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1251906

	registered interest
	date	13/11/2020
	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	Redundancy: Coronavirus
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment his Department has made of the need to provide financial support for employees made redundant before 23 September 2020 who cannot be furloughed and are not entitled to any statutory redundancy payment.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	92004
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/11/2020 answer text <p>Universal Credit is in place to support claimants in difficult circumstances. The Government introduced a package of temporary welfare measures worth around £9.3 billion this year to help with the financial consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. This included the £20 weekly increase to the Universal Credit Standard Allowance rates as a temporary measure for the 20/21 tax year.</p><p>Our long-term ambition is to level up across the country and continue to tackle poverty through our reformed welfare system that works with the labour market to encourage people to move into and progress in work wherever possible.</p><p> </p><p>Our £30bn Plan for Jobs is the first step on the ladder to achieving this and will support economic recovery through new schemes including Kickstart and Job Entry Targeted Support.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 23/11/2020 16:31:07 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1345265

	registered interest
	date	08/07/2021
	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: Overpayments
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many direct earnings attachments her Department has put in place in each year since the Welfare Reform Act 2012 enabled recovery of overpayments as a result of errors made by her Department rather than the claimant; and what estimate she has made of the amount that has been overpaid in error by her Department in each year since 2012.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	29889
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/07/2021 answer text <p>It is not possible to produce a historical time series for this specific data request regarding Direct Earnings Attachments (DEA). However, I can confirm that there are 15,000 DWP debtors with an official error debt who currently have a DEA in place.</p><p> </p><p>This data is taken from operational data systems, and is not intended for publication. Therefore, the data itself is not quality assured to the standard of published Official Statistics and National Statistics.</p><p>It should be noted that, during a period when we have faced the unprecedented challenges posed by COVID-19, fraud and error in the benefits system remains low, with 95% of benefits, worth more than £200bn paid correctly in 2020/21. Official Error overpayments remained at 0.4% of benefit expenditure last year, with UC Official Error Overpayments falling from 1.3% to 0.9%.</p><p>DWP’s primary method of debt recovery is by deduction from any on-going benefit that mightbe in payment, with limits on the amount we can deduct from income related benefits being set out in legislation.</p><p> </p><p>Where recovery from ongoing benefit entitlement is not possible, DWP will seek to agree a voluntary repayment plan with the debtor, taking into account their personal circumstances and the amount they can reasonably afford to repay each month.</p><p>Where a person fails to agree a voluntary repayment plan, we can apply a Direct Earnings Attachment (DEA) which allows deductions to be taken directly from a person’s earnings, bu this would only be after DWP had made all reasonable efforts to pursue recovery via a voluntary repayment plan.</p><p>Estimates of the amount that has been overpaid in error by DWP are published annually and can be found by following the links at <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/fraud-and-error-in-the-benefit-system" target="_blank">Fraud and error in the benefit system - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)</a>.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 16/07/2021 13:38:16 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1239452

	registered interest
	date	30/09/2020
	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: Coronavirus
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many times the universal credit service has been unavailable since 23 March 2020; and for what reasons that service was unavailable on each of those occasions.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	97714
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/10/2020 answer text <p>There have been over 3 million Universal Credit claims made since mid-March; six times the volume that the Department would typically receive. Despite that surge, the system is standing up to the challenge and demonstrating that resilience and scalability are integral parts its design, whilst maintaining high levels of payment timeliness.</p><p>There have been no unplanned outages of the Universal Credit online service since March 2020.</p><p /><p /> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 97715 question first answered 08/10/2020 14:43:43 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1169091

	registered interest
	date	07/01/2020
	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, how many universal credit claimants have signed a waiver outlining any previous communication with a political representative regarding benefits before accessing appeals information since that policy was introduced.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	1039
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/01/2020 answer text <p>At no point during a Universal Credit claim does the Department ask a person to sign a waiver. To safeguard the sensitive and personal data we hold about people’s Universal Credit claims, we ask representatives making enquiries on behalf of others to demonstrate that they have claimant consent. This is a simple process, which can be completed online or by telephone by the claimant, and has been in place since 2017.</p><p> </p><p>The Universal Credit system is structured around an online personal account which contains all the information relevant to the claim. This can include details about: bank accounts, savings, capital, medical history and family relationships, in addition to third parties including landlords and employers. Therefore, we need to ensure a high level of security and protection exists to combat unscrupulous individuals and organisations who try to access the information and seek to impersonate genuine representatives.</p><p> </p><p>The Department is continuing to work with Social Security Advisory Committee (SSAC) and third party organisations to understand how Universal Credit can support organisations who help our claimants. We are committed to having processes in place which effectively supports claimants to access our services, but which also protects information.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 15/01/2020 17:12:46 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1345235

	registered interest
	date	08/07/2021
	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: Overpayments
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much her Department recovered from overpayments that were as a result of her Department's and not the claimant's error in each month in the most recent period for which figures are available; and what the average amount of overpayment due to her Department's error was recovered from each such claimant.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	29888
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/07/2021 answer text <p>In the last month for which figures are available DWP paid out almost £3.5bn in Universal Credit and it should be noted that fraud and error in the benefits system remains low, with 95% of benefits, worth more than £200bn. paid correctly in 2020/21. Official Error overpayments remained at 0.4% of benefit expenditure last year, with UC Official Error Overpayments falling from 1.3% to 0.9%.</p><p> </p><p>Deductions from UC are now capped at 25% (as of April 2021) having previously been 30%. Where requested deductions exceed the 25% maximum, or there is insufficient UC in payment for all deductions to be made, a priority order is applied, which determines the order in which items should be deducted. ‘Last resort’ deductions, such as rent or fuel costs, are at the top of the priority order, ensuring that claimant welfare is prioritised, followed by social obligation deductions, such as fines and child maintenance, and finally benefit debt, such as Social Fund loans and benefit overpayments.</p><p> </p><p>Anyone with overpayment deductions who does experience financial hardship is encouraged to contact the Department’s Debt Management unit. Where a person cannot afford the proposed rate of these deductions, a lower amount can be negotiated.</p><p> </p><p>Deductions in respect of UC Official Error debt for the last 6 months are shown below:</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p><strong>Month</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Value of in month recovery where debt category is official error</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Average recovery per Customer in Month</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Jan-21</strong></p></td><td><p>£12,470,549</p></td><td><p>£67.47</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Feb-21</strong></p></td><td><p>£14,464,840</p></td><td><p>£67.15</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Mar-21</strong></p></td><td><p>£16,444,768</p></td><td><p>£70.11</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Apr-21</strong></p></td><td><p>£16,524,866</p></td><td><p>£69.95</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>May-21</strong></p></td><td><p>£13,563,717</p></td><td><p>£65.02</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Jun-21</strong></p></td><td><p>£14,584,640</p></td><td><p>£63.44</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>* The data shown in the above table is taken from operational data systems, and is not intended for publication. Therefore, the data itself is not quality assured to the standard of published Official Statistics and National Statistics.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 19/07/2021 15:38:13 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1109209

