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1002759

	registered interest
	date	06/11/2018
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Universal Credit
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions she has had with representatives of staff working in job centres and service centres on difficulties experienced by such staff in (a) applying for and (b) receiving payment as claimants of universal credit.
	tabling member constituency	Glasgow South West
	tabling member printed	Chris Stephens
	uin	188874
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/11/2018 answer text <p>My officials regularly meet with trade union representatives to discuss areas of concerns that staff may have.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 12/11/2018 17:51:28 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4463 label Biography information for Chris Stephens

1002760

	registered interest
	date	06/11/2018
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Universal Credit: 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 process is used by her Department to estimate the (a) average call duration and (b) amount of calls taken by case managers working on universal credit; and if she will publish the results of such estimates for each year for which information is available.
	tabling member constituency	Glasgow South West
	tabling member printed	Chris Stephens
	uin	188875
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/11/2018 answer text <p>Data can be extracted from the Universal Credit Full Service system to establish the average number of calls per day and the average duration.</p><p> </p><p>We have no plans to collect or publish this data routinely given the costs involved in maintaining it to official statistics standards.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 12/11/2018 18:05:10 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4463 label Biography information for Chris Stephens

1002761

	registered interest
	date	06/11/2018
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Universal Credit: 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 case managers working on universal credit who are seconded to the national telephony team for each shift; and if she will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Glasgow South West
	tabling member printed	Chris Stephens
	uin	188876
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/11/2018 answer text <p>We currently have 400 colleagues assigned to Universal Credit national tier telephony. We retain the flexibility to adjust the number of colleagues working on some of the core functions within Universal Credit to accommodate fluctuations in demand and the number of colleagues deployed to National Tier telephony will vary month on month as required.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 12/11/2018 18:02:05 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4463 label Biography information for Chris Stephens

1003675

	registered interest
	date	09/11/2018
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Universal Credit
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much funding her Departments has allocated to universal credit hardship payments.
	tabling member constituency	Glasgow South West
	tabling member printed	Chris Stephens
	uin	189735
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/11/2018 answer text <p>As Universal Credit hardship payments are included in Annually Managed Expenditure there is no separate funding allocated to them.</p><p> </p><p>The information requested about the number of claims to hardship in the Glasgow South constituency is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma grouped question UIN 189736 question first answered 19/11/2018 13:39:50 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4463 label Biography information for Chris Stephens

1003676

	registered interest
	date	09/11/2018
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Universal Credit: Glasgow South West
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many claims have been made for universal credit hardship payment in Glasgow South West constituency to date.
	tabling member constituency	Glasgow South West
	tabling member printed	Chris Stephens
	uin	189736
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/11/2018 answer text <p>As Universal Credit hardship payments are included in Annually Managed Expenditure there is no separate funding allocated to them.</p><p> </p><p>The information requested about the number of claims to hardship in the Glasgow South constituency is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma grouped question UIN 189735 question first answered 19/11/2018 13:39:50 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4463 label Biography information for Chris Stephens

1017207

	registered interest
	date	29/11/2018
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Universal Credit: Zero Hours Contracts
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what her Department’s policy is on the sanctioning of claimants of universal credit that receive the limited capability for work element in the event of a (a) refusal of an offer of a zero-hours contract and (b) voluntary termination of a zero-hours contract.
	tabling member constituency	Glasgow South West
	tabling member printed	Chris Stephens
	uin	197460
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/12/2018 answer text <p>Claimants on Universal Credit who are found to have Limited Capability for Work are set work preparation activity: they are not required to carry out work search or undertake work. Should a claimant with LCW take up, and then leave a zero hour contract they would not be subject to sanctions.</p><p> </p><p>Zero-hours contracts offer flexibility which can be valuable for some individuals. Universal Credit payments adjust automatically depending on the amount a claimant earns, so that a claimant whose hours may change are financially supported and do not need to switch their benefit claim. Therefore, a Universal Credit claimant who is subject to all work related requirements can be expected to apply for a zero-hours contract job if it is considered suitable for their individual circumstances.</p><p> </p><p>Where there is good reason why a Universal Credit claimant is unable to take a zero-hours contract job this is taken into account. Sanctions are only applied if no good reason is established. Additionally, sanctions are only applied for leaving a zero-hours contract job voluntarily if no good reason is found.</p><p /><p>Sanctions are only used in a small percentage of cases, and that is when people fail to meet their agreed commitments without good reason. When considering whether a sanction is appropriate, a Decision Maker will take all the claimant’s individual circumstances, including any health conditions or disabilities and any evidence of good reason, into account before deciding whether a sanction is warranted.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma grouped question UIN 197461 question first answered 05/12/2018 10:11:10 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma previous answer version 90066 answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4463 label Biography information for Chris Stephens

