Tag: Frank Field

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2015-11-06.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many reports his Department has received of HM Revenue and Customs’ online renewal system failing to record and register information and supporting documentation submitted by claimants wishing to renew their claim for (a) child tax credit and (b) working tax credit in each of the last two years.

Mr David Gauke

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) did not receive any reports of the online renewal system failing to record and register information submitted by claimants renewing their 2013-14 claim.

HMRC received one report of the online renewal system failing to record and register information submitted by claimants renewing their 2014-15 claim.

HMRC do not hold the requested data broken down by Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2015-11-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of jobseeker’s allowance claimants have used Universal Jobmatch in the last 12 months.

Priti Patel

Universal Jobmatch is open to anyone to use in order to look for work, whether they are claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance or not. We do not differentiate between different types of users and are not able to provide statistics on the numbers of each.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-01-08.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what information his Department holds on the number of universal credit claimants who are employed on a zero-hours contract.

Priti Patel

Universal Credit is paid on the basis of earnings. Information on types of contracts that claimants are on is not routinely collected.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-01-14.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many applications for mandatory reconsideration of a tax credits decision are awaiting determination by Concentrix.

Mr David Gauke

The number of requests for mandatory reconsideration of a decision about a tax credits award that Concentrix have received since the commencement of their contract with HM Revenue and Customs in November 2014 is as follows:

Month	Number of MRs
November 2014	0
December 2014	2
January 2015	6
February 2015	38
March 2015	29
April 2015	137
May 2015	100
June 2015	45
July 2015	71
August 2015	108
September 2015	1221
October 2015	925
November 2015	871
December 2015	2371

The total is about 1.6% of all decisions Concentrix made in the same period.

As of 15 January 2016, there are 566 mandatory reconsiderations in progress that have been opened and Concentrix are waiting for customers to provide further evidence. Concentrix have 30 further mandatory reconsiderations that are awaiting determination.

The average length of time taken between Concentrix starting to work a mandatory reconsideration and making a decision is 24 days. This includes the time needed for customers to provide any further evidence.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-02-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many children in England are educated at home; whether those children undertake the national tests that children in schools undertake; and whether checks are made on their parents’ qualifications to be home tutors.

Edward Timpson

No data is collected nationally on the number of children educated at home. If a child is educated at home, they can only be entered for National Curriculum Assessments if also registered on the roll of a school in advance.

It is not necessary to hold any particular qualification to educate a child at home. Parents have a duty under Section 7 of the Education Act 1996 to ensure that a child educated at home receives a full-time education suitable for their age, ability and aptitudes. Although local authorities have no power to monitor the suitability of education provided at home, they have a duty to identify children who are not receiving a suitable education. Authorities may make informal enquiries about the provision made in the home and the attainment of the child. If an authority is not satisfied that the education provided is suitable, it can initiate a school attendance process.

We are taking steps to ensure the system is as robust as it can be when it comes to protecting young people while at the same time safeguarding the right of parents to determine how and when to education their children.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-02-19.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of new claims for (a) jobseeker’s allowance and (b) employment and support allowance were paid within 10 days of a claim being made in the most recent 12 months for which data is available.

Priti Patel

The information you have requested is currently not available.

The department does not hold information on time taken to make a payment for jobseeker’s allowance, or employment and support allowance.

Additional breakdowns will be included in the Universal Credit official statistics as quality assurance of data from the Universal Credit systems progresses during 2016.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-02-24.

To ask the right hon. Member for Meriden, representing the Church Commissioners, whether any of the Estates Commissioners saw the charge sheet on which George Bell was found guilty of child abuse on the balance of probabilities.

Mrs Caroline Spelman

The language of “guilt” and “charge sheets” refers to criminal cases. The claim against Bishop Bell was a civil claim. The civil courts do not use charge sheets and as a result there has not been a charge sheet for the Estates Commissioners to see then or now.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-04-08.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the enforcement of age discrimination legislation in respect of people seeking employment.

Caroline Dinenage

Age is a protected characteristic in the Equality Act 2010. Where differential treatment because of age cannot be objectively justified, this will constitute unlawful age discrimination both in employment and in the provision of goods and services. Enforcement of the Act’s employment provisions is undertaken by Employment Tribunals, to which a person must make a claim if they feel that they have been discriminated against because of age.

Prior to an Employment Tribunal claim, conciliation services are provided by the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Services (Acas). According to the Employment tribunal statistics, 1,087 age discrimination claims were made to Employment Tribunals in 2014/15. 70% (761) of these claims were either withdrawn or successfully conciliated by Acas without the need for a full hearing. The Acas process is intended to enable employers and employees to resolve disputes without the need for a full Employment Tribunal hearing.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission’s enforcement powers under the Equality Act 2006 apply to age discrimination as they do to other protected characteristics.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-04-28.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether his Department has made an estimate of the amount of revenue that would have been raised in 2015-16 by levying compulsory national insurance contributions on people above state pension age.

Mr David Gauke

HM Revenue and Customs currently estimates that the national insurance exemption for people of pensionable age in 2015/16 costs around £950m in National Insurance Contributions receipts.

This figure is based on employee and self-employed National Insurance Contributions (Classes 1, 2 and 4).

The estimate is based on the latest available Survey of Personal Incomes (2012-13), which has been projected in line with Budget 2015 economic assumptions from the Office for Budget Responsibility.

The estimate includes a behavioural adjustment to reflect changes in labour supply for this age group which are subject to particular uncertainty.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-07-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many children he expects will be lifted out of poverty by the introduction of universal credit.

Justin Tomlinson

The Government is committed to eliminating child poverty and improving life chances for children.

We know that work is the best route out of poverty, and Universal Credit is designed to strengthen incentives for parents to move into and progress in work. Evidence shows claimants move into work significantly faster and earn more than under the current system.

In addition, Universal Credit now provides for 85% of childcare costs meaning more support for hardworking families.