	registered interest
	date	02/04/2019
	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	Support for Mortgage Interest
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the effectiveness of replacing the Support for Mortgage Interest scheme with a loans-based system from April 2018.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	240106
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/04/2019 answer text <p>Support for Mortgage Interest is designed to provide protection against the threat of repossession. The new loans system provides exactly the same level of support and provides exactly the same level of protection from repossession as the previous system. We continue to work closely with the lending industry to ensure the scheme delivers its intended aim. The conversion of SMI from a benefit to a loan is estimated to save around £140m in welfare spending.</p><p> </p><p>The Department is using evidence from a number of sources to assess the impact of the conversion to a loan on an on-going basis, including management information on claimant take up and feedback from stakeholder groups, including via our regular liaison with UK Finance, to assess whether there are unintended consequences for particular groups.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 08/04/2019 12:59:13 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1144424

	registered interest
	date	03/09/2019
	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: Pilot Schemes
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to her oral contribution of 22 July 2019 on Universal Credit managed migration, Official Report, column 1149-1150, if she will publish the advice she received from the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments on the use of a negative Statutory Instrument for a pilot of managed migration and payments to severely disabled people who lost out in transferring to Universal Credit.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	286363
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/09/2019 answer text <p>It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.</p><p /><p /> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 09/09/2019 16:35:05 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1144425

	registered interest
	date	03/09/2019
	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: Pilot Schemes
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to her oral contribution on 22 July 2019 on Unviersal Credit managed migration, Official Report, column 1149-1150, on what date her Department received advice from the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments on the use of a negative Statutory Instrument for a pilot of managed migration and payments to severely disabled people who lost out in transferring to universal credit.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	286364
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/09/2019 answer text <p>It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.</p><p /><p /> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 09/09/2019 16:35:46 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1151365

	registered interest
	date	22/10/2019
	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	Bereavement Support Payment
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the (a) 18-month limit for receiving bereavement support payment and (b) three-month limit for claiming bereavement support payment.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	3789
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/10/2019 answer text <p>We intend to carry out an evaluation of Bereavement Support Payment once sufficient evidence is available for this comparatively new benefit, to enable us to evaluate the policy.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 29/10/2019 14:23:57 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1239453

	registered interest
	date	30/09/2020
	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: Coronavirus
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the capacity of the universal credit service to cope with demand for new online claims in the period since 23 March 2020; and what steps her Department is taking to minimise periods of unavailability of that service.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	97715
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/10/2020 answer text <p>There have been over 3 million Universal Credit claims made since mid-March; six times the volume that the Department would typically receive. Despite that surge, the system is standing up to the challenge and demonstrating that resilience and scalability are integral parts its design, whilst maintaining high levels of payment timeliness.</p><p>There have been no unplanned outages of the Universal Credit online service since March 2020.</p><p /><p /> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 97714 question first answered 08/10/2020 14:43:43 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1251910

	registered interest
	date	13/11/2020
	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: Coronavirus
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the need to remove the five-week wait for universal credit for employees made redundant prior to 23 September 2020 and who are not eligible for statutory redundancy pay.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	92005
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/11/2020 answer text <p>Nobody in need has to wait for a payment under Universal Credit (UC). UC New Claim Advances allow eligible claimants to receive up to 100% of their estimated Universal Credit payment upfront within a few days. Claimants will receive their annual award over 13 payments during their first year, instead of 12. They are paid quickly and can be applied for online or over the phone. These upfront payments can be spread across two years instead of one from October 2021, as announced in the 2020 Budget.</p><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 23/11/2020 16:08:41 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1287174

	registered interest
	date	19/02/2021
	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 her Department has made of the potential effect of including discretionary and hardship payments as income for the purposes of universal credit on people in receipt of that payment.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	155368
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/03/2021 answer text <p>No assessment has been made.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 01/03/2021 15:52:11 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1229688

	registered interest
	date	28/08/2020
	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 for the implications of her policy of the Court of Appeal judgment handed down on 22 June 2020 on the Universal Credit system; and if she will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	82344
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/09/2020 answer text <p>The Court of Appeal judgment affects a small minority of claimants in very specific circumstances, those who receive two calendar monthly payments of earnings in one assessment period and lose out on the work allowance. We recognise the impact that having double earnings in an assessment period can have on individual claimants and their ability to manage their finances.</p><p> </p><p>While the court judgment does not require us to fix this issue by a particular date, we are currently working on ways to resolve this for claimants as soon as possible. We will keep the House updated as progress is made.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 08/09/2020 17:03:38 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1151368

	registered interest
	date	22/10/2019
	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 adequacy of the six-month limit on the easement of work-related requirements for universal credit for bereavement of a partner or child.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	3790
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/10/2019 answer text <p>When a Universal Credit (UC) claimant suffers a bereavement there are easements to work-related requirement which can be applied. These will be discussed and agreed, on an individual basis, with the claimant’s Work Coach or Case Manager. In some circumstances payment of UC, that would otherwise reduce or stop following a bereavement, can continue for a short time. This is called a ‘Bereavement run-on’, and may be applied when a partner or dependent child dies.</p><p> </p><p>The ‘Bereavement run-on’ results in UC continuing to be paid as if there had been no change of circumstances for the assessment period in which the death occurs and the following two assessment periods.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 30/10/2019 17:03:08 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1193643

	registered interest
	date	05/05/2020
	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	Discretionary Housing Payments: Coronavirus
	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 potential merits of removing the cap on discretionary housing payments to enable local authorities to provide support to households affected by covid-19.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	44031
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/05/2020 answer text <p>We have already provided £180m in Discretionary Housing Payment(DHP) funding to Local Authorities to support vulnerable claimants with housing costs in the private and social rented sector in England and Wales for 2020/21. This includes an extra £40m as announced last year at the spending round.</p><p> </p><p>In addition to the central government contribution, Local Authorities in England and Wales are able to top up DHP funding up to a maximum of two and a half times this figure using their own funds.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 15/05/2020 13:25:50 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1151364

	registered interest
	date	22/10/2019
	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	Bereavement Support Payment
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans her Department has to consult on increasing the eligibility for bereavement support payment to include cohabitees.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	3788
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/10/2019 answer text <p>The Department currently has no plans to consult on increasing the eligibility for bereavement support payment to include cohabitees.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 29/10/2019 14:24:12 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

