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1105359

	registered interest
	date	26/03/2019
	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
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government how many families are subject to the benefit cap.
	tabling member printed	The Lord Bishop of Durham
	uin	HL14822
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/04/2019 answer text <p>Households can have their benefits capped either under Housing Benefit, or under Universal Credit, and the latest statistics were published in February 2019, covering households capped to November 2018.</p><p> </p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong>Point-in-time caseload: Number of households capped by family type at November 2018, GB</strong></p><table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p>Total</p></td><td><p>Single, no child dependant</p></td><td><p>Single, with child dependant(s)</p></td><td><p>Couple, no child dependant</p></td><td><p>Couple, with child dependant(s)</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Housing Benefit</strong></p></td><td><p>52,650</p></td><td><p>3,540</p></td><td><p>38,850</p></td><td><p>40</p></td><td><p>10,210</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Universal Credit</strong></p></td><td><p>9,810</p></td><td><p>1,600</p></td><td><p>5,920</p></td><td><p>..</p></td><td><p>2,290</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p><strong>Data Sources:</strong> DWP 100% Single Housing Benefit Extract and DWP Universal Credit Official Statistics Database</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong>Table Notes:</strong></p><ol><li>Figures have been rounded to the nearest 10. Numbers less than 10 have been replaced with '..'</li><li>Figures include households that have had their Housing Benefit or Universal Credit full service capped. Universal Credit full service is available to all claimant types but only in certain areas of the country at November 2018.</li><li>Figures for Universal Credit may be revised in future publications, as Universal Credit awards may be retrospectively revised.</li></ol><p> </p><p>The Housing Benefit caseload data is taken from DWP Stat-Xplore, whilst the Universal Credit caseload data is taken from the official statistics caseload tables, published on 7th Feb 2019.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 04/04/2019 16:01:20 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	4312 label Biography information for The Lord Bishop of Durham

1104645

	registered interest
	date	25/03/2019
	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	Pensioners: Social Security Benefits
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what guidance they have issued, or intend to issue, to advise mixed age couples to claim (1) pension credit, and (2) pension age housing benefit before 15 May.
	tabling member printed	Lord Beecham
	uin	HL14770
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/04/2019 answer text <p>The Government announced on 14 January that the mixed age couple policy change legislated for in the Welfare Reform Act 2012 will come into force on 15 May, following the roll out of Universal Credit.</p><p> </p><p>Information was placed on GOV.UK regarding the change and how people could be affected for the purposes of claiming Pension Credit and Housing Benefit for pensioners. This sets out that mixed age couples already claiming Pension Credit or Housing Benefit for pensioners at the point of change will not be affected for as long as they remain entitled to either benefit. It also makes clear that mixed age couples who would be eligible for either benefit on 14 May but who have not yet claimed will have until 13 August to make a backdated claim from that date.</p><p> </p><p>Following the announcement, we are implementing comprehensive plans to raise awareness of the change among people who may be affected. We have written directly to mixed-age couples who are already in receipt of Pension Credit or Housing Benefit for pensioners to ensure they know about the change and how they could be affected if their circumstances change on or after 15 May. The Department has also engaged with a number of relevant organisations, including Age UK, Citizen’s Advice and Local Authority representatives. A factsheet about the change has been provided, to help ensure that accurate information is available in the places where people are most likely to seek information.</p><p> </p><p>DWP staff in Pension Centres and Jobcentres will be able to provide information and advice, as will staff in Local Authorities who administer Housing Benefit.</p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 04/04/2019 16:34:12 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	4181 label Biography information for Lord Beecham

1108819

	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	Asbestos: Industrial Diseases
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what response they are making to the announcement by the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health that diseases as a result of exposure to asbestos are killing 5,000 people a year and that more than 130 companies or individuals have been ordered to stop work activities over the past year after being found to be non-compliant.
	tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
	uin	HL14926
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/04/2019 answer text <p>The Government welcomes the efforts by the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) to raise awareness of the health risks arising from workplace exposure to asbestos. The announcement by IOSH highlights the need for employers and employees to remain vigilant when undertaking work which may disturb asbestos. The Health and Safety Executive and Local Authority inspectors will continue to take action in cases of non-compliance with the law, as indicated in the IOSH announcement.</p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 04/04/2019 16:17:38 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

