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100915

	registered interest
	date	24/10/2014
	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, if he will initiate a review of the operation of the shared accommodation rate.
	tabling member constituency	Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport
	tabling member printed	Oliver Colvile
	uin	221887
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/10/2014 answer text <p /> <p>The Department has no plans to review the way the Shared Accommodation Rates are calculated. The Rent Officer Services set the rates in line with the current DWP policy for uprating Local Housing Allowance and with reference to evidence of achieved rents in the local area.</p><p> </p><p>In 2014/15, 56 out of the 192 Shared Accommodation Rates have been increased by 4% in those areas where there is the greatest divergence between LHA rates and local rents.</p> answering member constituency Thornbury and Yate answering member printed Steve Webb question first answered 30/10/2014 15:58:12 answering member 220 label Biography information for Steve Webb
	tabling member	4022 label Biography information for Oliver Colvile

166448

	registered interest
	date	26/11/2014
	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	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 increase awareness among pensioners of the benefits for which they are eligible.
	tabling member constituency	Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport
	tabling member printed	Oliver Colvile
	uin	216051
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/12/2014 answer text <p>Four months before people reach State Pension age, the Department writes, inviting them to claim their State Pension. An information leaflet about the State Pension is enclosed with that letter; it provides details of how to claim Pension Credit.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The easiest way for customers to claim Pension Credit is by telephone removing the need to complete lengthy application forms; they can also claim Housing Benefit at the same time, and are advised of Pension Credit when they claim their State Pension.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>DWP has also introduced a web-based Pension Credit toolkit at <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pension-credit-toolkit" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pension-credit-toolkit</a></p><p> </p><p>Its purpose is to provide customer representative organisations with all the information needed in order to talk to pensioners about Pension Credit and other benefits they may be entitled to such as Attendance Allowance. In partnership with Age UK, local authorities and other groups, a structured campaign was undertaken to create awareness of the Toolkit amongst those who support our customers.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Thornbury and Yate answering member printed Steve Webb question first answered 01/12/2014 12:48:04 answering member 220 label Biography information for Steve Webb
	tabling member	4022 label Biography information for Oliver Colvile

622723

	registered interest
	date	27/10/2016
	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	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to ensure parity of treatment for people with physical and mental health issues when applying for benefits.
	tabling member constituency	Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport
	tabling member printed	Oliver Colvile
	uin	50730
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/11/2016 answer text <p>DWP is totally committed to delivering good quality services that are accessible to all customers. We offer services through face to face, telephone and a range of digital channels, ensuring that the needs of all customer groups are considered. All DWP digital services meet Government accessibility standards and have assisted digital plans in place to support customers that need help to apply for benefits online. A Ministerial Taskforce of disability organisations meets several times a year to advise and support DWP in making customer information and contact more accessible and understandable. We have recently amended the “how to claim” pages for all benefits on GOV.UK, to make it clearer how disabled customers can request information in alternative formats. DWP is also trialling Video Relay Service and Next Generation Text Services for Deaf and hard of hearing customers so they receive as good a service from telephony agents as non-disabled customers. Specialist services are available for relevant groups and training is given to colleagues to identify and support customers with mental health conditions and learning difficulties.</p> answering member constituency East Hampshire answering member printed Damian Hinds question first answered 04/11/2016 14:04:16 answering member 3969 label Biography information for Damian Hinds
	tabling member	4022 label Biography information for Oliver Colvile

1041466

	registered interest
	date	14/01/2019
	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	Escape Rooms: Safety
	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 safety of escape rooms in the UK following deaths in a Polish escape room on 6 January 2019.
	tabling member constituency	Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport
	tabling member printed	Luke Pollard
	uin	208427
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/01/2019 answer text <p>The enforcement of health and safety law in most leisure facilities, including escape rooms, is carried out by Local Authorities. Responsibility for assessing and managing health and safety risks in any business rests with the operator of the business and not the enforcement authority. Enforcement of fire safety legislation in escape rooms is a matter for the local fire and rescue service for that area.</p><p> </p><p>The general duty to ensure the safety of members of the public in Great Britain is set out in the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the specific requirement to assess and control risk is contained in the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999. Fire safety responsibilities are contained within The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 in England and Wales. In Scotland this is Part 3 of the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005, supported by the Fire Safety (Scotland) Regulation 2006. Businesses that comply with the relevant legislation will be doing enough to ensure the safety of participants.</p> answering member constituency Truro and Falmouth answering member printed Sarah Newton question first answered 21/01/2019 15:34:19 answering member 4071 label Biography information for Sarah Newton
	tabling member	4682 label Biography information for Luke Pollard

1088757

	registered interest
	date	14/03/2019
	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	Independent Case Examiner: Complaints
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the current waiting time is from the submission of a complaint to the office of the Independent Case Examiner to the allocation of the case to an Investigation Case Manager; and what steps she is taking to reduce that time.
	tabling member constituency	Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport
	tabling member printed	Luke Pollard
	uin	232654
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/03/2019 answer text <p>As at 15 March 2019, the Independent Case Examiner’s (ICE) Office was allocating cases to Investigation Case Managers that were accepted for investigation on the following dates:</p><p> </p><ul><li>DWP Pension, Disability and Working Age benefits - 29 November 2017</li><li>Child Maintenance Group - 5 December 2017</li><li>Contracted Provision - 8 January 2018</li></ul><p> </p><p>The ICE Office resources are reviewed on an annual basis and the Office received funding for thirteen additional staff in the current financial year (2018/2019). Productivity within the ICE Office has increased during the current reporting year, having cleared 1,139 complaints between March 2018 and February 2019, compared to 868 in the same period the previous year.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 19/03/2019 14:47:32 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
	tabling member	4682 label Biography information for Luke Pollard