838618

	registered interest
	date	07/02/2018
	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: Telephone Services
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate her Department has made of the number of people who did not call the Universal Credit helpline as a result of believing that it was a premium rate number.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	127438
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/02/2018 answer text <p>The Universal Credit telephone numbers previously used by the Department were not premium rate numbers and it is misleading to refer to them in this way. The 0345 numbers that were in use were charged at local rate and are included in the call packages of most mobile and landline phone deals.</p><p> </p><p>Any customer who raised a concern about the costs of calling the Department was offered a call back. We have no evidence that people did not call because they believed the service was a premium rate number.</p><p> </p><p>To ensure that customers dial the correct numbers, the Department has embarked on an exercise to update all its products. The Department’s electronic media, such as SMS text messages and Gov.uk website, were updated as the new freephone numbers were introduced. System generated notifications for Universal Credit Full Service were updated on 28 November. System notifications for Universal Credit Live Service were updated between 28 November and 31 January 2018.</p><p> </p><p>During the period that our products were being updated, any calls to a 0345 number were played a message that told them that that number had been replaced with a Freephone number, whilst giving them the new Freephone number to use.</p><p> </p><p>The current monthly cost to the Department for playing the recorded messages to provide the new freephone numbers is approximately £300.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma grouped question UIN 127389 127440 127442 question first answered 20/02/2018 11:45:14 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

838622

	registered interest
	date	07/02/2018
	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	Department for Work and Pensions: Telephone Services
	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 cost to her Department of the continued use of a premium rate number to play a recorded message to callers diverting them elsewhere.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	127442
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/02/2018 answer text <p>The Universal Credit telephone numbers previously used by the Department were not premium rate numbers and it is misleading to refer to them in this way. The 0345 numbers that were in use were charged at local rate and are included in the call packages of most mobile and landline phone deals.</p><p> </p><p>Any customer who raised a concern about the costs of calling the Department was offered a call back. We have no evidence that people did not call because they believed the service was a premium rate number.</p><p> </p><p>To ensure that customers dial the correct numbers, the Department has embarked on an exercise to update all its products. The Department’s electronic media, such as SMS text messages and Gov.uk website, were updated as the new freephone numbers were introduced. System generated notifications for Universal Credit Full Service were updated on 28 November. System notifications for Universal Credit Live Service were updated between 28 November and 31 January 2018.</p><p> </p><p>During the period that our products were being updated, any calls to a 0345 number were played a message that told them that that number had been replaced with a Freephone number, whilst giving them the new Freephone number to use.</p><p> </p><p>The current monthly cost to the Department for playing the recorded messages to provide the new freephone numbers is approximately £300.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma grouped question UIN 127389 127438 127440 question first answered 20/02/2018 11:45:14 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1108738

	registered interest
	date	01/04/2019
	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 potential (a) cost to the public purse and (b) benefits of universal credit claimants receiving an up-front payment after making a valid claim for universal credit.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	239300
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/04/2019 answer text <p>The Department is committed to ensuring that Universal Credit works for all claimants. We listen to the concerns and views of organisations and individuals and have delivered improvements to better support claimants, and will continue to do so.</p><p> </p><p>New claimants can apply for a Universal Credit new claim advance, worth up to 100 per cent of a claimant’s indicative award, and are available up front, if there is a need. Advances are paid back over a period of 12 months and in the Autumn Budget 2018, we announced that from October 2021, the payback period for these advances will be extended further, up to 16 months.</p><p>This is just one of a number of measures the Department has put in place to support claimants such as paying those claimants moving from Housing Benefit onto Universal Credit a two week ‘transitional housing payment’. We are also introducing a two-week run on for eligible claimants of Income Support, Jobseeker’s Allowance and Employment and Support Allowance from July 2020.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 04/04/2019 16:57:35 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

838569

	registered interest
	date	07/02/2018
	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: Telephone Services
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the number of communications sent out by Jobcentre Plus that include reference to the premium rate universal credit helpline number since 18 October 2017.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	127389
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/02/2018 answer text <p>The Universal Credit telephone numbers previously used by the Department were not premium rate numbers and it is misleading to refer to them in this way. The 0345 numbers that were in use were charged at local rate and are included in the call packages of most mobile and landline phone deals.</p><p> </p><p>Any customer who raised a concern about the costs of calling the Department was offered a call back. We have no evidence that people did not call because they believed the service was a premium rate number.</p><p> </p><p>To ensure that customers dial the correct numbers, the Department has embarked on an exercise to update all its products. The Department’s electronic media, such as SMS text messages and Gov.uk website, were updated as the new freephone numbers were introduced. System generated notifications for Universal Credit Full Service were updated on 28 November. System notifications for Universal Credit Live Service were updated between 28 November and 31 January 2018.</p><p> </p><p>During the period that our products were being updated, any calls to a 0345 number were played a message that told them that that number had been replaced with a Freephone number, whilst giving them the new Freephone number to use.</p><p> </p><p>The current monthly cost to the Department for playing the recorded messages to provide the new freephone numbers is approximately £300.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma grouped question UIN 127438 127440 127442 question first answered 20/02/2018 11:45:14 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1139350

	registered interest
	date	16/07/2019
	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	European Social Fund
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the number of employment support projects that are funded by the European Social Fund.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	277848
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/07/2019 answer text <p>European Social Fund (ESF) projects aim to increase labour market participation, promote social inclusion and develop the skills of the potential and existing workforce, including amongst the most vulnerable people in society.</p><p> </p><p>To date, 363 projects have set out to achieve this within the current England ESF programme (this figure excludes technical assistance projects), amounting to total investment worth £3.65 billion, around £2 billion of which is EU funded. This figure will increase as further projects are agreed and delivered over the lifetime of the programme.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 22/07/2019 14:34:47 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

904842

	registered interest
	date	15/05/2018
	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 estimate she has made of the number of self-employed claimants on universal credit full service who have remained self-employed once the Minimum Income Floor is applied at the end of their first 12 months of trading.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	144410
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/05/2018 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 21/05/2018 13:50:50 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

990322

	registered interest
	date	18/10/2018
	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	Department for Work and Pensions: Staff
	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 has taken to offer more hours to employees of her Department who are in receipt of universal credit; and how many employees of her Department in receipt of universal credit have secured such extra hours in order to comply with conditionality requirements.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	181309
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/11/2018 answer text <p>DWP employees claiming Universal Credit have no obligation to inform DWP they are on any benefit and DWP policy is clear that employees claiming benefits will not be treated more or less favourably than other staff.</p><p> </p><p>All requests for an increase in working hours are considered and agreed at a local level. Such requests will be handled in the same way regardless of the fact the employee is a Universal Credit claimant. Similarly, we keep no separate data as to whether requests for increase in hours are from employees on benefits or not. The fact that employees claim benefits has no bearing on the business decisions of DWP at organisational or individual level.</p><p> </p><p>Claimants who are in work with earnings above the Administrative Earnings Threshold are not currently expected to undertake any mandatory activity. Therefore there is currently no conditionality requirement.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 20/11/2018 12:08:32 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma previous answer version 80410 answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

