The Welsh Government has published an interim report on the impact of Universal Credit on The Council Tax Reduction Scheme and Rent Arrears in Wales.
For many households in Wales, the move to Universal Credit may have a significant impact on council tax reduction awards. This is primarily due to differences in the assessment of support under Universal Credit and under legacy benefit systems. These differences do not affect those receiving maximum council tax reduction awards who have no income - they continue to receive awards based on 100% of council tax liability under Universal Credit. However, for other households the move to Universal Credit can result in significant reductions in council tax reduction.
The impact and total value of council tax reductions modelled in the report will be used by the Welsh Government to determine further models for inclusion in the final report in 2020. The Welsh Government may wish to amalgamate some of these measures to understand the interaction of measures, or to introduce new measures.
Read the full report here.