Notes from Durham meeting
Thanks to everyone who attended our meeting in Durham on 12th December 2014. Presentations and notes are now available in the members’ area.
Durham, 12 December 2014
Only a couple of days to go until our conference in Durham. Just a quick reminder that we have The Right Reverend Paul Butler, Bishop of Durham, as our honoured guest. We are very proud to have secured such a high profile speaker to give our first annual Phil Hanns Memorial Lecture. In a week where the Church has criticised benefit sanctions and other delays as key contributors to UK poverty, it is timely that we have the Rt Rev …
Is the writing finally on the wall for the WCA?
Eri Mountbatten writes: NAWRA members will be aware of prominent reports being published that have highlighted significant problems with the application and administration of the Work Capability Assessment (WCA) by the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) and by its contractors, most notably Atos. In July 2014, the Work and Pensions Select Committee published their report on the WCA and called for a “fundamental redesign of ESA”. Following that report, in August 2014, NAWRA published its own response to the …
Universal Credit – past earning consultation
NAWRA has submitted a response to the Social Security Advisory Committee consultation concerning the government’s intention that ‘surplus earnings’ from the previous six months should be taken into account when a person reclaims universal credit (UC). The proposal suggests that any ‘surplus earnings’ – defined as earnings more than just £100 (less than £25 per week) over the ‘nil UC threshold’ – will be used to reduce future UC payments if the claimant returns to UC within six months. NAWRA …
NAWRA’s submission to SSAC on waiting days for universal credit
The Social Security Advisory Committee (SSAC) consulted on the government’s intention that certain Universal Credit claimants must wait 7 days before they are entitled to benefit. NAWRA surveyed members to find out what they thought would be the impact of this policy. Based on the results, we submitted our response where we stress in the strongest possible terms our complete opposition to this proposal. What came over time and time again in the survey responses was the spiral of debt …
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