1104664

	registered interest
	date	25/03/2019
	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	Arcadia Group: Pensions
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have made any representations to, or met, the Pensions Regulator in the last three months in connection with Arcadia Group.
	tabling member printed	Lord Myners
	uin	HL14789
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/04/2019 answer text <p>The Pensions Regulator carries out its functions independently. The Department has not made any representations to the Pensions Regulator in relation to the Arcadia Group in the last three months.</p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 04/04/2019 16:46:09 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	3869 label Biography information for Lord Myners

1105833

	registered interest
	date	28/03/2019
	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	Poverty
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to their commitment to implementing the Sustainable Development Goals, what steps they are taking to ensure that people living more than 50 per cent below the poverty line in the UK are not left behind.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Stroud
	uin	HL14919
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/04/2019 answer text <p>This government is committed to delivering a sustainable long-term solution to poverty, by building a strong economy and ensuring that the benefit system works with the tax system and the labour market, to support employment and higher pay.</p><p>The Government does not publish data on those living more than 50% below the poverty line as comparisons of household income and expenditure suggest that those households reporting the very lowest incomes may not have the lowest living standards, meaning such a measure is likely to be unreliable.</p><p> </p><p>The Department for Work and Pensions, through its Jobcentre Plus network and local delivery partners, provides support for vulnerable customers or those with complex needs to address barriers so that they can move forward with their lives.</p><p> </p><p>A report on progress on the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals Agenda will be presented to the UN’s High Level Political Forum in July as part of the UK’s Voluntary National Review. The Department for Work and Pensions is leading work across Government to assess progress against the first of these goals: ‘End poverty in all its forms everywhere’.</p> answering member printed Baroness Buscombe question first answered 04/04/2019 16:27:51 answering member 3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe
	tabling member	4546 label Biography information for Baroness Stroud

1108699

	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	Work Capability Assessment
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to her speech entitled Closing the gap between intention and experience delivered on 5 March 2019, what the timetable is for her Department to introduce the proposed small test of a no conditionality approach for claimants awaiting a work capability assessment.
	tabling member constituency	High Peak
	tabling member printed	Ruth George
	uin	239291
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/04/2019 answer text <p>The Department is still finalising the design of the Proof of Concept and seeking input from key representatives from the sector. It is a small scale test which will be run in 2-4 jobcentres during summer 2019. We will use the Proof of Concept to test whether we can increase engagement with claimants with disabilities or health conditions. Work Coaches will start with no mandatory requirements and then tailor conditionality up, based on an individual’s circumstances.</p><p> </p><p>We intend to apply it to those claimants pre-Work Capability Assessment; and, that, for those post work capability assessment found to have a Limited Capability for Work. We will apply it to all claimants presenting with medical evidence of a health condition, or disability, excluding only those who are Terminally Ill or who have conditions defined in schedule 8 or schedule 9 of the Universal Credit Regulations. Universal Credit does not use the ICD10 classification system for claimants recognising that each claimant is unique. Further detailed design on inclusion/exclusion criteria have yet to be defined.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The evaluation of the Proof of Concept will take place in Autumn 2019 after which we will determine next steps.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma grouped question UIN 239290 239292 question first answered 04/04/2019 12:52:02 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4662 label Biography information for Ruth George

