments, waiting periods for sickness benefits, conditionality, and the temporary increases in universal credit and working tax credit rates.

However, outlining the ongoing debate about what further support should be offered, including in relation to further increases in legacy benefits, the briefing highlights that those less likely to claim disability benefits and younger people have disproportionately benefitted from the recent £20 a week increase in universal credit -

Of the 2.65 million working-age people on universal credit as of November 2019, around 297,000 (11 per cent) were recorded as also being entitled to either personal independence payment (PIP) or disability living allowance (DLA). Among the 1.89 million claimants of employment and support allowance (ESA) who were not also on universal credit, 1.33 million (70 per cent) also received PIP or DLA ....

... universal credit claimants also have a younger age profile than claimants of other working-age income-replacement benefits. The median age of a person on universal credit in November 2019 was 35, whereas among claimants of ESA, jobseeker's allowance (JSA) or income support it was 49.’

NB - using costs modelling and data from the Family Resources Survey, the Library estimates that it would cost £1.38 billion to fund increases of £20 a week this year for all ESA, JSA and income support claimants.

For more information, see Coronavirus: Support for household finances from parliament.uk