838620

	registered interest
	date	07/02/2018
	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: Telephone Services
	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 ensure that the premium rate helpline number for universal credit is not included in communications by JobCentre Plus.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	127440
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/02/2018 answer text <p>The Universal Credit telephone numbers previously used by the Department were not premium rate numbers and it is misleading to refer to them in this way. The 0345 numbers that were in use were charged at local rate and are included in the call packages of most mobile and landline phone deals.</p><p> </p><p>Any customer who raised a concern about the costs of calling the Department was offered a call back. We have no evidence that people did not call because they believed the service was a premium rate number.</p><p> </p><p>To ensure that customers dial the correct numbers, the Department has embarked on an exercise to update all its products. The Department’s electronic media, such as SMS text messages and Gov.uk website, were updated as the new freephone numbers were introduced. System generated notifications for Universal Credit Full Service were updated on 28 November. System notifications for Universal Credit Live Service were updated between 28 November and 31 January 2018.</p><p> </p><p>During the period that our products were being updated, any calls to a 0345 number were played a message that told them that that number had been replaced with a Freephone number, whilst giving them the new Freephone number to use.</p><p> </p><p>The current monthly cost to the Department for playing the recorded messages to provide the new freephone numbers is approximately £300.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma grouped question UIN 127389 127438 127442 question first answered 20/02/2018 11:45:14 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

785046

	registered interest
	date	06/11/2017
	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: Motor Neurone Disease
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people with motor neurone disease who have been awarded the enhanced rate for the care and mobility components of personal independence payments have been subject to a reassessment; and if he will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	111458
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/11/2017 answer text <p>The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.</p> answering member constituency Truro and Falmouth answering member printed Sarah Newton question first answered 13/11/2017 13:02:27 answering member 4071 label Biography information for Sarah Newton
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

990313

	registered interest
	date	18/10/2018
	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	Personal Independence Payment: 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 tribunal decisions to award personal independence payment for a defined period subsequently have had that entitlement ended as a result of the AR1 review process in each year for which information is available.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	181300
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/10/2018 answer text <p>The information requested is not collated centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.</p><p>Once someone has been awarded Personal Independence Payment, which can be paid at one of eight rates, that award will be reviewed. Award rates and their durations are set on an individual basis, based on the claimant’s needs and the likelihood of those needs changing. Regular reviews are a key feature of the benefit and ensure that payments accurately match the current needs of claimants. A review date is set before the end of the award date to ensure enough time for a full review of the case to be carried out without the claimant being left without money because their award has come to an end.</p> answering member constituency Truro and Falmouth answering member printed Sarah Newton grouped question UIN 181299 question first answered 23/10/2018 16:45:09 answering member 4071 label Biography information for Sarah Newton
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

990312

	registered interest
	date	18/10/2018
	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	Personal Independence Payment
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of personal independence payment (PIP) claimants who have been sent an AR1 form before the end of their entitlement period to PIP go on to lose their entitlement to that benefit before the originally agreed time period.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	181299
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/10/2018 answer text <p>The information requested is not collated centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.</p><p>Once someone has been awarded Personal Independence Payment, which can be paid at one of eight rates, that award will be reviewed. Award rates and their durations are set on an individual basis, based on the claimant’s needs and the likelihood of those needs changing. Regular reviews are a key feature of the benefit and ensure that payments accurately match the current needs of claimants. A review date is set before the end of the award date to ensure enough time for a full review of the case to be carried out without the claimant being left without money because their award has come to an end.</p> answering member constituency Truro and Falmouth answering member printed Sarah Newton grouped question UIN 181300 question first answered 23/10/2018 16:45:09 answering member 4071 label Biography information for Sarah Newton
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

782791

	registered interest
	date	02/11/2017
	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: Motor Neurone Disease
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the effect on people with motor neurone disease of being reassessed for personal independence payments and other assistance.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	111160
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/11/2017 answer text <p>I refer the Hon. Member to the answer I gave on 23 October 2017 to Question <a href="http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2017-10-18/108380/" target="_blank">UIN 108380</a>.</p> answering member constituency Portsmouth North answering member printed Penny Mordaunt question first answered 07/11/2017 11:27:47 answering member 4017 label Biography information for Penny Mordaunt
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1685481

	registered interest
	date	29/01/2024
	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	Child Maintenance Service
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps the Child Maintenance Service is taking to improve collect and pay compliance.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	11857
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/02/2024 answer text <p>The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) continues to take rigorous action to collect maintenance, combining robust negotiation activity with the highly effective use of its extensive range of Enforcement Powers. This approach is driven by the Payment Compliance strategy increasing CMS compliance influencing activities to tackle non-paying cases and challenge non-compliant behaviours. CMS applies a Continuous Improvement focus to Enforcement strategy and processes.</p><p>From the <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/child-maintenance-service-statistics-data-to-september-2023" target="_blank">latest CMS official statistics</a>, in the quarter ending In the quarter ending September 2023, of 180,000 Paying Parents due to pay via the Collect and Pay service:</p><ul><li>57,000 (31%) paid no maintenance</li><li>130,000 (69%) paid some maintenance, of which: 40,000 (22%) paid up to 90% of the maintenance due for the quarter (further breakdowns of this group are available on <a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/jsf/login.xhtml" target="_blank">Stat-Xplore</a>) 85,000 (47%) paid over 90% of the maintenance due for the quarter</li></ul><p>Further detail on compliance is provided in the <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/child-maintenance-service-statistics-data-to-september-2023/child-maintenance-service-statistics-data-to-september-2023#About" target="_blank">About these statistics section</a> of this release.</p><p>As a result of this intense effort The Child Maintenance Service has a relatively low percentage of unpaid maintenance. Only 8% of the total maintenance due to be paid since the start of the CMS remains to be collected through Collect &amp; Pay. This was as high as 17% in March 2015.</p><p>CMS does not hesitate to step in and move a case to collect &amp; pay as soon as they are notified payments are not being made. Around 3% of direct pay arrangements move to collect and pay each quarter – a small percentage but this shows that parents can and do move to collect and pay to secure help in getting their child maintenance payments. With the focus of improving customer outcomes, there has been an increase from 64% to 69% of customers who are paying anything towards their maintenance via collect &amp; pay since September 2022.</p><p>The published statistics provides data to September 2023 - Section 6. Paying Parents and the Collect and Pay service and National Tables, table 5 <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/child-maintenance-service-statistics-data-to-september-2023" target="_blank">Child Maintenance Service statistics: data to September 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)</a></p><p>We’ve announced measures to significantly speed up CMS enforcement processes that will reduce the time it takes to secure a liability order from 22 weeks to as low as 6 weeks. A consultation on detailed proposals has recently concluded and the Government response will be published shortly.</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 06/02/2024 12:15:48 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1147992

