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1242053

registered interest
date	09/10/2020
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	Pension 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 pension credit claims there have been since the announcement on introducing means-testing for free TV licences for people aged over 75.
tabling member constituency	Glasgow North East
tabling member printed	Anne McLaughlin
uin	101291
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/10/2020 answer text <p>The total number of Pension Credit Claims made since introduction of means testing for free TV licences for people aged over 75 from 1<sup>st</sup> August 2020 is 29,919.</p><p> </p><p><em>Extract taken from Weekly Pensions Performance Report on 28<sup>th</sup> September 2020</em></p><p><em>Source: Weekly Data from CAM (Customer Account Manager)</em></p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 14/10/2020 16:45:59 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4437 label Biography information for Anne McLaughlin

1242054

registered interest
date	09/10/2020
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	Pension Credit
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps Department is taking to maximise uptake of pension credit.
tabling member constituency	Glasgow North East
tabling member printed	Anne McLaughlin
uin	101292
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 14/10/2020 answer text <p>While over 1.5 million pensioners currently receive Pension Credit, the Government wants to make sure that all pensioners eligible can claim the Pension Credit to which they are rightly entitled. That is why in February this year we launched a nationwide campaign to raise awareness of Pension Credit and help dispel some of the misconceptions that people might have about Pension Credit eligibility.</p><p> </p><p>We are also continuing to work with our stakeholders all across the UK, to help spread the key messages from the campaign because we know that often the best ways to reach eligible pensioners is through trusted stakeholders working in the local community. Our online Pension Credit toolkit (<a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pension-credit-toolkit" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pension-credit-toolkit</a>) has been updated with the recent awareness campaign materials to supplement the resources it already contains for those working with pensioners, such as guides to Pension Credit and information designed to help older people understand how they could get Pension Credit.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>In May this year we also launched an online claim service for Pension Credit to supplement the existing telephone and postal claim services (<a href="https://www.gov.uk/pension-credit" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/pension-credit</a>). The new online service enables pensioners to apply for Pension Credit at a time that suits them.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 14/10/2020 16:40:12 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4437 label Biography information for Anne McLaughlin

1240820

registered interest
date	06/10/2020
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	Attendance Allowance: Mobility
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 it her policy to provide help, through the benefits system, with mobility costs for people in receipt of attendance allowance; what assessment she has made of the level of need of that support; and if she will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Pavilion
tabling member printed	Caroline Lucas
uin	99582
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/10/2020 answer text <p>Attendance Allowance helps those with a severe disability, who have long term care or supervision needs, where those needs arise after reaching State Pension age. Entitlement is based on the on-going need for frequent personal care and attention, or supervision to ensure personal safety. There is no constraint on what the benefit can be used for, and individual recipients can choose to use their Attendance Allowance to fund mobility aids.</p><p> </p><p>Latest published figures at end of February 2020, show that nationally there were 1.44m claimants of attendance allowance; In terms of expenditure - nationally this was forecast to be £5.9 billion in 2019/20.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 12/10/2020 12:47:13 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	3930 label Biography information for Caroline Lucas

1240862

registered interest
date	06/10/2020
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	State Retirement Pensions: Age
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether it is the Government's policy to increase the state pension age to 68.
tabling member constituency	Carmarthen East and Dinefwr
tabling member printed	Jonathan Edwards
uin	99588
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/10/2020 answer text <p>The Labour government passed the Pensions Act 2007 which legislated for State Pension age to increase to 68 by 2046.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 12/10/2020 12:37:28 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	3943 label Biography information for Jonathan Edwards

1240961

registered interest
date	06/10/2020
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	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, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of uprating in line with inflation the state pensions of British nationals living in (a) Commonwealth countries and (b) other countries.
tabling member constituency	Wrexham
tabling member printed	Sarah Atherton
uin	99784
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/10/2020 answer text <p>The policy on the up-rating of UK State Pensions paid to recipients living outside of the UK is clear and is a long-standing policy of successive post-war Governments that has been in place for over 70 years. The UK State Pension is payable worldwide and the annual index-linked increases are paid to UK State Pension recipients where there is a legal requirement to do so. For example, where UK State Pension recipients are living in countries where there is a reciprocal agreement that provides for the uprating of the UK State Pension. The Government has no plans to change this policy.</p><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 12/10/2020 12:41:00 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4855 label Biography information for Sarah Atherton

