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DWP Updated Briefing Notes

The DWP have recently published a “Toolkit” which incorporates a series of recently updated briefing notes.  These notes are each individually accessed by links on the DWP Toolkit Page….

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Bedroom Tax - Housing Benefit amendments

Following the Secretary of State’s announcement on 12 March 2013 the Government has laid amending regulations to clarify the size criteria rules for two specific groups of Housing Benefit (HB) claimants: approved foster carers and parents of armed forces personnel. The amendments now make provision for a room to be…

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DWP heavily criticised on its WR agenda by Public Accounts Committee

The Public Accounts Committee yesterday published its latest report focused on how the changes to Housing Benefit and Universal Credit are likely to impact on tenants and landlords. Read the report: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmselect/cmpubacc/814/81402.htm Its Chair, Margaret Hodge doesn’t mince her words (see below). “The Rt Hon Margaret Hodge MP, Chair of…

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Universal Credit - Making a claim from April 2013

The DWP has just recently published “Making your Universal Claim (UC) from April 2013” http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/making-your-universal-credit-claim-toolkit.pdf. The leaflet heralds the introduction of Universal Credit “Pathfinders” from April but only applies if you live in Ashton-under-Lyne, Oldham, Warrington and Wigan. Even in those districts, only a selected few people (1500 per month)…

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Universal Credit - Further backtracking

The DWP has just published a circular HB/CTB A8/2013 which confirms that consequential regulations have been introduced to correct an anomaly in the draft Universal Credit regulations which, but for the amendment, would have meant unemployed Non dependent sons, daughters or other adult members of the tenant’s extended family, between 21-24…

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Bedroom Tax - Government Capitulation again!

Ian Duncan-Smith has been forced to make further concessions following Prime Minister David Cameron’s gaff at PM Question Time last week. You may recall he stated to Parliament “Anyone with severely disabled children is exempt from the spare room subsidy” otherwise known as the “bedroom tax”. Now as everyone knew…

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Bedroom Tax & direct payments update

I’m sure you must have heard earlier this week of the Government’s concessions with regards to approved Foster Carers and armed forces personnel. The concessions came in the form of a written ministerial statement after weeks of growing political pressure and the popular press smelling Ministerial blood. The changes will…

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Bedroom Tax - Human Rights defeat for the Government!

Ian Duncan-Smith & Lord Freud must have been drowning their sorrows last night, having heard from civil servants that yet another Scottish Tribunal Judge, this time in Glasgow, has set-aside a Bedroom Tax sanction that would otherwise have applied to a severely disabled woman (suffering from Multiple Sclerosis) on the…

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Universal Credit roll-out to Wigan

Hard on the heels of Thursday’s announcement on Direct Payments, Lord Freud has intimated, just this morning, that the 2nd Pathfinder is to start today in Wigan. The format is identical to what happened in Ashton-under-Lyne, where to control numbers, only certain single claimants could claim. So those claimants who have…

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