Show Search Form

Search Results

registered interest	true false
date	exactly: or between: and
answering body
answering dept id
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name
hansard heading
house id
legislature	pref label
question text
tabling member constituency
tabling member printed
uin
answer	is ministerial correction true false date of answer exactly: or between: and answer text answering member constituency answering member printed grouped question UIN question first answered answering member label
tabling member	label

Search

1676590

registered interest
date	08/12/2023
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Department for Work and Pensions: Electronic Government
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to help ensure the accessibility of her Department's digital services for elderly claimants.
tabling member constituency	East Antrim
tabling member printed	Sammy Wilson
uin	5964
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/12/2023 answer text <p>Digital accessibility is no different for elderly people than for any other disabled people. We aim to comply with the Public Sector Bodies Accessibility Regulations (2018), which means that services must conform to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) to AA level. All services are tested to ensure that they work with assistive software, particularly with screen readers, screen magnifiers and voice recognition software.</p><p> </p><p>ONS data shows that disability prevalence increases significantly as people get older. In the UK 2021 census, approximately 23% of working age adults identified as disabled. This rose to just over 40% of 65 to 70 year olds and almost 60% of people over the age of 80.</p><p> </p><p>The types of disability that affect older people’s ability to use digital services include</p><p> </p><ul><li>dexterity impairments (35% of 65+) which make using a mouse more difficult;</li><li>memory impairments</li><li>(13% of 65+) which make following complex processes more difficult; and</li><li>vision impairments (13% of 65+) which make reading and inputting information more difficult.</li></ul><p> </p><p>Meeting the legislation for digital accessibility mitigates all of these issues to the extent that it is possible. Our citizen-facing services that are aimed at elderly claimants, such as Pension Credit, Get Your State Pension, Pension Tracing Service, bereavement related services and Carer’s Allowance are all compliant.</p><p> </p><p>All citizen facing services in Retirement, and Bereavement and Care are 100% compliant and work with all the main assistive software types.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 14/12/2023 15:39:05 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
tabling member	1593 label Biography information for Sammy Wilson

1676602

registered interest
date	08/12/2023
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Personal Independence Payment: Autism
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what guidance his Department produces for PIP assessors on how to process cases where an applicant has autism spectrum disorder.
tabling member constituency	Cynon Valley
tabling member printed	Beth Winter
uin	6052
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/12/2023 answer text <p>All claimants, including those with autism spectrum disorder, are assessed in accordance with the <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/personal-independence-payment-assessment-guide-for-assessment-providers" target="_blank">Personal Independence Payment (PIP) Assessment Guide</a> available on GOV.UK.</p><p> </p><p>Assessment providers are required to ensure all health professionals (HPs) carrying out PIP assessments have comprehensive training and knowledge of the clinical aspects and overall functional effects of a wide range of health conditions and impairments, including autism spectrum disorder.</p><p> </p><p>HPs have access to a wide range of clinical resources, including e-learning modules and case studies, to research any conditions presented. Both Capita and Independent Assessment Services have a Condition Insight Report on autism for use by their HPs. In addition, HPs are also expected to keep their knowledge up to date through continuing professional development.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 12/12/2023 16:16:34 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
tabling member	4809 label Biography information for Beth Winter

1676356

registered interest
date	07/12/2023
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Department for Work and Pensions: Recruitment
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much his Department spent on external recruitment consultants in the (a) 2020-21, (b) 2021-22 and (c) 2022-23 financial year.
tabling member constituency	Leicester South
tabling member printed	Jonathan Ashworth
uin	5810
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/12/2023 answer text <p>Due to the financial and reporting systems in the department it is not currently possible to separate out spend associated with external recruitment consultancy services from all other consultancy spend for the majority of departmental recruitment.</p><p> </p><p>However, we are able to provide the following figures, which apply to Senior Civil Service Recruitment only. To note, this does not include digital recruitment.</p><p> </p><p>2020/21: £190,627.84</p><p>2021/22: £211,054.00</p><p>2022/23 (Mar22 to Feb23) : £171,608.46</p><p> </p><p>These figures represent executive search activity spend on SCS (Deputy Director – Director General) recruitment for non-digital roles across these years.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 12/12/2023 12:40:26 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
tabling member	4244 label Biography information for Jonathan Ashworth

