AQW 12982/17-22 Written question to the Minister for Communities
To ask the Minister for Communities to detail (i) the welfare reform mitigations that her Department is planning to retain for 2021/22; and (ii) the projected cost of the specific mitigations.
Asked by Andrew Muir MLA on 19 January 2021
- Answered
- Written
- Tabled
- 19 January 2021
- Answer due by
- 3 February 2021
- Answered
- 29 January 202110 days after tabling
- Department
- Department for Communities
- Priority question
- No
Answer
I can confirm that my Department will continue to deliver each of the existing welfare mitigation schemes in the 2021/22 financial year. Details of the projected costs for the various mitigation schemes, including the associated administration costs, are provided in the table below.
Table 1: Welfare Mitigation Schemes Projected Costs for 2021/22
| Welfare Supplement Payment | Cost |
| Social Sector Size Criteria (the “bedroom tax”) | £23 million |
| Benefit Cap | £5.5 million |
| Children moving from DLA to PIP (includes associated carer payments) | £5.8 million |
| Disability Related Mitigations (Loss of DLA and ESA) | £4.3 million |
| Administration costs | £4.2 million |
| Total | £42.8 million |