In the news

FEBRUARY 2020

Cohabitees' right to bereavement support

The High Court has ruled that the need to be married in order to receive bereavement support is not compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights.

CPAG represented two families (Jackson & Others v SSWP CO/975/2019, see RECENT CASE LAW below) where long term cohabiting partners, who were also fathers of young children who had lost their mothers, were refused Bereavement Support Payment (BSP) on the grounds that they were unmarried. Both couples were engaged and had intended to marry.

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As if by strange coincidence, this new ruling follows a recent government report into extending bereavement support rights to cohabitees which shows that it would benefit an additional 15,000 bereaved partners per year at a cost of over £50m.

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If you are advising any unmarried partners with dependent children following a bereavement, it may be worth suggesting they apply for BSP and challenge any refusal, in the event that future changes to the law may backdate payments from 7th February 2020.

Lucky for some?

'Around 13' people have transferred from legacy benefits onto Universal Credit as part of the managed migration pilot.

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The much heralded pilot scheme, which was launched in Harrogate in July 2019 without a vote in the Commons, has so far only managed to migrate 'around 13' people, according to Will Quince's briefing to Parliament on the UC rollout on 27 January. 

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Mr Quince said the 'slow and steady' process was deliberate in order to 'go at the pace the claimant requires'. There will be a further progress report on the pilot  'in the Spring'.

Universal Credit tickbox added to prescriptions

DANCE CLASS (c) John Tominis 1952

Losing out on a leap year

2020 is a leap year and it's worth remembering that people claiming UC can lose out in the way Universal Credit calculates rent.

Anyone whose assessment period started  on the 29th/30th will find they have a short month, followed by one which starts on 28th February. As at Christmas, it may be worth reminding employers to report the ‘normal’ pay date if they bring a pay day forward due to a non-banking day.

The government has said it is looking into the 53-week leap year issue but there is currently no  quick fix solution for UC claimants affected by this problem.

Timms is new WPSC chair

Stephen Timms has been elected as the incoming Chair of the Work & Pensions Select Committee. He replaces Frank Field who was Chair from 2015-2019.

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Mr Timms, who has been Labour MP for East Ham since 1997 (and for Newham North East from 1994-97) was a Minister of State for Pensions (and for Schools) under the Blair adminstration and has been Shadow Minister for Employment as well as Acting Shadow Secretary of State for Work & Pensions. Mr Timms survived a serious knife attack in his surgery in 2010.

New Chair of the Work & Pensions Select Committee, Stephen Timms

A tickbox to confirm that the holder is claiming Universal Credit is being added to the NHS prescription form.

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The updated F10 prescription form is currently being printed and will come into use once the contractor has built up sufficient stock to supply the NHS.

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In the meantime, and somewhat contrarily, it has also been revealed that the new NHS Digital electronic prescription checking service, currently being piloted in 40 pharmacies, does not cover DWP benefits. The Real Time Exemption Checking service will check for, "medical, maternity, low-income scheme and tax credit exemptions, as well as prescription prepayment certificates".  A separate pilot which includes DWP benefits is also underway but does not, apparently, include Universal Credit.

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What's mine is yours

It's a romantic time of year, supposedly, and loved-up new cohabitees may not know that if their  partner is claiming Universal Credit, they are supposed to be claiming UC too.

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Happy Valentines Day to anyone who feels in need of extra love and warmth this February.