DWP breaks silence over demands to make Universal Credit capital rules change Stephen Timms, a DWP minister, spoke out in the Commons after being asked a question by Scott Arthur. DWP breaks silence over demands to make Universal Credit capital rules change The Department for Work and Pensions has broken its silence on calls for a new rule change - saying there are "no plans" for one. Stephen Timms, a DWP minister, spoke out in the Commons after being asked a question by Scott Arthur. Arthur (Labour - Edinburgh South West) reached out "to ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she has considered exempting Lifetime ISAs from Universal Credit capital rules." ‌ Timms, Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions), said: "There are no plans to change the way savings held in a Lifetime ISA are treated in the assessment of Universal Credit. Article continues below READ MORE UK faces 'five day' mini-heatwave next week as BBC Weather issues warning "It is appropriate that means tested benefits, including Universal Credit, take all forms of savings into account. This includes investments where the Government provides a contribution to encourage saving such as the Lifetime ISA. ‌ "People will not be required to cash in these ISAs in order to claim Universal Credit, but they will be taken into account as part of their capital. If a person has capital over £16,000, they will be expected to rely on their savings until their capital reduces to £16,000 before they can claim Universal Credit." Torsten Bell previously said: "The capital disregard in Pension Credit has been set at £10,000 since 2009 and will remain at that level in 2025/26. Capital over £10,000 reduces weekly entitlement by £1 per £500 of capital. Unlike with working age income related benefits, there is no upper capital limit. "Benefit rules, including capital disregards in income related benefits, are kept under regular review. There are no plans to increase the capital disregard in Pension Credit." Article continues below Capital includes all money, savings and investments held by adult members of the Universal Credit assessment unit. It is valued and taken into account as applicable capital unless any part is to be treated as unearned income or disregarded. The claimant must report any new capital and any changes to the value of existing capital. If one member of a couple is an ineligible partner, all capital held by the assessment unit (including that of the ineligible partner) is taken into account when calculating the amount paid to the other member of the couple. If both adults have an interest in or are joint owners of a capital asset, that asset is taken into account once. Any income from capital such as interest on savings, rent payments from second properties or dividends from shares is treated as capital. If a person has deprived themselves of capital in order to gain entitlement or to increase entitlement to Universal Credit, they are treated as having that capital.