	registered interest
	date	02/10/2019
	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	Thomas Cook: Insolvency
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many employees of Thomas Cook who have lost their jobs following the company's collapse have been offered alternative employment opportunities as of 2 October 2019.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	293717
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/10/2019 answer text <p>DWP stands ready to support anyone affected by the closure of Thomas Cook, with our Rapid Response Service (RRS) offer. This is a redundancy service designed to give support and advice to employers and their employees when faced with redundancy. It is coordinated nationally by the National Employer and Partnership Team (NEPT) and is managed by Jobcentre Plus.</p><p> </p><p>The RRS has been mobilised to help people find a new job as soon as possible by offering tailored support. Each Jobcentre Plus district deploy resources according to the situation and the requirements of the workforce. The RRS is delivered in partnership with a range of national and local partners, including National Careers Service and local service providers.</p><p> </p><p>NEPT have contacted several large employers and trade bodies to identify a range of opportunities for Thomas Cook members of staff who have lost their jobs and the Department is working closely with over 100 employers to offer support and opportunities. We are delivering over 65 Job Fairs nationally, where ex-employees can meet local employers with vacancies.</p><p> </p><p>The full range of support available from Jobcentre Plus and partners includes:</p><p> </p><ul><li>Information advice and guidance.</li><li>Connecting people to jobs in the labour market.</li><li>Help with job search including CV writing, interview skills, where to find jobs and how to apply for them.</li><li>Help to identify transferable skills and skills gaps (linked to the local labour<br> market).</li><li>Training to update skills, learn new ones and gain industry recognised<br> certification that will improve employability.</li><li>Help to overcome barriers to attending training or securing a job or <br> self-employment such as child care costs, necessary tools, work clothes, travel costs etc.</li><li>On-site presentations to those affected.</li><li>Job Fairs and Job Clubs where appropriate.</li></ul><p> </p><p>Our local teams are monitoring all new claims to benefits to identify where the claimant is an ex-employee of Thomas Cook so that they quickly receive the right level of support.</p><p> </p><p>The information requested on the number of ex-employees who have been offered alternative employment opportunities is not available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.</p> answering member constituency Eastleigh answering member printed Mims Davies grouped question UIN 293716 question first answered 07/10/2019 17:05:18 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1692560

	registered interest
	date	28/02/2024
	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	Housing Benefit: Supported Housing
	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 exempt accommodation in each of the last three years.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	16270
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/03/2024 answer text <p>Providing the requested information would incur disproportionate costs to the Department due to the resource required to resolve data quality issues on exempt accommodation, which is a particular type of supported housing.</p><p><em> </em></p><p>Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is working to resolve a historical data quality issue in relation to how supported housing status is captured on Housing Benefit claims. The resulting fix will be for new claims and will not address historic claims.</p><p> </p><p>In 2022, DWP made investments to deliver improvements to local authority (LA) IT systems, to accurately record all new Housing Benefit claims. This has substantially improved data quality for new claims. DWP have also taken action to improve data on existing claims. LAs have received funding to review their Housing Benefit caseload and set the supported housing status accurately by 31<sup>st</sup> March 2024.</p><p> </p><p>The Departments’ analysts will then make a final assessment of these case reviews in Summer 2024, once they have received the full relevant data set, and will determine whether it is sufficiently robust to support quantification of the scale and cost of specified accommodation.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 06/03/2024 11:16:50 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1687968

	registered interest
	date	06/02/2024
	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	Playgrounds: Disability and Special Educational Needs
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of the accessibility to local playgrounds for children with special educational needs and disabilities.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	13415
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/02/2024 answer text <p>The department published the Disability Action Plan on 5 February 2024 which includes measures looking at the accessibility of playgrounds.</p><p> </p><p>A large amount of guidance about how to improve playground accessibility is already available, but practitioners are not always able to locate this advice. The Disability Unit will create an online hub of information for local authorities on creating accessible playgrounds with a new families disabled people’s experience panel helping to support the hub’s development.</p><p> </p><p>This is a national-level approach that should support improvements across many local authorities. We will continue to monitor this area, as well as working with partners to explore the potential for new or updated guidance.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 14/02/2024 13:55:18 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1419289

	registered interest
	date	02/02/2022
	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	Vacancies
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment has her department made of the implications for her policies of the number of job vacancies in the labour market as of 2 February 2022 in (a) Weaver Vale constituency, (b) the North West and (c) the UK.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	117060
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/02/2022 answer text <p>For October to December 2021 there were a record high 1.2 million vacancies nationally, many in key sectors. Official statistics are not available at a local level, but ONS publish experimental statistics based on online job adverts. These suggest that, as of 28 January 2022, there are almost 40% more job adverts online in the North West than they were in February 2020. Our labour market policies are designed to support claimants who can work to move into work, improving their financial situation and wellbeing; and to support employers who need to fill vacancies.</p><p> </p><p>To deliver the workforce needed by the labour market, the Government has launched ‘Way to Work’. This will apply the lessons from the Kickstart Scheme to bring employers and claimants together in our Jobcentres. This will expedite applications and interviews and speed up the process of getting people into work. We will also make it easier for employers to work with us to fill their vacancies through jobs fairs (both in person and online), Employer Hubs, our social media channels (including JobHelp), and advertising on FindAJob.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>This is good news for employers who need to fill their vacancies. It is also good for our claimants who will be better off financially in work.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 10/02/2022 14:55:21 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1660305

	registered interest
	date	12/09/2023
	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	Housing Benefit: Supported Housing
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of benefits rules on levels of employment of residents of supported housing who have their housing costs supported through the housing benefit system.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	199214
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/09/2023 answer text <p>The Department acknowledges the challenge presented by the interaction between Universal Credit and Housing Benefit for those working and living in supported housing as the two systems were never intended to run alongside one another.</p><p> </p><p>People in receipt of Housing Benefit are always better off in work. The income taper in Housing Benefit ensures people in work are better off than someone wholly reliant on benefits. In addition to any financial advantage, there are important non-financial benefits of working. These benefits include learning new skills, improved confidence and independence as well as a positive effect on an individual's mental and physical health.</p><p> </p><p>We are working to gain a broader understanding of the impact of benefit rules in Housing Benefit on residents of supported housing who are in employment including the impact on different claimant groups.</p><p> </p><p>After a successful bid to the Labour Market Evaluations and Pilot Fund, we are designing a proof of concept in conjunction with West Midlands Combined Authority. The voluntary PoC will test financial support for eligible 18–24-year-olds living in commissioned supported housing who move into work or increase their working hours and cease receiving Universal Credit. They will receive a top-up payment for 6 months. We are hopeful that this will provide new insight to inform future policy.</p><p> </p><p>Alongside the pilot, officials will continue to work to build our understanding of this topic and to impact future policy options.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 19/09/2023 11:29:10 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1688000

