The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has explained why people claiming contributory and new style benefits will not be eligible for the £900 cost of living payment which is scheduled to be made in three lump sum instalments over the next financial year. The first payment of £301 is due to land in over eight million bank accounts this Spring.
Earlier this week, SNP MP Martyn Day asked DWP if it would “extend the eligibility for the 2023-24 Cost of Living Payments to people in receipt of contributions-based Employment Support Allowance”.
In a written response, DWP Minister Mims Davies said: “The government has targeted the means-tested Cost of Living Payments to those on means-tested benefits as those with the lowest incomes are most vulnerable to increases in the cost of living. Contributory and new style benefits such as contributory Employment and Support Allowance are not means-tested benefits, and people claiming them may have other financial resources available to them.”
