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1240122

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	Universal Credit: Coronavirus
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 21 April 2020 to Question 33416 on Universal Credit: Coronavirus, what the average processing time was for a universal credit claim in (a) February, (b) March, (c) April, (d) May, (e) June, (f) July and (g) August 2020.
tabling member constituency	Hemsworth
tabling member printed	Jon Trickett
uin	98882
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/10/2020 answer text <p>The latest available information on Universal Credit payment timeliness is published and can be found at: <a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/" target="_blank">https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/</a></p><p> </p><p>Guidance on how to extract the information required can be found at:</p><p><a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Getting-Started.html" target="_blank">https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Getting-Started.html</a></p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 07/10/2020 12:48:56 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	410 label Biography information for Jon Trickett

1240323

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	Foster Care: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of providing statutory sick pay to foster carers during the covid-19 outbreak.
tabling member constituency	Erith and Thamesmead
tabling member printed	Abena Oppong-Asare
uin	99146
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/10/2020 answer text <p>Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) provides a minimum level of income for employees when they are off work sick, or deemed incapable of work. It is paid in full by employers. To receive SSP from their employer, individuals must meet all SSP eligibility conditions, including being classed as an employee.</p><p> </p><p>SSP is just one part of the government’s safety net and the support to people in times of need during the pandemic. Where an individual’s income is reduced while off work sick or self-isolating, for example where they are not eligible for SSP, and they require further financial support they may be able to claim Universal Credit and new style Employment and Support Allowance, depending on individual circumstances. Working people on low incomes who are required to remain at home by NHS Test and Trace to help stop the spread of the virus and cannot work from home can also now receive £500.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p><strong>Background</strong></p><ul><li>SSP is paid at a flat rate of £95.85 per week to eligible employees.</li><li>We have already strengthened our wider safety net by temporarily increasing the standard allowance of Universal Credit by the equivalent of £20 per week, meaning that claimants will be up to £1,040 better off for the 20/21 tax year.</li></ul> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 07/10/2020 13:51:44 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
tabling member	4820 label Biography information for Abena Oppong-Asare

1239912

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	Department for Work and Pensions: Wales
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 (a) the Welsh Government and (b) Welsh local authority leaders on her Department's staff being asked to (i) travel to work in county boroughs which are in local covid-19 lockdown and (ii) hold face-to-face assessments in county boroughs which are in local covid-19 lockdown.
tabling member constituency	Carmarthen East and Dinefwr
tabling member printed	Jonathan Edwards
uin	98686
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/10/2020 answer text <p>Since the start of Covid-19 as key workers, DWP employees have played a crucial role in the national effort, in line with government guidelines.</p><p> </p><p>In accordance with Government social distancing guidance we have provided digital kit to our staff to enable more flexible working – in particular working from home. This has enabled us to ensure that Jobcentres are Covid secure for those customers who are best supported face to face, whilst still providing services over the phone and online.</p><p> </p><p>As we double the number of Work Coaches, we will continue to expand our multi-channel engagement with claimants, including booking appointments across our network to support people face-to-face where they need it.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies grouped question UIN 98688 98690 question first answered 07/10/2020 15:58:52 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
tabling member	3943 label Biography information for Jonathan Edwards

1239914

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	Department for Work and Pensions: Staff
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 effect on her staff's wellbeing of being asked to return to the office during the covid-19 outbreak.
tabling member constituency	Carmarthen East and Dinefwr
tabling member printed	Jonathan Edwards
uin	98687
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/10/2020 answer text <p>The wellbeing of our employees is paramount. Since the start of the pandemic, we have adapted our wellbeing offer at pace to bring our colleagues targeted solutions to support their wellbeing. This has focused on colleagues working in the office as well as those required to work from home.</p><p> </p><p>As key workers, our staff have continued to attend our offices throughout the pandemic but we have also provided digital kit to our staff to enable more flexible working, in particular working from home. This has enabled us to ensure that our offices are COVID-19 secure and we can maintain social distancing.</p><p> </p><p>An individual Black and Minority Ethnic (BAME) risk assessment is available for colleague to work through with their line manager to address their individual concerns.</p><p> </p><p>All BAME colleagues have also had the opportunity to participate in a small group talking session, facilitated by trauma managers/counsellors. This has provided BAME colleagues with the opportunity to talk through any concerns they may have had about returning to work, which may have been heightened by COVID-19, and to work with specialists to put strategies in place to combat.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 07/10/2020 16:00:50 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
tabling member	3943 label Biography information for Jonathan Edwards