1017208

	registered interest
	date	29/11/2018
	answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
	answering dept id	29
	answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
	answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
	hansard heading	Universal Credit: Zero Hours Contracts
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reason her Department’s policy is to sanction universal credit claimants for (a) refusing and (b) voluntarily terminating a zero-hours contract.
	tabling member constituency	Glasgow South West
	tabling member printed	Chris Stephens
	uin	197461
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/12/2018 answer text <p>Claimants on Universal Credit who are found to have Limited Capability for Work are set work preparation activity: they are not required to carry out work search or undertake work. Should a claimant with LCW take up, and then leave a zero hour contract they would not be subject to sanctions.</p><p> </p><p>Zero-hours contracts offer flexibility which can be valuable for some individuals. Universal Credit payments adjust automatically depending on the amount a claimant earns, so that a claimant whose hours may change are financially supported and do not need to switch their benefit claim. Therefore, a Universal Credit claimant who is subject to all work related requirements can be expected to apply for a zero-hours contract job if it is considered suitable for their individual circumstances.</p><p> </p><p>Where there is good reason why a Universal Credit claimant is unable to take a zero-hours contract job this is taken into account. Sanctions are only applied if no good reason is established. Additionally, sanctions are only applied for leaving a zero-hours contract job voluntarily if no good reason is found.</p><p /><p>Sanctions are only used in a small percentage of cases, and that is when people fail to meet their agreed commitments without good reason. When considering whether a sanction is appropriate, a Decision Maker will take all the claimant’s individual circumstances, including any health conditions or disabilities and any evidence of good reason, into account before deciding whether a sanction is warranted.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma grouped question UIN 197460 question first answered 05/12/2018 10:11:10 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma previous answer version 90067 answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4463 label Biography information for Chris Stephens

860569

	registered interest
	date	12/03/2018
	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	Jobseeker's Allowance
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what guidance her Department provides to claimants receiving job seekers allowance who volunteer for a Credit Union; and if she will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Glasgow South West
	tabling member printed	Chris Stephens
	uin	131926
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/03/2018 answer text <p>DWP recognises the value of volunteering in developing skills which can be transferred into the world of paid work, as well as benefitting local communities and wider society.</p><p> </p><p>Jobseeker’s Allowance claimants are able to volunteer so long as they meet the conditions of their Claimant Commitment. There is no specific guidance provided regarding volunteering for a Credit Union.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 15/03/2018 09:05:55 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4463 label Biography information for Chris Stephens

890122

	registered interest
	date	23/04/2018
	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	Jobcentres: Glasgow
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many violence-at-work incidents have been reported at Govan job centre; and if she will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Glasgow South West
	tabling member printed	Chris Stephens
	uin	137172
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/04/2018 answer text <p>The Department for Work and Pensions takes any form of abuse and harassment (including violence-at-work incidents) of its staff by customers and claimants very seriously. Robust controls are in place to mitigate the risk of unacceptable customer behaviour (UCB) and eliminate violence-at-work as far as reasonably practicable, including security presence, risk assessments and training for our staff. We review outcomes of our most serious incidents and consider any lessons learned to make improvements to our processes and training when necessary to help prevent reoccurrence.</p><p> </p><p>Govan Jobcentre and its staff follow Departmental policy and guidance to minimise violence at work. We encourage our people to report every instance of UCB and we take action against individuals, with measures proportionate to the seriousness of the incident. Where acts of violence do occur we provide a number of solutions through employee assistance and wellbeing initiatives to support those individuals that require it.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>In the last year to March 2018, there has been 1 reported incident of attempted assault, 20 reported incidents of verbal abuse, 4 reported incidents of verbal threats and 12 incidents recorded for other reasons at Govan Jobcentre. A full health and safety check was undertaken at Govan Jobcentre on 26 April 2018.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma grouped question UIN 137173 137174 question first answered 27/04/2018 10:27:38 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4463 label Biography information for Chris Stephens

890123

	registered interest
	date	23/04/2018
	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	Jobcentres: Crimes of Violence
	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 eliminate violence-at-work incidents in (a) Govan jobcentre and (b) her Department's offices across the UK; and if she will make a statement.
	tabling member constituency	Glasgow South West
	tabling member printed	Chris Stephens
	uin	137173
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 27/04/2018 answer text <p>The Department for Work and Pensions takes any form of abuse and harassment (including violence-at-work incidents) of its staff by customers and claimants very seriously. Robust controls are in place to mitigate the risk of unacceptable customer behaviour (UCB) and eliminate violence-at-work as far as reasonably practicable, including security presence, risk assessments and training for our staff. We review outcomes of our most serious incidents and consider any lessons learned to make improvements to our processes and training when necessary to help prevent reoccurrence.</p><p> </p><p>Govan Jobcentre and its staff follow Departmental policy and guidance to minimise violence at work. We encourage our people to report every instance of UCB and we take action against individuals, with measures proportionate to the seriousness of the incident. Where acts of violence do occur we provide a number of solutions through employee assistance and wellbeing initiatives to support those individuals that require it.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>In the last year to March 2018, there has been 1 reported incident of attempted assault, 20 reported incidents of verbal abuse, 4 reported incidents of verbal threats and 12 incidents recorded for other reasons at Govan Jobcentre. A full health and safety check was undertaken at Govan Jobcentre on 26 April 2018.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma grouped question UIN 137172 137174 question first answered 27/04/2018 10:27:39 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4463 label Biography information for Chris Stephens