§ 30. Mr. Simon HughesTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what safeguards he will introduce to protect the welfare of the dependants of those who have had their benefit withdrawn. [107218]
§ Angela EagleUnder proposals contained in the Child Support, Pensions and Social Security Bill, offenders who are referred back to Court for an alleged breach of a Probation Order, Community Service Order or a Combination Order will be subject to a benefit sanction. The measure will initially be piloted in England and Wales; during the pilots the period of the sanction will be four weeks.
In the case of Jobseeker's Allowance and certain Training Allowances, benefit will be withdrawn. The welfare of the claimant and any dependants will be safeguarded by hardship payments. These will be available for vulnerable groups and others at risk of hardship. The conditions for receiving a hardship payment will be broadly similar to those currently applied to people who are subject to an employment sanction. Income Support will not be withdrawn, but will be reduced by 40 per cent. or 20 per cent. of the single person's adult rate, depending on their circumstances.
The best safeguard for dependants is for the offender to comply with the terms of the community sentence. Providing there is no breach of the sentence, then no benefit sanction will be applied and the question of hardship payments will not arise.