1240223

registered interest
date	05/10/2020
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	Pension 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 make an assessment of the potential merits of automatically registering all eligible pensioners for pension credit.
tabling member constituency	Glasgow South West
tabling member printed	Chris Stephens
uin	99017
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/10/2020 answer text <p>It is a long-established policy of all governments, that provision of income-related benefits is contingent on a person making a valid claim. Like other means-tested benefits, Pension Credit eligibility and award amounts are determined by a person’s financial and personal circumstances and it is the responsibility of the person making a claim to provide the correct and accurate information required to establish entitlement.</p><p /><p>Pension Credit is intended to target help at the poorest pensioner households. It would not therefore be practical to automatically register everyone of State Pension age for Pension Credit when the majority of them will simply not qualify. There may also be pensioners, who might qualify for Pension Credit, who do not wish to claim it.</p><p> </p><p>In 2010 the Department ran an innovative pilot scheme to try to boost take-up of Pension Credit. The trial involved automatically paying Pension Credit to some 2,000 people who the Department had identified as possibly having entitlement to Pension Credit without them having to make an actual claim first. At the end of the trial the group were invited to go on and make a claim. The level of take-up was surprisingly low and disappointing, with less than 9% of those involved going on to take up their entitlement. It was therefore not considered a viable and cost effective mechanism to take forward. A copy of the evaluation of the pilot is available at <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/214583/rrep796.pdf" target="_blank">https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/214583/rrep796.pdf</a>.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 08/10/2020 14:48:58 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4463 label Biography information for Chris Stephens

1240226

registered interest
date	05/10/2020
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	Pension 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 and what proportion of eligible pensioners in each parliamentary constituency are (a) in receipt of and (b) have made claims for pension credit.
tabling member constituency	Glasgow South West
tabling member printed	Chris Stephens
uin	99018
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/10/2020 answer text <p>Information on the number of Pension Credit claimants in each parliamentary constituency as of February 2020 is published and available at <a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk" target="_blank">https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk</a>.</p><p /><p>The information requested on the proportion of pensioners eligible to Pension Credit who are in receipt of the benefit is only available at the Great Britain level. The latest data for 2017/18 is available at <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/income-related-benefits-estimates-of-take-up-financial-year-2017-to-2018" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/income-related-benefits-estimates-of-take-up-financial-year-2017-to-2018</a>.</p><p> </p><p>The DWP publishes annual take-up statistics for income-related benefits, including Pension Credit. These are estimates based on data collected through the Family Resource Survey as well as DWP administrative data. However, the sample sizes available from the survey data are not large enough to enable reliable take-up statistics to be produced at sub-national level e.g. for parliamentary constituencies.</p><p> </p><p>We do not hold the information requested on the number and proportion of claims made by eligible pensioners for pension credit in each parliamentary constituency.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 08/10/2020 14:52:04 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4463 label Biography information for Chris Stephens

1240007

registered interest
date	02/10/2020
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	Workplace Pensions: Regulation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what sanctions are available to the Pensions Regulator in cases where an employer has consistently withheld pension contributions from an employee's workplace pension.
tabling member constituency	Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough
tabling member printed	Gill Furniss
uin	98733
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/10/2020 answer text <p>The Pensions Regulator (TPR), as the compliance authority for workplace pensions, has a range of statutory powers including the ability to issue fixed and escalating penalty fines to employers for failure to comply with the law.</p><p> </p><p>Information about the use made of those enforcement powers can be found in TPR’s quarterly automatic enrolment compliance and enforcement bulletins, the most recent of which is published on its website, here: <a href="https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/document-library/enforcement-activity/enforcement-bulletins/compliance-and-enforcement-quarterly-bulletin-april-to-june-2020" target="_blank">https://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/en/document-library/enforcement-activity/enforcement-bulletins/compliance-and-enforcement-quarterly-bulletin-april-to-june-2020</a></p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 07/10/2020 12:58:14 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4571 label Biography information for Gill Furniss

1238244

registered interest
date	28/09/2020
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	Flybe: 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 Answer of 23 March 2020 to Question 29272, what progress she has made in her discussions with the Isle of Man Government on the Flybe pension scheme.
tabling member constituency	Paisley and Renfrewshire North
tabling member printed	Gavin Newlands
uin	96091
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/10/2020 answer text <p>It would not be appropriate for a UK Minister to comment on cases that are a matter for the Isle of Man Government, the Isle of Man Financial Services Authority or the independent Pensions Regulator. Members wishing to receive updates should contact the Scheme Administrator or the Isle of Man Government.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 06/10/2020 13:45:38 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4420 label Biography information for Gavin Newlands

1237520

registered interest
date	24/09/2020
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	Pension Credit
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of initiatives to progress the awareness and take up of pension credit.
tabling member constituency	Bosworth
tabling member printed	Dr Luke Evans
uin	95234
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/10/2020 answer text <p>The precise updated data on the effectiveness of the spring 2020 campaign is not yet able to be provided.</p><p> </p><p>The purpose of the campaign was to raise Pension Credit awareness and test impact.</p><p> </p><p>There was a 20% increase in telephone calls to the Pension Credit claim line (during the course of the campaign the weekly average was 2,493 phone calls compared to a weekly average in 2019 of 2,079 phone calls).</p><p> </p><p>There was also significant engagement with social media and a spike of activity on viewing the Pension Credit website pages with more than 5,000 sessions on the launch day, 10 February (compared to 1,000 on 3 February).</p><p> </p><p>However, it should be stressed that other factors may affect these numbers, including the BBC TV licensing decision and the effect of the Pandemic.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 02/10/2020 13:45:37 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4781 label Biography information for Dr Luke Evans