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  • Ben Howlett – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Ben Howlett – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ben Howlett on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what consultations the Joint Work and Health Unit has undertaken with external groups on its work since its creation.

    Priti Patel

    The Work and Health Unit has been established to lead the drive for improving work and health outcomes for people with disabilities and long term health conditions, as well as improving prevention and support for people absent from work through ill health and those at risk of leaving the workforce.

    Since Q1 2014 the number of disabled people in employment has increased by around 365,000 people, with a total of 3.3million disabled people now in work as of Q1 2016.

    The Unit will build on this progress by improving integration across healthcare and employment services as well as supporting employers to recruit and retain more disabled people and people with long term health conditions. We have set up work-streams focused on delivery workforce, fitness for work, culture change and stakeholder engagement, employers and building the evidence base through developing a ‘test and learn’ approach.

    We have been seeking and listening to the views of people that use current health, care and employment services, engaging with charities and other stakeholders, to understand what works and what needs to change and will continue to engage at all levels over the coming months.

    The Work and Health Unit is leading the process for preparing a green paper which will be published later this year that will begin the consultation about how to improve support for people with disabilities and long term health conditions.

  • Ben Howlett – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Ben Howlett – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ben Howlett on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what workstreams have been established by the Joint Work and Health Unit; and when each such workstream is expected to report.

    Priti Patel

    The Work and Health Unit has been established to lead the drive for improving work and health outcomes for people with disabilities and long term health conditions, as well as improving prevention and support for people absent from work through ill health and those at risk of leaving the workforce.

    Since Q1 2014 the number of disabled people in employment has increased by around 365,000 people, with a total of 3.3million disabled people now in work as of Q1 2016.

    The Unit will build on this progress by improving integration across healthcare and employment services as well as supporting employers to recruit and retain more disabled people and people with long term health conditions. We have set up work-streams focused on delivery workforce, fitness for work, culture change and stakeholder engagement, employers and building the evidence base through developing a ‘test and learn’ approach.

    We have been seeking and listening to the views of people that use current health, care and employment services, engaging with charities and other stakeholders, to understand what works and what needs to change and will continue to engage at all levels over the coming months.

    The Work and Health Unit is leading the process for preparing a green paper which will be published later this year that will begin the consultation about how to improve support for people with disabilities and long term health conditions.

  • Ben Howlett – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Ben Howlett – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ben Howlett on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what progress the Joint Work and Health Unit has made on its priority of (a) productivity and growth in the economy, (b) halving the disability employment gap and (c) reducing health inequalities relating to gender, age and geographies; and if he will make a statement.

    Priti Patel

    The Work and Health Unit has been established to lead the drive for improving work and health outcomes for people with disabilities and long term health conditions, as well as improving prevention and support for people absent from work through ill health and those at risk of leaving the workforce.

    Since Q1 2014 the number of disabled people in employment has increased by around 365,000 people, with a total of 3.3million disabled people now in work as of Q1 2016.

    The Unit will build on this progress by improving integration across healthcare and employment services as well as supporting employers to recruit and retain more disabled people and people with long term health conditions. We have set up work-streams focused on delivery workforce, fitness for work, culture change and stakeholder engagement, employers and building the evidence base through developing a ‘test and learn’ approach.

    We have been seeking and listening to the views of people that use current health, care and employment services, engaging with charities and other stakeholders, to understand what works and what needs to change and will continue to engage at all levels over the coming months.

    The Work and Health Unit is leading the process for preparing a green paper which will be published later this year that will begin the consultation about how to improve support for people with disabilities and long term health conditions.

  • Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Answer of 9 May 2016 to Question 36280, how many people are waiting for a rearranged work capability assessment having had their initial appointment cancelled.

    Priti Patel

    On 19 May 2016, there were a total of 28,420 people waiting to attend a rearranged work capability assessment having had their initial appointment cancelled of which 17,019 have a new appointment already allocated.

  • Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Answer of 9 May 2016 to Question 36280, for what reasons work capability assessments have been cancelled.

    Priti Patel

    Work Capability Assessments can be cancelled for a wide variety of reasons linked to the need for matching the customer’s own requirements with the availability of all those parts necessary for an assessment to take place. Over half of all cancellations are customer instigated cancellations.

    Where the cancellations are instigated by DWP we will rearrange the appointment at a convenient time for the customer.

  • Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he expects to reply to the letter of 1 March 2016 from the Rt hon. Member for Birkenhead on the recommendations made by the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Hunger.

    Justin Tomlinson

    My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Stephen Crabb) has replied to the Rt. Hon. Member today.

  • Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many pieces of recording equipment are available in each region of the UK for the purposes of recording work capability assessments.

    Priti Patel

    Centre for Health and Disability Assessments offer audio recordings to customers who request them in advance, or on the day, and recording machines are now available at every assessment centre. For every 10,000 Work Capability Assessments completed the Department receives an average of 66 requests for an audio recorded assessment.

    There are currently 24 audio-recording machines in Scotland and the North East; 43 in North and Central England; 39 in Wales and the West, and; 22 in London and South England, totalling 128 for Great Britain.

    (Source: Centre for Health Disability Assessments)

  • Ian Blackford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Ian Blackford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Blackford on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on potential mitigation measures for women that have witnessed an increase in their pensionable age.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The Secretary of State is in regular contact with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on a range of pensions issues.

    The State Pension age changes, which were made to put pensions on a more financially sustainable footing given increases in life expectancy, were fully debated and voted on when the legislation was before Parliament.

    During the Pensions Act 2011 a concession, worth £1.1 billion, was introduced to limit the impact of the rising State Pension age on those women most affected. These transitional arrangements capped the maximum delay at 18 months rather than two years, relative to the previous timetable.

    Unwinding any of these changes means asking young people to assume more of the cost, and after they’ve already borne their fair share of the tough decisions made last Parliament to bring Government spending under control.

    Therefore, the Secretary of State is clear that there are no plans to bring forward further concessions or changes.

  • Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has made an estimate of the number of people having to travel more than one hour to attend a jobcentre plus office in order to obtain a National Insurance number in the last 12 months.

    Mr Shailesh Vara

    No estimate has been made of the number of people having to travel more than one hour to attend a Jobcentre Plus office in order to obtain a National Insurance number in the last 12 months.

  • Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Diana Johnson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Diana Johnson on 2016-05-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many jobcentre plus offices have been able to issue National Insurance numbers to new arrivals into the UK in each of the last six years.

    Priti Patel

    From 2010 to 2013 DWP had 2 specialist National Insurance number (NINo) Centres (Glasgow and Isle of Wight) able to issue NINos .

    In 2014, DWP issued NINos from 3 sites (Glasgow, Isle of Wight and Tooting).

    In 2015, DWP issued NINos from 5 sites (Glasgow, Isle of Wight, Tooting, Slough and Cambridge)

    In 2016, to date, DWP is issuing NINos from 4 sites (Glasgow, Isle of Wight, Tooting and Slough)