The government, after successful lobbying by many individuals and organisations, has decided to extend the current tax credit support limits of 70% of a maximum £175 for one child and £300 for 2 or more children to those working less than 16 hours a week. This will put an extra £300m into the childcare pot […]

Took place yesterday. Not much of substance but a lot of concern about the benefits cap and PIP. You can read it all here

Briefing notes on carers published by DWP at this page They say The Universal Credit award will include a carers element which will continue for as long as the carer provides care for at least 35 hours per week for a severely disabled person. The Universal Credit earnings taper will apply to the award and […]

After a long summer break, and with some guilt. An updated interim version of the paper can be downloaded here as we wait for the promised extra details as the Lords start debating the Bill tomorrow. This has an updated childcare section which looks at the two favoured options in more detail. More soon….. hopefully.

Oops! Lounging in Italy meant that I forgot to say that the second reading of the Bill in the Lords has been put back to September 13th after the recess. This is a general discussion session and precedes the more detailed Lords’ Committee Stage.

An interesting day today at the annual DWP Convention. Unusually hesitant presentations by officials and ministers. Lord Freud made several errors in his address and the general lack of certainty in the details of the new scheme, even after the Bill has left the commons, is still surprising. I’ve been working on modelling the transition […]

The main story in today’s Observer is a leaked letter from DCLG about the effects of the proposed capping. You can read it at Tories admit benefit cuts risk 40,000 homeless families. The likely effects aren’t new, many organisations and individuals have pointed out the dangers before, and even the government have accepted them publicly. […]

Still no decision but I gather that the options are narrowed to Option A or Option B. These are generally seen as being the ‘least bad’ of the proposals but will still mean losses for existing childcare help recipients. They also mean that Universal Credit making everyone ‘better-off in work’ may not happen for a […]

I’ve posted a new edition of the Future of Benefits paper with substantial sections on the childcare options and earnings disregards added. You can download it here.

Not directly related to the Welfare Reform Bill but today’s Legal Aid Bill abolishes all civil legal aid for help with social security benefits.