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  • Mark Hendrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Mark Hendrick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Mark Hendrick on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the five options set out in pages nine to 12 of his Department’s Consultation on aids and appliances and the daily living component of Personal Independence Payments, Cm 9171, what estimate he has made of the number of people who will lose entitlement to personal independence payment under each of the five options in (a) 2015-16, (b) 2016-17, (c) 2017-18 and (d) 2018-19; and what estimate he has made of how much his Department will not pay in benefit payments under each option in each such year.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The Department is currently running a consultation to seek views on how support can best be provided to help meet the costs of disability faced by people who are currently awarded points due to aids and appliances. The department is keen to hear views from all interested parties, especially disabled people and disability organisations.

    No decision has been made as to whether there should be any changes to the current system. If changes were to be made, the Department does not have any preference between the 5 options presented in the consultation and welcomes additional suggestions. Furthermore, these options are not mutually exclusive and could be combined, in whole or in part.

    If the Department were to decide to change the current system, in line with the Department’s obligations under the Equality Act 2010, a full Equality Analysis would be conducted and considered prior to a final decision being made.

  • Christian Matheson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Christian Matheson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Christian Matheson on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many employees who were dismissed from employment by his Department or its executive agencies since 2010 were on long-term sickness absence at the time of their dismissal; and how many such employees had been diagnosed with a condition considered (a) incurable, and (b) terminal.

    Justin Tomlinson

    DWP has succeeded in reducing sickness absence from an annual average of 8.4 days per employee in December 2010 to 6.2 days per employee currently.

    DWP’s Attendance Management policy is supportive of our people and we are committed to helping them maintain good health. We will support employees during periods of sickness absence as long as there is a realistic prospect they will return to work. However, where this is not the case, we need to take prompt action to manage the situation.

    The following table provides a summary of number of employees dismissed while on long-term sickness absence.

    Year

    Headcount at end of year

    Dismissals on Long Term Sick

    2010

    112,135

    450

    2011

    101,331

    439

    2012

    106,487

    333

    2013

    99,343

    423

    2014

    90,388

    453

    2015

    84,429

    421

    DWP does not record whether an employee’s condition is diagnosed as incurable or terminal, so cannot provide this information.

  • Gerald Kaufman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Gerald Kaufman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gerald Kaufman on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he intends to answer the letter to him dated 9 December 2015 with regard to Mr S Faulkner.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, my right hon. Friend the member of Chingford and Woodford Green (Mr Duncan Smith), replied on 20 January 2015.

    .

  • Gerald Kaufman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Gerald Kaufman – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Gerald Kaufman on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when he intends to answer the letter to him dated 14 December 2015 with regard to Ms A Sharif.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, my right hon. Friend the member of Chingford and Woodford Green (Mr Duncan Smith), replied on 24 January 2015.

  • James Cartlidge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    James Cartlidge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by James Cartlidge on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will introduce legislative proposals to amend the provisions of the Pensions Act 2014 relating to the Pension Protection Fund capping to provide assistance to scheme members whose employers have entered into administration; and if he will make a statement.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The Government is committed to the implementation of the Pension Protection Fund long service cap as described in the Pensions Act 2014.

    Before the primary legislation can be brought into force, a number of changes need to be made to secondary legislation, so that it will operate as expected in all cases. Therefore we cannot, at this time, commit to a particular implementation date.

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what support is provided to universal credit claimants who do not have (a) online access or (b) the capability to apply online.

    Priti Patel

    For those Universal Credit claimants who do not have online access, computers and free Wi-Fi are available through DWP and their delivery partners. Where claimants have limited, or no, capability to apply on-line, ‘assisted digital’ support is available alongside telephone and face to face support.

  • Alison Thewliss – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Alison Thewliss – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alison Thewliss on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions he had with foodbank providers on the planned introduction of Jobcentre staff in foodbanks.

    Priti Patel

    Jobcentre Work Coaches undertake outreach work every day in local communities, and have recently been helping people with back-to-work support and advice in Manchester, where a food bank sits alongside other support services.

    The Department is in the early stages of testing the outreach activity, and will reflect on the findings.

    Where Jobcentre Plus is invited to work in partnership with a food bank provider, and where there is a local need, Jobcentre Plus District Managers will be able to apply the best practices identified.

  • Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Stephen Timms – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has met with representatives of the Citizens Advice Bureau to discuss feedback they have received from universal credit claimants.

    Priti Patel

    Senior officials regularly meet with representatives from Citizens Advice to discuss Universal Credit on behalf of the Secretary of State.

    Citizens Advice staff are also actively engaged with the Universal Credit programme to feed their claimant insight into work on Universal Credit claimant orientation.

  • Karen Buck – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    Karen Buck – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Karen Buck on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) six month notices, (b) three month closure notices and (c) final closure notices of case closure have been sent to Child Support Agency cases in (i) segment 1, (ii) segment 2, (iii) segment 3 and (iv) segment 4.

    Priti Patel

    The table below shows the total number of (a) six month notice letters of case closure, (b) one month reminder letters of case closure, and (c) final letters issued for segments 1, 2, 3 and 4, as at the end of December 2015:

    Segment

    1

    2

    3

    4

    Six month notice

    395,500

    137,900

    43,200

    238,900

    One month reminder letter

    365,400

    104,600

    30,100

    69,800

    Final letter

    373,000

    98,900

    10,400

    33,400

    Notes

    1. Figures rounded to nearest 100.
    2. The figures are made up from cases proactively selected for case closure, and not those where an application has been made to the 2012 scheme and a related case exists on the 93/03 scheme which is then reactively closed down.
    3. Cases selected for closure are sent a six month notice of case closure. One letter is sent to the parent with care and one to non-resident parent. They are then sent a reminder letter one month before their case closure date (no letter is sent at three months). They are sent a final letter when their case is closed.
  • Ian Lavery – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Ian Lavery on 2016-01-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reasons a levy of at least three per cent of gross working premium on insurers to fund the Diffuse Mesothelioma Payments Scheme has not yet been introduced.

    Justin Tomlinson

    The Mesothelioma Act (2014) requires active insurers to pay a levy with a view to meeting the costs of the Diffuse Mesothelioma Payment Scheme (DMPS) each year.

    The 3% figure was the maximum percentage of the active employers’ liability insurance market to be levied on the insurance industry to recoup the costs of the scheme in any one year. This figure is a cap rather than a set rate. Each year the levy rate is calculated using the costs of the DMPS so far in that financial year, extrapolated to cover the remainder of the period. As this is a demand led scheme, the calculations for the levy are done afresh each year. An upturn in applications to the Scheme would result in a higher levy rate in future years.