1675646

registered interest
date	05/12/2023
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Access to Work Programme
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 28 November 2023 to Question 3350 on Access to Work Programme, how many applications to the Access to Work scheme were rejected in each month from April 2021 to April 2022.
tabling member constituency	North East Fife
tabling member printed	Wendy Chamberlain
uin	5378
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/12/2023 answer text <p>In response to your question, I have provided the information on applications not receiving an Access to Work award below:</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>April 2021 – 1,678</p><p>May 2021 – 1,579</p><p>June 2021 – 1,909</p><p>July 2021 – 1,784</p><p>August 2021 – 1,285</p><p>September 2021 – 1,547</p><p>October 2021 – 1,853</p><p>November 2021 – 2,082</p><p>December 2021 – 1,954</p><p>January 2022 – 1,807</p><p>February 2022 – 1,615</p><p>March 2022 – 2016</p><p>April 2022 – 1,478</p><p> </p><p><strong>Please note that the data supplied is derived from unpublished management information, which was collected for internal Departmental use only, and have not been quality assured to National Statistics or Official Statistics publication standard. They should therefore be treated with caution. </strong></p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 12/12/2023 12:32:46 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
tabling member	4765 label Biography information for Wendy Chamberlain

1675076

registered interest
date	04/12/2023
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Pension Funds: Advisory Services
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Pension Schemes Act 2015 (Transitional Provisions and Appropriate Independent Advice) 2015 Post Implementation Review, published on 4 April 2023, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his Department's policies of the conclusions of that review.
tabling member constituency	City of Durham
tabling member printed	Mary Kelly Foy
uin	5041
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/12/2023 answer text <p>The underpinning policy intent behind these regulations and objectives was to ensure members with safeguarded benefits understood the level of security in retirement provided by such benefits and what the member would lose if they were to exchange them for benefits that can be accessed flexibly.</p><p /><p>The Post Implementation Review highlighted that the existing measures remain appropriate and effective. We have however identified that there may be issues with the structure and application of the regulations.</p><p> </p><p>We are currently conducting further work with the Pensions Regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, and His Majesty’s Treasury to consider if there are possible changes that maintain protection for members and continue to ensure that the intent of the policy is not undermined.</p><p> </p><p>We will be sharing the outcome of this work in due course.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 12/12/2023 12:11:48 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
tabling member	4753 label Biography information for Mary Kelly Foy

1673224

registered interest
date	27/11/2023
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Social Security Benefits: Disqualification
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of benefit claims (a) flagged and (b) investigated by the (i) Risk Review Team and (ii) Enhanced Review Team have resulted in the suspension of benefits in each of the last three years.
tabling member constituency	Wakefield
tabling member printed	Simon Lightwood
uin	4016
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/12/2023 answer text <p>The Risk Review Team (RRT) has now been incorporated in to a broader and wide-ranging Enhanced Review Team (ERT), aimed at identifying and stopping fraud early.</p><p> </p><p>As the NAO have reported in the Annual Report and Accounts 2022-23. ‘The majority of 2022-23 savings (£650 million) came from the Enhanced Review Team (ERT), which provides a rapid response service for detailed checking of high-risk Universal Credit claims before they go into payment. These estimates also suggest that preventative actions have a much higher level of return than investigating fraud and error after it has occurred.’</p><p> </p><p>Data on how many and what proportion of cases handled by ERT have resulted in suspension is not available to this level for ERT and to produce it would incur disproportionate costs. This is due to large volumes of data being held across different clerical platforms, which would need to be forensically examined.</p><p> </p><p>Likewise, data on cases closed, reinstated, or remaining suspended, cannot be provided within reasonable costs.</p><p> </p><p>We are unable to provide the number of claimants who have appealed decisions on cases closed following RRT/ERT action and the number who have been successful in their appeals over the last five years because ERT only started completing reviews in April 2020.</p><p> </p><p>We are unable to give per year figures since the formation of ERT due to the lengthy dispute process and are also unable to identify which appeals would have previously been suspended, due to this data not being held. However, the cumulative total of cases for RRT and ERT that have been through the dispute process are:</p><p> </p><ul><li>Appealed to date - 1118</li><li>Outcome in claimant’s favour – 228</li></ul> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard grouped question UIN 4017 4018 question first answered 12/12/2023 11:57:50 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
tabling member	4943 label Biography information for Simon Lightwood

