Hub memo on PSS and Charter rights informs Committee letter to Welfare Minister

On 22 June 2022, the Chair of the Work and Pensions Committee, Stephen Timms wrote a letter to David Rutley (Minister for Welfare Delivery) seeking answers on how DWP plan to implement the CJEU judgment in CG.

The letter refers to the memo sent by the EU Rights and Brexit Hub to the Committee, raising our concerns that new guidance released by DWP fails to implement the binding judgment of the CJEU. The guidance covers the decision of the CJEU that those with pre-settled status cannot rely on equal treatment provisions in EU treaties to access welfare benefits. However it fails to cover the safety net included by the CJEU: that decision makers cannot reject a benefit claim until after they have satisfied themselves that doing so would not risk the violation of the claimant’s rights under the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights.

The letter asks the minister to respond by Friday 15 July to the following questions:

1. Will the Department share how many Universal Credit claims have been rejected on the ground that an applicant with pre-settled status lacked a relevant right to reside?

2. Is it the Department’s view that Decision Makers have a duty to perform a fundamental rights test before rejecting the claims of claimants with pre-settled status? If so:

   a. When does the Department intend to change the guidance?

   b. What details will the guidance offer on how such duty should be performed?

   c. What steps is the Department taking to identify those who might have been denied benefits due to this issue and ensure that they get the support to which they are entitled?

3. If the Department does not plan to change the guidance, could it set out its justification in detail?