The bill gives effect to the cost of living support measures for benefits claimants announced as part of Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s statement to the House of Commons on 26 May 2022. The bill is expected to be certified as a money bill. The House of Lords can amend money bills, but the House of Commons is not obliged to consider any Lords amendments. The government fast-tracked the bill through all its House of Commons stages on 22 June 2022.
In the chancellor’s statement on 26 May 2022, the following support was announced for benefits recipients:
- A one-off £650 cost of living payment to around 8 million households on certain means-tested benefits.
- A one-off £150 disability cost of living payment for people receiving certain disability benefits.
The measures were broadly welcomed by external commentators, such as the Institute for Fiscal Studies and the Resolution Foundation.
There was cross-party support for the bill during its House of Commons stages and it passed without amendment. However, opposition parties criticised the government for not providing targeted support to the poorest households sooner and for failing to uprate benefits in line with inflation from April 2022.