	registered interest
	date	06/02/2024
	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	Homelessness: Local Housing Allowance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of increasing discretionary housing payments to help reduce homelessness.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	13440
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/02/2024 answer text <p>Current rental data and the broader fiscal context were considerations in the Secretary of State’s review of Local Housing Allowance rates last Autumn.</p><p> </p><p>As announced in the Autumn Statement (AS) from April 2024 the Government is investing £7bn over five years to increase Local Housing Allowance rates to the 30th percentile of local market rents in 2024/25. This is in addition to the around £30bn spent annually on housing support. Taken together with the wider benefits uprating, this will improve housing affordability for low-income households on benefits renting in the private sector, helping them afford their rent and reducing the risk of rent arrears and homelessness.</p><p> </p><p>Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) can be paid to those entitled to Housing Benefit or the housing element of Universal Credit who face a shortfall in meeting their housing costs This is not restricted to those who meet the statutory definition of being at risk or homeless, which allows DHPs to be used to stabilise tenancies and thus preventing the need to access to homelessness services.</p><p> </p><p>We’re providing £300m for DHPs between 2022-25. In addition to the central government contribution, English and Welsh local authorities can top up DHP funding up to a maximum of two and a half times this figure using their own funds.</p><p /><p>In addition, there has been an investment of over £1bn in DLUHC’s Homelessness Prevention Grant (HPG) over three years, including a £109m top-up this year (2023-24). There has also been funding of £120m to help councils address Ukraine and homelessness pressures in 2024/25, including funding for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 14/02/2024 14:00:17 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1169090

	registered interest
	date	07/01/2020
	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	Thomas Cook: Insolvency
	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 reports that former Thomas Cook staff are having difficulties accessing and navigating the benefits system.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	1038
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/01/2020 answer text <p>The Department is offering a range of support to anyone affected by the closure of Thomas Cook, through our Rapid Response Service (RRS) and wider services. This is designed to give practical support and advice to employers and their employees when faced with redundancy.</p><p> </p><p>The RRS is delivered in partnership with a range of national and local partners, including National Careers Service and local service providers. It was mobilised for former Thomas Cook employees to help people find a new job as soon as possible by offering tailored and individual support. Each Jobcentre Plus district area deploys resources according to the local situation and the needs of their claimants.</p><p> </p><p>In addition, Citizens Advice (England and Wales) and Citizens Advice Scotland continue to deliver ‘Help to Claim’ support to claimants making a new Universal Credit claim. Help to Claim have offered locally tailored support to former Thomas Cook employees in need of assistance face to face, and through prioritised telephony and web-chat channels.</p><p> </p><p>The Department keeps information we provide surrounding redundancies under review. This includes how we explain RRS and entitlements to benefits such as New Style Jobseeker’s Allowance and Universal Credit. We are committed to having the right level of resource in place to support and direct people to the correct benefit type.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 14/01/2020 13:09:45 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1147991

	registered interest
	date	02/10/2019
	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	Thomas Cook: Insolvency
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what dedicated emergency support her Department has put in place to help and advise Thomas Cook members of staff who have lost their jobs.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	293716
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/10/2019 answer text <p>DWP stands ready to support anyone affected by the closure of Thomas Cook, with our Rapid Response Service (RRS) offer. This is a redundancy service designed to give support and advice to employers and their employees when faced with redundancy. It is coordinated nationally by the National Employer and Partnership Team (NEPT) and is managed by Jobcentre Plus.</p><p> </p><p>The RRS has been mobilised to help people find a new job as soon as possible by offering tailored support. Each Jobcentre Plus district deploy resources according to the situation and the requirements of the workforce. The RRS is delivered in partnership with a range of national and local partners, including National Careers Service and local service providers.</p><p> </p><p>NEPT have contacted several large employers and trade bodies to identify a range of opportunities for Thomas Cook members of staff who have lost their jobs and the Department is working closely with over 100 employers to offer support and opportunities. We are delivering over 65 Job Fairs nationally, where ex-employees can meet local employers with vacancies.</p><p> </p><p>The full range of support available from Jobcentre Plus and partners includes:</p><p> </p><ul><li>Information advice and guidance.</li><li>Connecting people to jobs in the labour market.</li><li>Help with job search including CV writing, interview skills, where to find jobs and how to apply for them.</li><li>Help to identify transferable skills and skills gaps (linked to the local labour<br> market).</li><li>Training to update skills, learn new ones and gain industry recognised<br> certification that will improve employability.</li><li>Help to overcome barriers to attending training or securing a job or <br> self-employment such as child care costs, necessary tools, work clothes, travel costs etc.</li><li>On-site presentations to those affected.</li><li>Job Fairs and Job Clubs where appropriate.</li></ul><p> </p><p>Our local teams are monitoring all new claims to benefits to identify where the claimant is an ex-employee of Thomas Cook so that they quickly receive the right level of support.</p><p> </p><p>The information requested on the number of ex-employees who have been offered alternative employment opportunities is not available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.</p> answering member constituency Eastleigh answering member printed Mims Davies grouped question UIN 293717 question first answered 07/10/2019 17:05:18 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1667758

	registered interest
	date	07/11/2023
	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	Housing Benefit
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the level of housing benefit.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	442
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/11/2023 answer text <p>We are forecast to spend £31 billion in 2023/24 on housing support. Local Housing Allowance (LHA) rates were boosted by almost £1 billion in 2020, this significant investment has been kept annually to maintain rates at 2020 levels.</p><p> </p><p>The level of LHA rates is reviewed annually by the Secretary of State. LHA rates are not intended to cover all rents in all areas. However, the Department monitors average rents and housing support levels provided to claimants to assess the impact of the policy.</p><p> </p><p>For those who face a shortfall in meeting their housing costs and need further support. Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) are available from local authorities. Since 2011 the Government has provided nearly £1.7 billion in DHP funding to local authorities</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 15/11/2023 11:35:43 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1187035

	registered interest
	date	23/03/2020
	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: Coronavirus
	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 ensure that her Department's social security claims enquiry lines are adequately staffed during the covid-19 outbreak.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	33601
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 31/03/2020 answer text <p>As both the Prime Minister and Chancellor have made clear, the Government will do whatever it takes to support people affected by COVID 19 and we are working quickly to deploy staff on to critical services. These are rapidly developing circumstances, we continue to keep the situation under review and will keep Parliament updated accordingly.</p><p /><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 31/03/2020 09:28:35 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1608803

	registered interest
	date	29/03/2023
	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	Support for Mortgage Interest
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when support for mortgage interest will be implemented; and what that figure will be.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	176820
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/04/2023 answer text <p>An increase to the rate paid through the SMI scheme was triggered on Wednesday 29<sup>th</sup> March 2023. The rate will increase from 2.09% to 2.65% and will be implemented no later than 10<sup>th</sup> May 2023.</p><p> </p><p>The rate of SMI payments only changes when the Bank of England’s average mortgage rate differs by 0.5 percentage points or more from the standard interest rate.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 17/04/2023 10:46:47 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1660306

