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931220

	registered interest
	date	25/06/2018
	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	Employment: Disability
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to reduce the disability employment gap.
	tabling member constituency	East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow
	tabling member printed	Dr Lisa Cameron
	uin	906122
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/06/2018 answer text <p>We remain committed to improving outcomes for disabled people. The manifesto commitment to get one million more disabled people in work by 2027 gives us a clear, ambitious, and time bound goal.</p><p> </p><p>We set out our continued commitment to improving employment rates for disabled people and people with long-term health conditions in <em>Improving Lives: the Future of Work, Health and Disability</em>. We believe people should get the support they need whatever their health condition or disability, whether that’s from their employer, from the health system or from the welfare system.</p><p> </p><p>We have invested in our Personal Support Package, which includes £330 million of funding over four years with a range of new interventions and initiatives designed to provide support that is tailored to the individual needs of claimants. We have recruited 300 additional Disability Employment Advisers and we are introducing 200 new Community Partners, bringing specialist advice and support into the Jobcentre.</p><p> </p><p>We are supporting employers to help them recruit and retain disabled people and people with health conditions through Disability Confident, the Access to Work scheme, and specialist advisers in Jobcentres.</p><p> </p><p>Recognising the importance of enabling people to remain in work, we want to reform the Statutory Sick Pay system so that it more effectively supports returns to work, and we are exploring how to shape, fund and deliver transformational change to provide effective occupational health services that can support people in work.</p> answering member constituency Truro and Falmouth answering member printed Sarah Newton question first answered 28/06/2018 15:52:20 answering member 4071 label Biography information for Sarah Newton
	tabling member	4412 label Biography information for Dr Lisa Cameron

1000260

	registered interest
	date	02/11/2018
	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	Universal Credit
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reason the taper that is applied to wages is not applied to pensions in relation to universal credit.
	tabling member constituency	Barnsley Central
	tabling member printed	Dan Jarvis
	uin	187333
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/11/2018 answer text <p>The taper is the rate at which Universal Credit is reduced to take account of earnings. It is specifically for in work claimants and linked to earnings to incentivise work, and those in work to earn more. Universal Credit has a single taper of 63 per cent so payments reduce in a transparent and predictable way as earnings increase. Universal Credit is a means tested benefit, and income other than earnings, such as pensions, is taken fully into account in the assessment of Universal Credit. This is consistent with how legacy means tested benefits such as Employment and Support Allowance, Jobseeker’s Allowance and Income Support treat pension income. Therefore it would not be consistent to extend the earnings taper to pensions income and doing so would also undermine the incentives to work for people of working age.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 12/11/2018 18:05:06 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4243 label Biography information for Dan Jarvis

1007135

	registered interest
	date	14/11/2018
	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	Zero Hours Contracts: Young People
	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 her Department's press release entitled Youth unemployment down 50% since 2010, published on gov.uk on 16 October 2018, what proportion of recorded employment was under a zero-hours contract.
	tabling member constituency	Barnsley Central
	tabling member printed	Dan Jarvis
	uin	191422
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/11/2018 answer text <p>The Office for National Statistics (ONS) use the Labour Force Survey (LFS) to provide estimates for the number of people employed on zero hours’ contracts.</p><p> </p><p>The ONS figures for people in employment on zero hours’ contracts broken down by age, do not go back to 2010 and are only currently available up to April-June 2018. Therefore no directly comparable figures to the youth unemployment statistics cited are available.</p><p> </p><p>The majority of young people are not employed on zero hours’ contracts. In 2018 (Apr-Jun) there were 261,000 16-24 year olds on a zero hours’ contracts – representing only 6.9% of employed 16-24 year olds.</p><p> </p><p>This is down from 299,000 young people (7.8% of employed young people) in 2017 (Apr-Jun), but a slight increase from the first comparable data available, which shows in 2014 (Apr-Jun) there were 235,000 young people on a zero hours’ contract (or 6.3% of employed young people).</p><p> </p><p>Many people in full-time education are employed on zero hours’ contracts, in part because of the flexibility they provide. 18.5% of all people in 2018 (Apr-Jun) on zero hours’ contracts were in full-time education – compared to 2.3% of people not on a zero hours’ contract.</p><p> </p><p>The ONS data shows that the majority of people on zero hours’ contracts are happy with the hours provided by their zero hours’ contract.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 20/11/2018 16:24:01 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma previous answer version 85857 answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4243 label Biography information for Dan Jarvis

1010366

	registered interest
	date	19/11/2018
	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	Universal Credit: Self-employed
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to ensure that the calculation of universal credit for self-employed people (a) accurately reflects (i) the amount that they allocate to expenses to maintain their business and (ii) their take-home earnings and (b) leaves those people in a better financial position as a result of being in work.
	tabling member constituency	Barnsley Central
	tabling member printed	Dan Jarvis
	uin	192922
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/11/2018 answer text <p>Claimants with earnings from self-employment are required to report them to DWP on a monthly basis. These earnings are reported on a simplified 'cash accounting' basis, which asks for the total income from receipts into the business and details of payments out of the business under defined categories during the assessment period. We assess net earnings after deducting business expenses. The requirements were designed to be as simple as possible in order for self-employed claimants to easily report their earnings and monthly reporting allows Universal Credit to be adjusted on a monthly basis.</p><p> </p><p>Where claimants are in the 12-month grace period or are gainfully self-employed and earning above the Minimum Income Floor (MIF), the single taper rate acts to ensure that they are better off working and earning more under Universal Credit, removing the cliff edges from the old legacy benefits system.</p><p>We announced at Autumn Budget 2018 that all new gainfully self-employed claimants can, from September 2020, access a 12-month exemption period from the MIF. This change will assist all gainfully self-employed claimants to grow their earnings, prepare and adjust for the application of the MIF. In 2022/23 it will allow 130,000 self-employed people the space to grow a successful business when moving on to Universal Credit.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 22/11/2018 16:20:35 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4243 label Biography information for Dan Jarvis

