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1140856

registered interest
date	22/07/2019
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	Pensions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she plans to take to limit a person's pension age rise when age eligibility for the state pension is increased.
tabling member constituency	Cardiff West
tabling member printed	Kevin Brennan
uin	280183
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/08/2019 answer text <p>The Government published its review of State Pension age in July 2017. The report can be viewed here: <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/630065/state-pension-age-review-final-report.pdf" target="_blank">https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/630065/state-pension-age-review-final-report.pdf</a>.</p><p>The next Government review of State Pension age will be completed within six years of that report.</p><p>The Pensions Act 2014 requires the Government to regularly review State Pension age and report to Parliament, to help to ensure the rules about State Pension age are appropriate having regard to life expectancy and the costs of increasing longevity are shared fairly between the generations, and provide greater clarity around the plans for changing State Pension age in the future.</p><p> </p><p>The changes to State Pension age became law following consultation and extensive debates in Parliament. During the passage of the Pensions Act 2011, Parliament introduced limits to person’s State Pension age rise, worth £1.1 billion, which reduced the proposed increase in State Pension age for over 450,000 men and women, meaning that no woman will see her pension age change by more than 18 months, relative to the original 1995 Act timetable.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 12/08/2019 10:22:41 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	1400 label Biography information for Kevin Brennan

1140879

registered interest
date	22/07/2019
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	Pension Credit: Wales
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many individuals are eligible for pension credit but not claiming the benefit in (a) Wales and (b) each parliamentary constituency in Wales.
tabling member constituency	Newport East
tabling member printed	Jessica Morden
uin	280185
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/08/2019 answer text <p>The information requested on the number of individuals eligible for Pension Credit but do not claim it in (a) Wales and (b) each parliamentary constituency in Wales is only available at Great Britain level.</p><p> </p><p>Official statistics on the take-up of income-related benefits at Great Britain level, including Pension Credit, can be found in the ‘Income-related benefits: estimates of take-up in 2016 to 2017’ publication.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/income-related-benefits-estimates-of-take-up-financial-year-2016-to-2017" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/income-related-benefits-estimates-of-take-up-financial-year-2016-to-2017</a></p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 01/08/2019 09:20:34 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	1548 label Biography information for Jessica Morden

1141038

registered interest
date	22/07/2019
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	Television Licences: Norwich
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 free television licences issued to residents in (a) the Norwich City Council area (b) Norwich South constituency and (c) Norwich North constituency in each of the last three years; and what the total annual value was of those licences.
tabling member constituency	Norwich South
tabling member printed	Clive Lewis
uin	280459
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/08/2019 answer text <p>In the 2015 funding settlement, the Government agreed with the BBC that responsibility for the concession will transfer to the BBC in June 2020.</p><p>The government and the BBC agreed at the time that this was a fair deal for the BBC. The BBC benefited as the government closed the iPlayer loophole and committed to increase the licence fee in line with inflation. And to help with financial planning, the government agreed to provide phased transitional funding over 2 years to gradually introduce the cost to the BBC.</p><p>This reform was subject to public discussion and debated extensively during the passage of the Digital Economy Act 2017 through Parliament.</p><p>On 10 June 2019, the BBC <a href="https://www.bbc.com/aboutthebbc/reports/consultation/age-related-tv-licence-policy" target="_blank">announced</a> that the current scheme will end. From 1 June 2020, a free TV licence will only be available to a household with someone aged over 75 who receives Pension Credit.</p><p>The table below provides estimates of the costs and caseloads for 2015/16 through to 2017/18 of providing free TV licences to people aged 75 years and over in the geographical areas requested. Expenditure in nominal prices. The figures for 2018/19 will be available in September.</p><p /><p /><table><tbody><tr><td><p><strong> </strong></p></td><td><p><strong> </strong></p></td><td colspan="2"><p><strong>Caseload (thousands)</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong> </strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2015-16</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2016-17</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2017-18</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>(a) the Norwich City Council (Norwich local authority area)</strong></p></td><td><p>8.5</p></td><td><p>8.7</p></td><td><p>8.6</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>(b) Norwich South constituency</strong></p></td><td><p>6.7</p></td><td><p>6.9</p></td><td><p>6.8</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>(c) Norwich North constituency</strong></p></td><td><p>7.4</p></td><td><p>7.7</p></td><td><p>7.6</p></td></tr><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td><td><p> </p></td></tr><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p><strong> </strong></p></td><td><p><strong> </strong></p></td><td><p><strong> </strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong> </strong></p></td><td><p><strong> </strong></p></td><td colspan="2"><p><strong>Expenditure (£m) (Nominal)</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong> </strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2015-16</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2016-17</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>2017-18</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>(a) the Norwich City Council (Norwich local authority area)</strong></p></td><td><p>£1.21</p></td><td><p>£1.21</p></td><td><p>£1.23</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>(b) Norwich South constituency</strong></p></td><td><p>£0.96</p></td><td><p>£0.95</p></td><td><p>£0.97</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>(c) Norwich North constituency</strong></p></td><td><p>£1.06</p></td><td><p>£1.07</p></td><td><p>£1.10</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 01/08/2019 09:41:27 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4500 label Biography information for Clive Lewis

