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Chronicle Live
Chronicle Live
National
Kate Lally & Aaron Morris

Major DWP rule change will see Universal Credit claimants pressured to get a job

Changes of rules for those in receipt of Universal Credit will see thousands of claimants put under stress to find a job or boost their existing incomes.

The Administration Earnings Threshold (AET) requires that claimants with no earnings or with earnings below a certain amount are placed into the Intensive Work Search regime.

Said claimants, including those with health conditions which doesn't affect their ability to work, usually need to attend face to face work search reviews with their employment coach.

Read more: Benefit claimants given new hope in £1,500 DWP back pay case

And with the AET set to rise next month, an estimated further 114,000 will be plunged into the Intensive Work Search regime. They will in-turn be expected to attend mandatory weekly or fortnightly appointments at their local Job Centre.

The Liverpool Echo reports that for single claimants, the AET will rise from £355 to £494 a month say the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) - with it rising from £567 to £782 for couples.

Work and Pensions Secretary Thérèse Coffey hopes that the new approach will 'help claimants get quickly back into the world of work, while helping ensure employers get the people they and the economy needs'.

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