Copyright cambridge-news
The Department for Work and Pensions ( DWP ) has confirmed that it will not delay the introduction of changes to the Universal Credit health element from April 2026, despite concerns raised by a cross-party group of MPs. The Work and Pensions committee made six recommendations in its third report on the Get Britain Working: Pathways to Work green paper. These include further increases to the Universal Credit standard allowance, over the duration of this Parliament and delaying the reduction in Universal Credit health element until "an independent and comprehensive assessment of the impact the change could have on disabled people" has been conducted. However, in a written response to the report, the DWP said: "The new, lower UC (Universal Credit) health element will take effect on 6 April 2026. We will keep standard allowance rates under review." It continued: "The Universal Credit Act, which received Royal Assent on 3 September 2025, legislated for the first ever sustained, above inflation increase to the standard allowance, benefitting millions of people. This change, along with a reduction in the UC health element for new claimants, addresses perverse incentives in the UC system and better encourages those who can work to enter or return to employment. An updated Impact Assessment for the Bill was published in July 2025." The DWP has previously stated that nearly four million households will see an annual income boost estimated to be worth £725 under the new Bill, reports the Daily Record. The Universal Credit Act is set to introduce reforms that aim to adjust the core payment and health top-up in Universal Credit. The legislation will result in a permanent rise above inflation for the Universal Credit standard allowance, reaching £725 by 2029/30 in cash terms for a single person aged 25 or over. Work and Pensions Committee Chair Debbie Abrahams commented on the UK Government's responses to the recommendations, stating, "We recognise the compromises the Government made during the passage of the Universal Credit-PIP Bill, now the Universal Credit Act. "However, the Committee report raised outstanding concerns that from April 2026, people with a new disability or health condition will receive half the financial support on UC Health, £54 per week, compared with someone with the same impairment or condition in March 2026, who will receive £105 per week. "This is not only discriminatory, but without mitigations, will potentially push more people with disabilities and health conditions into poverty, exacerbating their condition and pushing them further away from the labour market." Debbie Abrahams, the MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth, added: ""Addressing this properly could be a fiscal bonus to the Government too. A recent analysis estimated that up to £12.5 billion could be saved in DWP spending from reduced Universal Credit health claims and boosted tax receipts before the end of the decade if the DWP focused on better, more personalised, employment and health support." You can read all six of the Work and Pensions Committee recommendations and the UK Government response on the GOV.UK website. Measures in the Universal Credit Act The DWP stated that the rebalancing of Universal Credit health and standard elements will address the fundamental imbalance in the system which creates perverse incentives that drive people into dependency. The DWP said the reforms will address the 'fundamental imbalance in the system which creates perverse incentives that drive people into dependency'.