935249

	registered interest
	date	06/07/2018
	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	Universal Credit
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the online journal for universal credit; and whether her Department has plans to improve the journals for benefits claimants.
	tabling member constituency	Barnsley Central
	tabling member printed	Dan Jarvis
	uin	161553
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/07/2018 answer text <p>The recently published Claimant Survey shows claimants are largely very positive about key aspects of the digital service, such as the journal. Overall, eight in ten (79 per cent) claimants said they found the journal easy to use, while three quarters (75 per cent) said it was a useful way to keep a record of their progress. A similar proportion (74 per cent) said the journal was a useful way to communicate with their work coach, while 68 per cent said they use it to keep evidence of their job seeking or work preparation activity.</p><p> </p><p>As part of our test and learn approach to Universal Credit, we update and improve the full service every two weeks, for example, a recent update gave claimants the ability to apply for an advance through their online account. These updates can include changes to the journal, adding functionality and improving ease of use.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 11/07/2018 16:46:16 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4243 label Biography information for Dan Jarvis

937729

	registered interest
	date	10/07/2018
	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	Universal Credit: Internet
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how often staff in her Department that monitor the online journals for universal credit are notified when someone posts on their online journal.
	tabling member constituency	Barnsley Central
	tabling member printed	Dan Jarvis
	uin	162573
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/07/2018 answer text <p>The case manager or work coach receives a notification in real time each time a claimant submits an entry to their online journal. Journal entries are monitored daily as part of our case management approach.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 16/07/2018 14:20:24 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4243 label Biography information for Dan Jarvis

940022

	registered interest
	date	12/07/2018
	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	Children: Day Care
	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 15 June 2018 to Question 152769 on Children: Day Care, what proportion of parents receiving universal credit currently receive the maximum amount for childcare costs in (a) Barnsley and (b) England.
	tabling member constituency	Barnsley Central
	tabling member printed	Dan Jarvis
	uin	163562
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/07/2018 answer text <p>The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 17/07/2018 16:37:30 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4243 label Biography information for Dan Jarvis

946906

	registered interest
	date	23/07/2018
	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	Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit: Self-employed
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reason self-employed individuals are not eligible for injuries disablement benefit.
	tabling member constituency	Barnsley Central
	tabling member printed	Dan Jarvis
	uin	167283
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/09/2018 answer text <p>Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit (IIDB) is payable to employed earners who suffer disablement because of an industrial accident or through contracting a prescribed disease as a result of their work. The underlying principle has always been that benefit should be payable to workers employed under a contract of service.</p><p> </p><p>When the Scheme was devised it was accepted that there would be practical difficulties in including self-employed people because the scheme relies on employers to provide evidence that an accident or exposure took place at work. Alongside this practical issue, when the scheme was devised it was decided that self-employed people should do so knowing that it is their responsibility to arrange insurance to cover themselves for financial loss in the event of an industrial injury.</p><p> </p><p>However, if a self-employed person has contracted Diffuse Mesothelioma from exposure to asbestos in the United Kingdom they can still claim a lump sum payment from the 2008 Diffuse Mesothelioma Scheme.</p><p> </p><p>The government continually reviews the Scheme to ensure that resources are targeted in the most appropriate way and that the scheme remains relevant in the light of changes in the modern world of work, however there are no plans to change the current position regarding self-employed workers.</p> answering member constituency Truro and Falmouth answering member printed Sarah Newton question first answered 04/09/2018 16:13:47 answering member 4071 label Biography information for Sarah Newton
	tabling member	4243 label Biography information for Dan Jarvis

989505

	registered interest
	date	17/10/2018
	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	Poverty
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the new measure of poverty recommended by the Social Metrics Commission: a new measure of poverty, published in September 2018; and if she plans to adopt that new measure.
	tabling member constituency	Barnsley Central
	tabling member printed	Dan Jarvis
	uin	180731
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/10/2018 answer text <p>We welcome the work that the Social Metrics Commission has done. Measuring poverty is complex, and this report offers further insight into that complexity and the additional measures that can be taken into consideration. From discussions with SMC they acknowledge that further work needs to be done (particularly around data availability and quality). We will carefully consider their recommendations and the detail behind the methodology they have employed when this has been made available.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson grouped question UIN 180732 180733 question first answered 22/10/2018 16:41:36 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
	tabling member	4243 label Biography information for Dan Jarvis

989506

	registered interest
	date	17/10/2018
	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	Poverty
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies on reducing the number of households living in poverty of the Social Metrics Commissions report, A new measure of poverty in the UK, published in September 2018.
	tabling member constituency	Barnsley Central
	tabling member printed	Dan Jarvis
	uin	180732
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/10/2018 answer text <p>We welcome the work that the Social Metrics Commission has done. Measuring poverty is complex, and this report offers further insight into that complexity and the additional measures that can be taken into consideration. From discussions with SMC they acknowledge that further work needs to be done (particularly around data availability and quality). We will carefully consider their recommendations and the detail behind the methodology they have employed when this has been made available.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson grouped question UIN 180731 180733 question first answered 22/10/2018 16:41:36 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
	tabling member	4243 label Biography information for Dan Jarvis