1110301

	registered interest
	date	08/04/2019
	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	State Retirement Pensions: British Nationals Abroad
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she plans to index the value of the UK state pension for British pensioners who live in Commonwealth countries.
	tabling member constituency	Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport
	tabling member printed	Luke Pollard
	uin	242248
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/04/2019 answer text <p>The policy on the up-rating of UK State Pensions paid to recipients living outside the UK has been in place for over 70 years. The UK State Pension is payable worldwide without regard to nationality. Entitlement to the UK State Pension is based on the national insurance contributions on a person’s national insurance record. The annual index-linked increases to UK State Pensions are paid to recipients overseas only where there is a legal requirement to do so, for example in EEA countries or in countries where there is a reciprocal agreement in place that provides for the up-rating of the UK State Pension. The Government has no plans to change the policy of all Governments, Labour, Coalition or Conservative since WW2.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 16/04/2019 11:27:49 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
	tabling member	4682 label Biography information for Luke Pollard

1127546

	registered interest
	date	20/05/2019
	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: 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, what recent discussions she has had with the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on issuing guidance to landlords who wish to rent to tenants who receive universal credit.
	tabling member constituency	Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport
	tabling member printed	Luke Pollard
	uin	256349
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/05/2019 answer text <p>The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions has regular dialogue with other Secretary of States in the course of normal ministerial business, which includes discussion surrounding aspects of Universal Credit.</p><p /><p>The Department maintains guidance on GOV.UK, relevant for private and social sector landlords, with information about Universal Credit. This helps landlords to understand what they can do to help their tenants prepare for: a) their move to Universal Credit and b) making payments of their housing costs (rent) direct to their landlord themselves. This can be accessed at:</p><p> </p><p><a href="http://www.gov.uk/government/publications/universal-credit-and-rented-housing--2/universal-credit-and-rented-housing-guide-for-landlords" target="_blank">www.gov.uk/government/publications/universal-credit-and-rented-housing--2/universal-credit-and-rented-housing-guide-for-landlords</a></p><p> </p><p>The Government does not collect data on how many landlords are not able to rent to tenants who receive universal credit because of their landlord insurance policies.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 256350 question first answered 28/05/2019 15:38:33 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4682 label Biography information for Luke Pollard

1127547

	registered interest
	date	20/05/2019
	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: 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, how many landlords are not able to rent to tenants who receive universal credit because of their landlord insurance policies.
	tabling member constituency	Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport
	tabling member printed	Luke Pollard
	uin	256350
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/05/2019 answer text <p>The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions has regular dialogue with other Secretary of States in the course of normal ministerial business, which includes discussion surrounding aspects of Universal Credit.</p><p /><p>The Department maintains guidance on GOV.UK, relevant for private and social sector landlords, with information about Universal Credit. This helps landlords to understand what they can do to help their tenants prepare for: a) their move to Universal Credit and b) making payments of their housing costs (rent) direct to their landlord themselves. This can be accessed at:</p><p> </p><p><a href="http://www.gov.uk/government/publications/universal-credit-and-rented-housing--2/universal-credit-and-rented-housing-guide-for-landlords" target="_blank">www.gov.uk/government/publications/universal-credit-and-rented-housing--2/universal-credit-and-rented-housing-guide-for-landlords</a></p><p> </p><p>The Government does not collect data on how many landlords are not able to rent to tenants who receive universal credit because of their landlord insurance policies.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince grouped question UIN 256349 question first answered 28/05/2019 15:38:34 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
	tabling member	4682 label Biography information for Luke Pollard

1127548

	registered interest
	date	20/05/2019
	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 recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the timeframe for fixing problems with GOV.UK Verify in respect of universal credit claims.
	tabling member constituency	Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport
	tabling member printed	Luke Pollard
	uin	256351
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/05/2019 answer text <p>Design and delivery of the GOV.UK Verify platform is the responsibility of the Government Digital Service (GDS) and its partners. The Department for Work and Pensions, along with other government departments is a user of this service, and provides feedback to GDS about its operation, recognising that people wanting to claim Universal Credit, or check their State Pension, can choose to use it to confirm their identity. The Department has no access to this information and claimants have direct contact with identity providers (also called ‘certified companies’).</p><p> </p><p>The Department will continue to consider options to provide the easiest and most secure digital services for our claimants.</p><p /><p>There are various ways in which a claimant can verify their identity for Universal Credit purposes: in person using primary and secondary ID verification or; by using biographical questions, for those who do not have identity documents.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 29/05/2019 11:54:13 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4682 label Biography information for Luke Pollard

1127549

	registered interest
	date	20/05/2019
	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, if she will change the rules on universal credit joint applications to enable couples to verify their ID in person at separate times.
	tabling member constituency	Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport
	tabling member printed	Luke Pollard
	uin	256352
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/05/2019 answer text <p>At present, there are various ways in which a claimant can verify their identity for Universal Credit purposes: online using the gov.uk verify service; in person using primary and secondary ID verification or; by using biographical questions, for those who do not have identity documents.</p><p> </p><p>If an appointment is needed to verify a claimant’s ID in person, both members of a “couple claim” are not required to attend at the same time. The current process is that separate appointments will be arranged for each partner, at a time that is convenient for them.</p> answering member constituency Reading West answering member printed Alok Sharma question first answered 29/05/2019 12:04:15 answering member 4014 label Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma
	tabling member	4682 label Biography information for Luke Pollard