The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has shared details on how the qualifying period for the £301 cost of living payment was selected so that it was “as close to the payment date as possible” to ensure only those who had recently received a means-tested benefit award would receive the money.
Labour MP Justin Madders, asked DWP why the qualifying assessment period for the first part of the £900 cost of living support, was selected as between January 26 to February 25, 2023. In a written response on June 19, Minister for Social Mobility, Youth and Progression, Mims Davies MP explained: “Claimants who received a nil award during the qualifying period would not be entitled to a cost of living payment. Most nil awards will be as a result of increased earnings.
“Paying those with financial resources available, which would make them ineligible for means-tested benefits, is not the intention of the cost of living payments which are aimed at those on the lowest incomes.”