1673225

registered interest
date	27/11/2023
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Social Security Benefits: Disqualification
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of benefit claims suspended by the (a) Risk Review Team and (b) Enhanced Review Team in each of the last three years (i) have subsequently been (A) closed and (B) reinstated and (ii) remain suspended.
tabling member constituency	Wakefield
tabling member printed	Simon Lightwood
uin	4017
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/12/2023 answer text <p>The Risk Review Team (RRT) has now been incorporated in to a broader and wide-ranging Enhanced Review Team (ERT), aimed at identifying and stopping fraud early.</p><p> </p><p>As the NAO have reported in the Annual Report and Accounts 2022-23. ‘The majority of 2022-23 savings (£650 million) came from the Enhanced Review Team (ERT), which provides a rapid response service for detailed checking of high-risk Universal Credit claims before they go into payment. These estimates also suggest that preventative actions have a much higher level of return than investigating fraud and error after it has occurred.’</p><p> </p><p>Data on how many and what proportion of cases handled by ERT have resulted in suspension is not available to this level for ERT and to produce it would incur disproportionate costs. This is due to large volumes of data being held across different clerical platforms, which would need to be forensically examined.</p><p> </p><p>Likewise, data on cases closed, reinstated, or remaining suspended, cannot be provided within reasonable costs.</p><p> </p><p>We are unable to provide the number of claimants who have appealed decisions on cases closed following RRT/ERT action and the number who have been successful in their appeals over the last five years because ERT only started completing reviews in April 2020.</p><p> </p><p>We are unable to give per year figures since the formation of ERT due to the lengthy dispute process and are also unable to identify which appeals would have previously been suspended, due to this data not being held. However, the cumulative total of cases for RRT and ERT that have been through the dispute process are:</p><p> </p><ul><li>Appealed to date - 1118</li><li>Outcome in claimant’s favour – 228</li></ul> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard grouped question UIN 4016 4018 question first answered 12/12/2023 11:57:50 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
tabling member	4943 label Biography information for Simon Lightwood

1673226

registered interest
date	27/11/2023
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Social Security Benefits: Appeals
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of claimants who were given a negative decision following the suspension of their claim by the Risk Review Team or Enhanced Review Team (a) appealed that decision and (b) had a tribunal allow their appeal in each of the last five years.
tabling member constituency	Wakefield
tabling member printed	Simon Lightwood
uin	4018
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/12/2023 answer text <p>The Risk Review Team (RRT) has now been incorporated in to a broader and wide-ranging Enhanced Review Team (ERT), aimed at identifying and stopping fraud early.</p><p> </p><p>As the NAO have reported in the Annual Report and Accounts 2022-23. ‘The majority of 2022-23 savings (£650 million) came from the Enhanced Review Team (ERT), which provides a rapid response service for detailed checking of high-risk Universal Credit claims before they go into payment. These estimates also suggest that preventative actions have a much higher level of return than investigating fraud and error after it has occurred.’</p><p> </p><p>Data on how many and what proportion of cases handled by ERT have resulted in suspension is not available to this level for ERT and to produce it would incur disproportionate costs. This is due to large volumes of data being held across different clerical platforms, which would need to be forensically examined.</p><p> </p><p>Likewise, data on cases closed, reinstated, or remaining suspended, cannot be provided within reasonable costs.</p><p> </p><p>We are unable to provide the number of claimants who have appealed decisions on cases closed following RRT/ERT action and the number who have been successful in their appeals over the last five years because ERT only started completing reviews in April 2020.</p><p> </p><p>We are unable to give per year figures since the formation of ERT due to the lengthy dispute process and are also unable to identify which appeals would have previously been suspended, due to this data not being held. However, the cumulative total of cases for RRT and ERT that have been through the dispute process are:</p><p> </p><ul><li>Appealed to date - 1118</li><li>Outcome in claimant’s favour – 228</li></ul> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard grouped question UIN 4016 4017 question first answered 12/12/2023 11:57:50 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
tabling member	4943 label Biography information for Simon Lightwood

1673227

registered interest
date	27/11/2023
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Social Security Benefits: Disqualification
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what guidance his Department provides to the (a) risk review team and (b) enhanced review team on suspension and termination.
tabling member constituency	Wakefield
tabling member printed	Simon Lightwood
uin	4019
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/12/2023 answer text <p>All members of ERT are provided with full training and with guidance which is clear about how case suspensions and terminations (closures) should be handled.</p><p> </p><p>If a suspension is put in place on a claim, the claimant is made fully aware of any actions they need to take and information they need to provide in order to progress the review of their case.</p><p> </p><p>A clear explanation is also provided to the claimant about the potential consequences should they fail to fully comply with these requirements within the required timescales. The guidance also ensures that ERT team members consider potential customer vulnerability throughout the duration of any intervention.</p><p> </p><p>As the NAO have reported in the Annual Report and Accounts 2022-23, ‘The majority of 2022-23 savings (£650 million) came from the Enhanced Review Team (ERT), which provides a rapid response service for detailed checking of high-risk Universal Credit claims before they go into payment. These estimates also suggest that preventative actions have a much higher level of return than investigating fraud and error after it has occurred.’</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 12/12/2023 12:13:33 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
tabling member	4943 label Biography information for Simon Lightwood