	registered interest
	date	12/09/2023
	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	Housing Benefit
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he plans to review the 65p Housing Benefit taper rate; and if will make an assessment of the potential merits of bringing that rate in line with the Universal Credit taper rate in incentivising young people into work.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	199215
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/09/2023 answer text <p>There are no plans to bring the Housing Benefit taper in line with that of Universal Credit. The two benefits have different treatment of earnings rules, both include tapers that ensure that all claimants are better off working than wholly reliant on benefits.</p><p> </p><p>At present, there is a broad spectrum of claimants receiving their rent support through Housing Benefit; those resident in supported housing or temporary accommodations as well as those claimants who have not yet migrated to Universal Credit. Any amendment to the Housing Benefit taper rate would apply to all of these groups and could result in Housing Benefit outstripping the provision provided by Universal Credit in some circumstances.</p><p> </p><p>The Department acknowledges the challenge presented by the interaction between Universal Credit and Housing Benefit for those working and living in supported housing and temporary accommodation. This issue is a complex one, and eradicating the financial cliff edge some individuals face as they incrementally increase their earnings could not be achieved by simply aligning the taper rates within the two benefits. Officials are working to explore this issue further considering the impact including impact on different groups and consider policy options.</p><p>It remains the department’s priority to ensure that those who can work are supported to enter the labour market and to sustain employment.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 19/09/2023 11:27:22 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1648233

	registered interest
	date	27/06/2023
	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	Universal Credit: Private Rented Housing
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has made an assessment of his Department's recent policy change in paying Universal Credit's Housing Element directly to claimants rather than to landlords and housing providers on the timeliness of rent payments.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	191435
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/07/2023 answer text <p>No assessment has been made.</p><p> </p><p>Universal Credit is designed to mirror the world of work in order to ease the transition back into employment. The intention is that the same considerations and choices faced by people not in receipt of benefits should also face those claiming benefits. Expecting claimants to manage their own finances helps to achieve this.</p><p> </p><p>The Department understands that some claimants will require support to help them handle monthly payments and has put in place procedures to address this.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 04/07/2023 15:52:44 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1463762

	registered interest
	date	17/05/2022
	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
	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 report by the Local Government Association entitled Work local: unlocking talent to level up, published on 10 May 2022, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of proposals for an integrated and devolved employment and skills service; and if she will make it her policy to implement the Work Local model in full.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	3720
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/05/2022 answer text <p>The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is supportive of better integration of employment and skills services. The Levelling Up White Paper (LUWP), published on 2 February 2022, established three Employment and Skills Pathfinders: in Blackpool, Walsall and Barking and Dagenham. The UK Government will bring greater alignment to the delivery of employment and skills interventions in these areas. This is a joint project between DWP and the Department for Education (DfE), the Department responsible for further education policy, apprenticeships and wider skills and funding in England. The Pathfinders are bringing together local delivery partners to share understanding of local employers’ skills needs, support people into work, and identify progression opportunities for people in part-time work.</p><p> </p><p>The LUWP also established an ‘English Devolution Framework.’ It takes a tiered approach to devolution and enables DWP to offer local government, a single institution or County Council with a directly elected Mayor, a role in the design and delivery of future contracted employment programmes. The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities is leading devolution deal negotiations with those areas identified in the LUWP.</p><p> </p><p>DWP works closely with local government to understand local labour market issues and reflect these in our employment support and is committed to working with the LGA to strengthening our engagement, alongside other local government organisations.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 25/05/2022 16:31:37 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

686265

	registered interest
	date	07/02/2017
	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	Workplace Pensions
	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 written statement of 12 December 2016, (HCW 5339), what the planned (a) timetable and (b) content is for the Automatic Enrolment 2017 Review.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Graham Evans
	uin	63328
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/02/2017 answer text <p>On 12 December 2016, I set out the scope of the 2017 review of automatic enrolment. On 8 February 2017 I set out further detail on the review, including its terms of reference and the membership of the external advisory group.</p><p> </p><p>Through the review we will be seeking to build on the success of automatic enrolment to date. So far over 7.1 million individuals have been automatically enrolled into a workplace pension by more than 370,000 employers. The review will look at how we can ensure that automatic enrolment continues to meet the needs of individuals saving for their retirement in the future, and that the technical operation of the policy is working as intended.</p><p> </p><p>It is important that we begin early conversations around the central issues covered by the review of automatic enrolment, and I recognise people are keen to engage on these. That is why on 8 February 2017 I published a set of initial questions on the main themes, including coverage, engagement and future contributions. I have invited views and evidence by 22 March 2017 to help inform our considerations. We will, of course, formally consult on any proposals that require legislative change.</p><p> </p><p>As I set out in my previous statement, my Department’s work will be supported by an external advisory group.</p><p> </p><p>The three co-chairs of the group are:</p><ul><li>Jamie Jenkins (Head of Pensions Strategy, Standard Life), who will support the work around the theme of coverage of automatic enrolment;</li><li>Ruston Smith (Trustee Director at Peoples’ Pension), who will support the work around strengthening personal engagement with work place pensions, and;</li><li>Chris Curry (Director, Pensions Policy Institute), who will support the work which begins to develop the evidence base on future contributions.</li></ul><p> </p><p>The other members of this group are:</p><p> </p><p>Carl Emmerson, Deputy Director, Institute of Fiscal Studies</p><p>Jane Vass, Head of public policy, Age UK</p><p>Neil Carberry, Director for people and skills, Confederation of British Industry</p><p>Linda Ellett, KPMG, partner – Tax and Pensions Practice</p><p>Nigel Stanley, NEST Members’ Panel, Chair</p><p>Jocelyn Blackwell, Trustee Director NOW: Pensions</p><p>Judith Hogarth, Employment and Pensions, EEF</p><p> </p><p>I am delighted to be working with a team representing such a breadth of experience and expertise and look forward to the insight they will bring to help shape the review and any proposals. We will of course reach out to others as part of this review, including intermediary organisations such as employer consultants and payroll firms.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>Towards the end of this year I will publish a report to Parliament.</p><p> </p><p>A copy of the terms of reference and the initial questions for the review are available at <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/news/expert-advisory-group-appointed-to-the-automatic-enrolment-review" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/news/expert-advisory-group-appointed-to-the-automatic-enrolment-review</a>.</p> answering member constituency Watford answering member printed Richard Harrington question first answered 14/02/2017 15:39:35 answering member 4068 label Biography information for Lord Harrington of Watford
	tabling member	4081 label Biography information for Lord Evans of Rainow

1656759

	registered interest
	date	01/09/2023
	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: Regulation
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of regulations on pensions funds maladministration.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	196492
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/09/2023 answer text <p>The Pensions Ombudsman and their Deputy have legal powers to consider complaints of maladministration and disputes of a fact or law concerning personal and occupational pension schemes. Decisions made by the Ombudsman and their Deputy are legally binding and are covered in the Pension Schemes Act 1993, Part X.</p><p> </p><p>The power to decide these matters rests with the Pensions Ombudsman and their Deputy who are appointed by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions. Only an Ombudsman can make a final and binding decisions on a case. However, they can delegate any other responsibilities to other people in their organisation.</p> answering member constituency Sevenoaks answering member printed Laura Trott question first answered 07/09/2023 14:57:08 answering member 4780 label Biography information for Laura Trott
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