1140545

registered interest
date	19/07/2019
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	Workplace Pensions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans his Department has to tackle the use of shape shifting practices by employers to avoid meeting pension obligations to employees; and if he will make a statement .
tabling member constituency	Blaenau Gwent
tabling member printed	Nick Smith
uin	279430
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/08/2019 answer text <p>The vast majority of employers are meeting their pension obligations under automatic enrolment, consistent with the legal framework established under the Pensions Act 2008. Where employers fail to comply with the law however, The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has a full range of powers to ensure employees get the pensions they are due.</p><p>TPR is aware of some employers that appear to have tried to avoid meeting their pension obligations by hiding behind a new name. TPR investigators are working to take action against offenders that try to use this tactic, and are carrying out short-notice inspections on employers that are suspected of breaching their automatic enrolment duties.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 01/08/2019 09:10:06 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	3928 label Biography information for Nick Smith

1140630

registered interest
date	19/07/2019
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	State Retirement Pensions: Females
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to compensate women born in the 1950s who were adversely affected by changes to the state pension age.
tabling member constituency	Coventry South
tabling member printed	Mr Jim Cunningham
uin	279380
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/08/2019 answer text <p>Successive Governments have made necessary decisions to equalise and increase the State Pension age. State Pension age reform has focused on maintaining the right balance between sustainability of State Pension, equality and fairness between generations in the face of demographic change.</p><p>Even after equalising women’s State Pension age with men’s, women will spend on average around 2 years more in receipt of their state pension because of their longer life expectancy. If we had not equalised State Pension age, women would be expected to spend on average over 40 per cent of their adult lives in retirement.</p><p> </p><p>During the passage of the 2011 Act, the Government listened to the concerns of those affected and this is why we introduced a concession worth over £1 billion in order to limit the impact on those women who would be most affected by the changes. This concession reduced the proposed increase in State Pension age for over 450,000 men and women, and means that no woman will see her pension age change by more than 18 months, relative to the 1995 Act timetable.</p><p> </p><p>For people who simply can’t work, our welfare system will continue to provide a strong safety net, as it does for people of all ages now. Any women experiencing hardship, including problems such as unemployment, disability, and coping with caring responsibilities, can already claim support from the welfare system. The Government is committed to supporting the vulnerable and spends over £50 billion a year on benefits to support disabled people and people with health conditions.</p><p> </p><p>The new State Pension is more generous for many women. Over three million women stand to gain an average of £550 extra per year by 2030 as a result of recent State Pension reforms.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 12/08/2019 10:36:40 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	308 label Biography information for Mr Jim Cunningham

1140256

registered interest
date	18/07/2019
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	Pensions: Consumer Information
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 assess how the Pensions Dashboard could connect into private pension schemes using a federated Digital Identity.
tabling member constituency	Eastbourne
tabling member printed	Stephen Lloyd
uin	278951
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/07/2019 answer text <p>The Government’s response to the consultation on pensions dashboards set out that it is the responsibility of the industry delivery group to agree a standardised level of digital identity to make dashboards work, working closely with industry and the government. We are clear that it must comply with the National Cyber Security Centre’s Good Practice Guide 45. Therefore, it will ultimately be the responsibility of the industry delivery group reporting to the Money and Pensions Service to identify a digital identity solution(s) for dashboards that meet these standards and to make a decision on whether those digital identity solution(s) use a federated digital identity.</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/792303/government-response-pensions-dashboards.pdf" target="_blank">https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/792303/government-response-pensions-dashboards.pdf</a></p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 23/07/2019 11:27:18 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	3968 label Biography information for Stephen Lloyd

