Reading the bill’s publication files and writing a plain-English Green Book note…
Reading the bill’s publication files and writing a plain-English Green Book note…
Proposal 3988
Make provision to alter the rates of the standard allowance, limited capability for work element and limited capability for work and work-related activity element of universal credit and the rates of income-related employment and support allowance.
Appraisal prepared just now from the official papers. Next scheduled update after the next sitting or within about 24 hours.
Sponsor: Department for Work and Pensions
Open publications on bills.parliament.ukPlain-English note and Green Book five-case reading from the official papers — the heart of this page.
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In plain English
The Bill will also reduce and freeze the rate of the Limited Capability for Work and Work-related Activity (LCWRA) for new LCWRA claimants from 6 April 2026 and introduce financial protections for all existing and some new claimants depending on the nature of their health condition.
Policy background 3 Measures in the Bill make provision in the following areas: Changes to UC rates 4 UC is a benefit designed to help households on low incomes with their living costs. UC awards include a standard allowance, which is the core component of any award and is paid according to age and household composition.
This Bill will require the Secretary of State to increase the four rates of standard allowance above the rate of inflation in each of the years from 2026-27 to 2029-30. This would enable all relevant benefits and pension rates to appear in the same instrument as is the convention (despite the ordinary exercise of the duty to review in section 150(1) being curtailed by the clause).
Same bill, simpler words — a deeper read without the jargon.
Imagine the country is making a new rule. This one is about: The Bill will also reduce and freeze the rate of the Limited Capability for Work and Work-related Activity (LCWRA) for new LCWRA claimants from 6 April 2026 and introduce financial protections for all existing and some new claimants depending on the nature of their health condition.. The people who would notice most are: Policy background 3 Measures in the Bill make provision in the following areas: Changes to UC rates 4 UC is a benefit designed to help households on low incomes with their living costs. UC awards include a standard allowance, which is the core component of any award and is paid according to age and household composition.. If it became a real law, the everyday change would be: This Bill will require the Secretary of State to increase the four rates of standard allowance above the rate of inflation in each of the years from 2026-27 to 2029-30. This would enable all relevant benefits and pension rates to appear in the same instrument as is the convention (despite the ordinary exercise of the duty to review in section 150(1) being curtailed by the clause)..
Green Book 2026 · 5 Case Model
The Bill will also reduce and freeze the rate of the Limited Capability for Work and Work-related Activity (LCWRA) for new LCWRA claimants from 6 April 2026 and introduce financial protections for all existing and some new claimants depending on the nature of their health condition.
It is currently at Royal Assent in the Unassigned, sponsored by Department for Work and Pensions.
Accountability · outcome beside Green Book evidence
Universal Credit Act 2025 became law. The official papers we read covered some Green Book cases well and left gaps in others. For accountability, the outcome sits beside a mixed evidence trail — worth reading the case notes below.
Strategic: The Bill will also reduce and freeze the rate of the Limited Capability for Work and Work-related Activity (LCWRA) for new LCWRA claimants from 6 April 2026 and introduce financial protections for all existing and some new claimants depending on the nature of their health condition.
Economic: Gap — The papers we read for this bill do not give a figure in pounds for what it would cost or save. That is not a yes or no on the bill.
Commercial: Gap — The papers we read for this bill do not say how this would be bought, contracted or put in place.
Financial: These measures were announced by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on 18 March 2025 and by the Chancellor of the Exchequer in her Spring Statement on 26 March 2025.
Management: This Bill will require the Secretary of State to increase the four rates of standard allowance above the rate of inflation in each of the years from 2026-27 to 2029-30. The Bill provides that the Secretary of State must exercise the relevant power to increase the combined sum of the protected LCWRA amount and the standard allowance for the previous tax year by the relevant CPI percentage for the current tax year in the tax years 2026-27 to 2029-30.
This is an accountability reading, not a recommendation and not a score. It does not say whether Parliament should have passed or rejected the bill. It only sets the actual parliamentary outcome beside how complete the Green Book five-case evidence was in the official papers.
These UK Acts sit in a similar policy space and are already law. Pairing uses this proposal’s official papers (and the plain-English note themes). It is not a verdict that the proposal is redundant or unnecessary.
UK Act · Royal Assent · 2026-03-20
Universal Credit (Removal of Two Child Limit) Act 2026
Same policy area (“Welfare / social security”) with overlapping title wording. Matched using wording from this bill’s official papersAlready law — useful context when asking whether this bill adds something new or mainly revisits covered ground.
UK Act · Royal Assent · 2026-05-08
Pension Schemes Act 2026
Same policy area (“Welfare / social security”). Matched using wording from this bill’s official papersAlready law — useful context when asking whether this bill adds something new or mainly revisits covered ground.
UK Act · Royal Assent · 2022-02-02
Welfare Reform and Work Act 2016
Nearby policy wording to this bill. Matched using wording from this bill’s official papersAlready law — context only, not a verdict on whether the new bill is needed.
UK Act · Royal Assent · 2025-12-03
Animal Welfare (Import of Dogs, Cats and Ferrets) Act
Nearby policy wording to this bill. Matched using wording from this bill’s official papersAlready law — context only, not a verdict on whether the new bill is needed.
UK Act · Royal Assent · 2025-01-08
Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Act 2024
Nearby policy wording to this bill. Matched using wording from this bill’s official papersAlready law — context only, not a verdict on whether the new bill is needed.