843683

	registered interest
	date	19/02/2018
	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	Support for Mortgage Interest
	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 ensure that people and organisations which offer advice on changes to the Support for Mortgage Interest scheme are appropriately qualified and regulated.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	128024
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/02/2018 answer text <p>All current recipients of Support for Mortgage Interest will be contacted and given information about the changes. They will not be given financial advice but will be informed that such advice is available should they require it. Organisations offering financial advice are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.</p> answering member constituency North West Hampshire answering member printed Kit Malthouse question first answered 22/02/2018 12:24:52 answering member 4495 label Biography information for Kit Malthouse
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

816971

	registered interest
	date	05/01/2018
	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	Support for Mortgage Interest
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department has taken to make people in receipt of the Support for Mortgage Interest scheme aware of forthcoming changes to that scheme; and what assessment he has made of the long-term effect on the security of the recipients' homes as a result of people moving from a benefit to an interest-bearing loan.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	121398
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/01/2018 answer text <p>A managed transfer process has begun with all existing recipients of Support for Mortgage Interest (SMI) benefit receiving information about the new scheme in advance. The exercise to give SMI claimants information about the new scheme began in July 2017 and will continue until mid-February 2018.</p><p> </p><p>Claimants are given information about how the SMI loan will work, about alternatives to the loan and organisations that can offer further information. This is followed up by a telephone call to explain the information and answer any questions. A leaflet containing Frequently Asked Questions is issued to support this informed discussion.</p><p> </p><p>SMI loans will be available to all claimants who currently qualify for SMI as a benefit. The new loans scheme will continue to provide robust protection against repossession to all eligible claimants in times of need. The level of support available will be calculated in the same way as under the current system and claimants and mortgage lenders will not see any difference in the payments they receive. There is no reason to expect lenders to behave any differently to now and we do not anticipate that this measure will lead to an increase in the number of homes that are repossessed. Claimants may change their mind whether to take or decline a loan at any time.</p><p> </p><p>Recovery of SMI loans will not be pursued until the property is sold or transferred. If the amount of equity available after the sale of the property is less than the amount due to be recovered the balance will be written off.</p><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member constituency North West Hampshire answering member printed Kit Malthouse question first answered 10/01/2018 15:24:58 answering member 4495 label Biography information for Kit Malthouse
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1284732

	registered interest
	date	08/02/2021
	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	Motability Scheme: Terminal Illnesses
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of extending eligibility to the Motability scheme for people in receipt of attendance allowance who have also been diagnosed with a terminal illness after state pension age.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	150927
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/02/2021 answer text <p>The Motability Scheme was designed to provide people entitled to mobility welfare payments with access to a vehicle. The Scheme is open to anyone who qualifies for the higher rate mobility component for Disability Living Allowance, the enhanced rate of the mobility component for Personal Independence Payment, the Armed Forces Independence Payment or War Pensioners Mobility Supplement.</p><p> </p><p>Attendance Allowance is intended to help those with a severe disability who have long term care or supervision needs which arise after reaching State Pension age. It has never included a mobility component, and so cannot be used in payment for a leased Motability scheme vehicle. Government mobility support is focused on people who are disabled earlier in life; developing mobility needs in older life is a normal consequence of ageing, which non-disabled younger people have had opportunity to plan and save for.</p><p> </p><p>Special rules apply to people considered to be terminally ill when applying for AA, DLA or PIP. However, there is no automatic entitlement to a mobility component of either DLA or PIP, and, while there would be no qualifying period, an eligible claimant would need to satisfy conditions for this entitlement.</p><p> </p><p>Benefits such as DLA or PIP can continue beyond State Pension age for as long as the individual remains entitled. This would allow an individual with existing entitlement to retain their Motability vehicle.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 12/02/2021 14:28:21 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1109219

	registered interest
	date	02/04/2019
	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: Medical Examinations
	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 her Department ensuring that (a) work capability and (b) personal independence payment assessments are undertaken by suitably qualified staff.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	240107
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/04/2019 answer text <p>Health Professionals that carry out Work Capability and Personal Independence Payment assessments on behalf of the department must have the following qualifications and experience:</p><p> </p><p>• are an occupational therapist, nurse (level 1), physiotherapist, doctor or (paramedic - PIP only)</p><p>• fully registered with the relevant licensing body (doctors must have a licence to practise)</p><p>• the licensing body has not placed restrictions on the health professional's registration</p><p>• at least 2 years post full registration experience.</p><p> </p><p>Health Professionals are subject to a rigorous recruitment process followed by a comprehensive training programme in disability assessment for both physical and mental health conditions and have to be approved by the department. Health Professionals are then required to complete a programme of continuing professional development.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 08/04/2019 11:05:11 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury

1137007

	registered interest
	date	04/07/2019
	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
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of people who decided not to pursue an appeal for personal independence payments due to the length of the waiting time for an appeal.
	tabling member constituency	Weaver Vale
	tabling member printed	Mike Amesbury
	uin	273493
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/07/2019 answer text <p>There is no administrative data held that could determine the reasons why an individual, if dissatisfied with the decision received after their MR is completed, might not choose to pursue an appeal with HMCTS.</p><p> </p><p>There is already some data in the public domain that may be of interest. The Personal Independent Payment (PIP) Official Statistics holds information on the volumes of Mandatory Reconsiderations (MRs) registered (<em>Table 7A</em>) and cleared (<em>Table 7B</em>), and can be found here:</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/personal-independence-payment-april-2013-to-april-2019" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/personal-independence-payment-april-2013-to-april-2019</a></p><p> </p><p>The Ministry of Justice Tribunal Statistics Quarterly publication contains the number of PIP cases for which an appeal is lodged with Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunal Service (HMCTS) (<em>Table SSCS1</em>), and can be found here:</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tribunal-statistics-quarterly-january-to-march-2019" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tribunal-statistics-quarterly-january-to-march-2019</a></p><p> </p><p>HM Courts and Tribunals Service (HCMTS) is taking positive steps to reduce the waiting time for appeals to be heard in the Social Security and Child Support (SSCS) jurisdiction. In 2018, 232 medical members and 118 disability-qualified members were additionally appointed to the SSCS jurisdiction and an extra 129 fee-paid judges have recently been appointed. The SSCS jurisdiction will also benefit from 100 salaried judges and 170 fee-paid judges being recruited across tribunals more widely. In addition, HMCTS is developing a new digital system with a view to enabling speedier processing of appeals and a better service for all parties to the proceedings. Case-management “triage” sessions are also being conducted, with the aim of reducing the number of cases that need to progress to an oral hearing.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 10/07/2019 15:18:58 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
	tabling member	4667 label Biography information for Mike Amesbury