1140271

registered interest
date	18/07/2019
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	Pension Credit: Dementia
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 who are eligible for but do not claim pension credit live with dementia.
tabling member constituency	Portsmouth South
tabling member printed	Stephen Morgan
uin	279142
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/07/2019 answer text <p>Official statistics on the take-up of income related benefits at Great Britain level, including Pension Credit, can be found in the ‘Income-related benefits: estimates of take-up in 2016 to 2017’ publication.</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/income-related-benefits-estimates-of-take-up-financial-year-2016-to-2017" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/income-related-benefits-estimates-of-take-up-financial-year-2016-to-2017</a></p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>The information requested on the number of people who are eligible for pension credit but do not claim and live with dementia is not available.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 23/07/2019 11:25:22 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4653 label Biography information for Stephen Morgan

1138961

registered interest
date	15/07/2019
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	Pension 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, how many calls were made to the pension credit claim line in each of the last 12 months; and if she will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Kingston and Surbiton
tabling member printed	Sir Edward Davey
uin	277103
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 22/07/2019 answer text <p>Calls to Pension Credit Claim Line in each of the last 12 months are outlined in the table below:</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p><strong>Month</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>No. of Calls</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>July 18</p></td><td><p>49168</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>August 18</p></td><td><p>36885</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>September 18</p></td><td><p>38635</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>October 18</p></td><td><p>54165</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>November 18</p></td><td><p>39811</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>December 18</p></td><td><p>27092</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>January 19</p></td><td><p>45258</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>February 19</p></td><td><p>39569</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>March 19</p></td><td><p>42377</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>April 19</p></td><td><p>46210</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>May 19</p></td><td><p>43720</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>June 19</p></td><td><p>60060</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>Total</strong></p></td><td><p>522950</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p /><p>DWP officials continue to monitor the numbers of enquiries and claims to Pension Credit in order to ensure that levels of service to the public can be maintained and that we are able to respond flexibly and quickly to changes in demands on services including any increase in Pension Credit take-up.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 22/07/2019 12:20:53 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman previous answer version 129784 answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	188 label Biography information for Ed Davey

1138385

registered interest
date	11/07/2019
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	Universities Superannuation Scheme
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 claims that the Universities Superannuation Scheme exaggerated its budget deficit in November 2017.
tabling member constituency	Bristol North West
tabling member printed	Darren Jones
uin	276269
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/07/2019 answer text <p>It is not appropriate for Government to comment on individual cases, which are a matter for the independent Pensions Regulator.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 19/07/2019 12:19:41 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4621 label Biography information for Darren Jones

1138410

registered interest
date	11/07/2019
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	State Retirement Pensions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how the increases in state pension for 2019-20 were calculated; and for what reasons pensioners reaching the age of 80 are awarded an increase of 25 pence in 2019-20.
tabling member constituency	Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath
tabling member printed	Lesley Laird
uin	276270
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/07/2019 answer text <p>As a result of the Triple Lock, from April 2019, the full yearly amount of the basic State Pension is around £675 higher than if it had just been up-rated by earnings since April 2010. That’s a rise of over £1,600 in cash terms.</p><p /><p>The Government is committed to ensuring economic security for people at every stage of their life, including during retirement. We are forecast to spend over £120 billion on benefits for pensioners in 2019/20. This includes £99 billion of expenditure on the State Pension.</p><p> </p><p>In 2019/20, the basic State Pension and the new State Pension (apart from Protected Payments) were both uprated by 2.6%. This was in line with the Triple Lock guarantee that these will rise by the highest of average earnings growth, price inflation, or 2.5%. In 2019/20 the highest measure was earnings growth at 2.6%. The full basic State Pension went up by £3.25 to £129.20 a week whilst the full rate of the new State Pension rose by £4.25 to £168.60 a week.</p><p> </p><p>Protected Payments, Additional State Pension and Graduated Retirement Benefit elements are uprated each year by the increase in prices. They rose by 2.4% (CPI) in 2019/20.</p><p> </p><p>The 25p age addition to contributory and non-contributory retirement pensions is paid with the State Pension when individuals reach age 80. It is a separate issue from the uprating process outlined above. When the age addition was first introduced in 1971 the value of the basic State Pension for a single person was £6 per week and the amount of 25p constituted a more substantial sum in relation to the total State Pension than it does nowadays in relation to the current basic State Pension of £129.20 a week.</p><p> </p><p>Although there are no plans to uprate the age addition amount, this should be considered alongside the range of other measures and benefits, including Pension Credit, that are available to pensioners, over age 80. Moreover, people who are aged 80 and over receive a Winter Fuel Payment of £300, instead of the standard Winter Fuel Payment of £200 for pensioners below that age. Additionally, the non-contributory Category D State Pension is available to those aged over 80 with either no entitlement to a basic State Pension or who are entitled to State Pension of less than £77.45 per week who meet the residency conditions.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 19/07/2019 12:29:42 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4660 label Biography information for Lesley Laird