The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2014-06-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the proportion of claimants of (a) jobseeker’s allowance and (b) employment and support allowance on Help to Work who will enter employment within (i) six months and (ii) 12 months.
Esther McVey
The information requested is not available.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2014-06-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what scope there is for a Work Programme prime provider or sub-contractor to propose variations to the claimant commitment agreed with a jobseeker who subsequently embarks on the Work Programme; and if he will make a statement.
Esther McVey
The claimant can ask for their Agreement / Commitment to be changed at any time. Where a Work Programme provider or sub-contractor feels the Agreement / Commitment should be varied, they should ask the claimant to raise this at their next attendance at the Jobcentre.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2014-03-12.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans his Department has for the future use of Post Office card accounts.
Steve Webb
The Post Office card account (POca) contract expires in March 2015 with the possibility of a 2 year extension beyond that date.
No decision has been made on the future of the POca but discussions are currently taking place between DWP, Post Office Ltd and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills to consider the future needs of customers beyond 2015.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2014-03-24.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on tackling worklessness among social housing tenants.
Esther McVey
The Secretary of State has met the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on a number of occasions and they have discussed a variety of issues.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2014-04-03.
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many people who do not meet the income threshold required to pay National Insurance contributions opt to pay national insurance contributions voluntarily.
Mr David Gauke
Estimates of the number of (a) people and (b) women who work in more than one job but do not pay national insurance, even though their total earnings are above the lower earnings threshold; and, of those, how many are women, are available at:
The rest of the information requested is not available.
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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2014-04-08.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what representations he has made to the current review of European strategy on health and safety at work; and if he will make a statement.
Mike Penning
The UK Government responded to the public consultation on a new policy framework for health and safety at work in the EU conducted by the European Commission in 2013. We emphasised the need for any new policy framework to be rooted in the principles of better regulation. The Commission has said that it expects to publish a communication on the outcome of that consultation this year and I look forward to seeing it in due course.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2014-05-02.
To ask the Ministers for Women and Equalities, what recent progress he has made on the appointment of a business champion for older workers.
Jenny Willott
I refer the Rt. Hon. Member to the answer given on 2 April 2014 Official Report, col 651W.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2014-05-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what progress he has made in implementing the Simple Payment initiative; how many people use it; and what steps he has taken to ensure its resilience.
Mike Penning
The Simple Payment service is continuously monitored to ensure satisfactory performance. As a result 99.82% of transactions over the past 6 months have completed successfully at the first attempt.
There are in total 137,617 customers registered to use the service.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2014-06-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what additional costs and savings he expects from the introduction of the Single Fraud Investigation Service in each of the years from 2012 to 2018.
Esther McVey
The SFIS Business Case covers the period 2011/12 to 2021/22, and the current figures indicate that the cost of implementing SFIS is £73 million with a saving expected around £507million. As the project progresses the business case will be reviewed and where necessary updated.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Timms on 2014-06-13.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what scope there is for amending an individual’s claimant commitment after it has first been drawn up.
Esther McVey
Once in place, both the claimant and Jobcentre Plus work coach can ask for the Claimant Commitment to be changed at any time.