Justin Tomlinson corrected a written answer on Zero Hours Contracts: Coronavirus

15 April 2020 · Commons written answer · Department for Work and Pensions

Robert Halfon (Conservative, Harlow) asked written question 32138 on 19 March 2020. Justin Tomlinson answered on 24 March 2020 for the Department for Work and Pensions, and Justin Tomlinson corrected the answer on 15 April 2020. The corrected text adds the figures £1000, £6.5 billion, £600, which the original did not give. Altogether 262 words differ between the two versions.

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what support her Department is providing to people on zero-hours contracts whose employment has been terminated as a result of covid-19 and do not qualify for Statutory Sick Pay because they are not self-isolating.

Original and corrected answer

Struck through: original only. Bold: correction only.

Original	Corrected
~~As both the Prime Minister and Chancellor have made clear, the~~ Government ~~will do whatever it takes~~ to support ~~people~~ affected ~~by COVID 19~~ and we have ~~been clear~~ in ~~our intention that no one should~~ be ~~penalised for doing the right thing. These are rapidly developing circumstances~~ and we ~~continue~~ to ~~keep~~ the ~~situation under review~~ and ~~will keep Parliament updated accordingly.~~	The Government has been clear in its commitment to support those affected in these difficult times and we have made a number of changes to the welfare system in the past fortnight to ensure people are supported in doing this. These changes include: making it easier to access benefits. Those applying for Contributory ESA will be able to claim from day 1 – as opposed to day 8 - and we have removed the need for face-to-face assessment. Both Universal Credit and Contributory ESA can now be claimed by phone or online; increasing the standard allowance of Universal Credit and working tax credit for this year by around £1000 per year; temporarily relaxing the application of the Minimum Income Floor (MIF) for all self-employed claimants affected by the economic impact of COVID-19 to ensure that the self-employed can access UC at a more generous rate; and increasing in the Local Housing Allowance rates for Universal Credit and Housing Benefit claimants so that it covers the cheapest third of local rents – which is on average £600 in people’s pockets. Together, these measures represent an injection of over £6.5 billion into the welfare system. The Chancellor has also confirmed that, depending on their status, workers on zero hours contracts may be eligible for the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and we would urge people to explore this avenue too.

Original

Corrected

~~As both the Prime Minister and Chancellor have made clear, the~~ Government ~~will do whatever it takes~~ to support ~~people~~ affected ~~by COVID 19~~ and we have ~~been clear~~ in ~~our intention that no one should~~ be ~~penalised for doing the right thing. These are rapidly developing circumstances~~ and we ~~continue~~ to ~~keep~~ the ~~situation under review~~ and ~~will keep Parliament updated accordingly.~~

The Government has been clear in its commitment to support those affected in these difficult times and we have made a number of changes to the welfare system in the past fortnight to ensure people are supported in doing this. These changes include:
making it easier to access benefits. Those applying for Contributory ESA will be able to claim from day 1 – as opposed to day 8 - and we have removed the need for face-to-face assessment. Both Universal Credit and Contributory ESA can now be claimed by phone or online;
increasing the standard allowance of Universal Credit and working tax credit for this year by around £1000 per year;
temporarily relaxing the application of the Minimum Income Floor (MIF) for all self-employed claimants affected by the economic impact of COVID-19 to ensure that the self-employed can access UC at a more generous rate; and
increasing in the Local Housing Allowance rates for Universal Credit and Housing Benefit claimants so that it covers the cheapest third of local rents – which is on average £600 in people’s pockets.
Together, these measures represent an injection of over £6.5 billion into the welfare system.
The Chancellor has also confirmed that, depending on their status, workers on zero hours contracts may be eligible for the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and we would urge people to explore this avenue too.

The question and answer on the Parliament website.

Related key figures

People on Universal Credit (Great Britain)

Receipt

Read from	https://questions-statements-api.parliament.uk/api/writtenquestions/questions/1186422?expandMember=true
Date read	15 October 2026
SHA-256	`d10d4cb78efcac9f06d62bb364d9fc27dfb319888384c58f82025089a0f7cd77`