AN influential Wirral MP is calling on the Government to answer questions about the “arbitrary nature of the sanctions regime” which saw a million Jobseeker’s Allowance claims referred for a sanction decision last year.

Figures published by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) today reveal the number of claims referred for a sanction decision since October 2012 has reached 2.4 million - something Birkenhead MP Frank Field said would have led to a loss of income probably greater than any court system imposes on individuals.

Mr Field is asking the House of Commons Work and Pensions Select Committee as a matter of urgency to call before them the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Iain Duncan Smith, to answer questions about the sanctions regime.

He has also called on the DWP to review the operation of sanctions within the benefits system, and to tell the public how much money it has withdrawn from benefits through applying sanctions.

Figures published by the DWP today reveal that in the two years to September 2014:

  • 884,479 people were subject to 1.56 million sanction decisions which led to loss of benefit
  • 668,569 of these sanction decisions led to people going without any money for four weeks
  • A further 373,603 sanctions left people without money for three months, and 7,044 for six months
  • 2,048 sanctions ended up with claimants being without money for three years

“The Government is keen enough to leave people with no money for weeks and months on end, and yet it doesn’t know where a third of people end up after they’ve been sanctioned,” said Mr Field.

“Nor does it want to tell us how big the total ‘fines’ are as a result of its sanctions strategy.

“While we can’t be sure how much this might be, it is probably greater than what magistrates make from fining people; and at least in the courts people can actually speak on their behalf against the decision.”

Mr Field has written to Mr Duncan Smith asking whether he might trial a “yellow card” system, under which people would have the chance to explain themselves if they are deemed not to have stuck by the rules.

Under a “yellow card” system, if a claimant’s explanation was found to be unsatisfactory, they would receive a formal warning, with the option for Jobcentre Plus to apply more stringent requirements before a sanction is even considered.

This would ensure that the claimant is not immediately left without money.

The All-Party Parliamentary Inquiry on Hunger, which Mr Field co-chaired, suggested that such a move could help reduce the numbers of people having to rely on food banks in order to stave off hunger.