1108718

	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	Working Links
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, at the time of Working Links (Employment) Ltd's collapse what contacts they held with her Department; what the total value was of each of those contracts; and how much her Department had paid to Working Links (Employment) Ltd in relation to each of those contracts.
	tabling member constituency	Easington
	tabling member printed	Grahame Morris
	uin	239227
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/04/2019 answer text <p>Working links held 3 Work Programme contracts, 5 Work Choice contracts, 6 European Social Fund contracts and were on the low value Dynamic Purchasing System.</p><p> </p><p>Work Programme and Work Choice were in exit mode, following cessation of referrals in March 2017 and November 2018 respectively, at the point of administration.</p><p> </p><p>Copies of the contract and contract values are accessible on the following site. <a href="https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Search" target="_blank">https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Search</a></p><p> </p><p>In accordance with the Government transparency commitment I can confirm that the DWP publishes a list of all financial transactions over £500 and £25,000</p><p> </p><p>For spend over £25,000 follow the below link:-</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://data.gov.uk/dataset/ccdc397a-3984-453b-a9d7-e285074bba4d/spend-over-25-000-in-the-department-for-work-and-pensions" target="_blank">https://data.gov.uk/dataset/ccdc397a-3984-453b-a9d7-e285074bba4d/spend-over-25-000-in-the-department-for-work-and-pensions</a></p><p> </p><p>Explanatory notes on your findings on spend over £25000 can be found by following the below link:-</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dwp-monthly-payments-explanatory-notes" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dwp-monthly-payments-explanatory-notes</a></p><p> </p><p>For spend over £500 follow the below link:</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/what-dwp-spends" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/what-dwp-spends</a></p><p> </p><p>Explanatory notes on your findings on spend over £500 can be found by following the below link:-</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dwp-government-procurement-card-monthly-payments-explanatory-notes" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dwp-government-procurement-card-monthly-payments-explanatory-notes</a></p><p> </p><p>Departmental contracts held by Working Links were on a payment by results basis and, therefore, actual spend will not align to the contract value as the latter is based on 100% performance.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 04/04/2019 13:23:40 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
	tabling member	3973 label Biography information for Grahame Morris

1108750

	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	Child Maintenance Service: Complaints
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many (a) points of dissatisfaction and (b) complaints have been logged with the Child Maintenance Service in each year for which information is available.
	tabling member constituency	Motherwell and Wishaw
	tabling member printed	Marion Fellows
	uin	239268
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/04/2019 answer text <p><strong> </strong></p><p>In terms of volumes of dissatisfactions, the table below refers. This includes all Dissatisfaction actions that have been opened, regardless of the outcome.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>-</p></td><td><p><strong>2015</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2016</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2017</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2018</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Total Dissatisfactions</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>4,988</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>8,038</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>13,574</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>24,255</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Caseload at year end</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>180,100</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>291,000</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>391,800</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>463,300</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>% of Caseload</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2.8%</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2.8%</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>3.5%</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>5.2%</strong></p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>The latest statistics on complaints received by the Child Maintenance Service are published in Table 17 of the Child Maintenance Service statistics, which highlights the number of complaints received by the Child Maintenance Service each quarter. It is available online at:</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-on-the-2012-statutory-child-maintenance-scheme" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-on-the-2012-statutory-child-maintenance-scheme</a>.”</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 04/04/2019 11:24:16 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
	tabling member	4440 label Biography information for Marion Fellows

1107824

	registered interest
	date	29/03/2019
	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, how many applicants have been awarded personal independence payments without going to (a) mandatory reconsideration and (b) appeal since the introduction of the benefit.
	tabling member constituency	Wansbeck
	tabling member printed	Ian Lavery
	uin	238644
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/04/2019 answer text <p>Information on the number of claimants awarded Personal Independence Payment (PIP) at initial decision is published and can be found using the PIP Clearances dataset in Stat-Xplore which can be accessed as follows:</p><p><a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/" target="_blank">https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/</a></p><p>Guidance on how to use Stat-Xplore can be found here:</p><p><a href="https://sw.stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/index.html" target="_blank">https://sw.stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/index.html</a></p><p> </p><p>Some people awarded PIP at the initial decision continue to Mandatory Reconsideration and appeal to claim a higher PIP award.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 04/04/2019 15:55:47 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
	tabling member	4139 label Biography information for Ian Lavery

1105562

	registered interest
	date	27/03/2019
	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	Employment and Support Allowance: 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 employment support allowance (ESA) claimants were in receipt of the assessment rate on (a) 31 March 2016, (b) 31 March 2017 and (c) 31 March 2018 while awaiting a decision on their appeal to the First Tier Tribunal against the disallowance of ESA following a work capability assessment.
	tabling member constituency	Liverpool, West Derby
	tabling member printed	Stephen Twigg
	uin	237580
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/04/2019 answer text <p>The analytical datasets used to produce the ESA (WCA) Official Statistics only hold information on completed appeals and do not hold the date an appeal is lodged. Consequently, information on the rate of ESA paid whilst a first tier tribunal is in progress, is not available.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 04/04/2019 13:35:54 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
	tabling member	167 label Biography information for Stephen Twigg