1239916

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	Department for Work and Pensions: Wales
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 publish any Health and Safety Impact Assessments her Department used when taking the decision to ask staff to travel into Jobcentre Plus offices which are located in Welsh County Boroughs in local lockdown.
tabling member constituency	Carmarthen East and Dinefwr
tabling member printed	Jonathan Edwards
uin	98688
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/10/2020 answer text <p>Since the start of Covid-19 as key workers, DWP employees have played a crucial role in the national effort, in line with government guidelines.</p><p> </p><p>In accordance with Government social distancing guidance we have provided digital kit to our staff to enable more flexible working – in particular working from home. This has enabled us to ensure that Jobcentres are Covid secure for those customers who are best supported face to face, whilst still providing services over the phone and online.</p><p> </p><p>As we double the number of Work Coaches, we will continue to expand our multi-channel engagement with claimants, including booking appointments across our network to support people face-to-face where they need it.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies grouped question UIN 98686 98690 question first answered 07/10/2020 15:58:52 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
tabling member	3943 label Biography information for Jonathan Edwards

1239917

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	Social Security Benefits: Medical Examinations
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what comparative assessment she has made of the effectiveness of her Department carrying out face-to-face and virtual assessments during the covid-19 outbreak.
tabling member constituency	Carmarthen East and Dinefwr
tabling member printed	Jonathan Edwards
uin	98689
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/10/2020 answer text <p>No comparative assessment has been made of virtual and face-to-face Jobcentre appointments.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 07/10/2020 16:40:36 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
tabling member	3943 label Biography information for Jonathan Edwards

1239918

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	Jobcentres: Wales
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 (a) only to permit urgent face-to-face jobcentre appointments to take place in Welsh county boroughs which are in local covid-19 lockdown and (b) to require her staff to work from home where possible during the covid-19 outbreak.
tabling member constituency	Carmarthen East and Dinefwr
tabling member printed	Jonathan Edwards
uin	98690
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/10/2020 answer text <p>Since the start of Covid-19 as key workers, DWP employees have played a crucial role in the national effort, in line with government guidelines.</p><p> </p><p>In accordance with Government social distancing guidance we have provided digital kit to our staff to enable more flexible working – in particular working from home. This has enabled us to ensure that Jobcentres are Covid secure for those customers who are best supported face to face, whilst still providing services over the phone and online.</p><p> </p><p>As we double the number of Work Coaches, we will continue to expand our multi-channel engagement with claimants, including booking appointments across our network to support people face-to-face where they need it.</p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies grouped question UIN 98686 98688 question first answered 07/10/2020 15:58:52 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
tabling member	3943 label Biography information for Jonathan Edwards

1239931

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	Universal Credit: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many families with children received the £20 per week uplift in universal credit standard allowance payments, announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer on 20 March 2020, in (a) Wirral West constituency and (b) the UK, in each month since that uplift was introduced.
tabling member constituency	Wirral West
tabling member printed	Margaret Greenwood
uin	98714
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/10/2020 answer text <p>The available information on the number of households with children with Universal Credit in payment, by parliamentary constituency, is published and can be found at:</p><p><a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/" target="_blank">https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/</a></p><p> </p><p>Guidance on how to extract the information required can be found at:</p><p><a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Getting-Started.html" target="_blank">https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Getting-Started.html</a></p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 07/10/2020 12:46:06 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4400 label Biography information for Margaret Greenwood

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

1239246

registered interest
date	30/09/2020
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	Department for Work and Pensions: Maladministration
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 Answers of 29 September to Questions 95101 and 95102 what estimate she has made of the number of people affected by administrative errors made by her Department which led to (a) the overpayment of benefits and (b) financial hardship for claimants in the last five years.
tabling member constituency	Coventry North East
tabling member printed	Colleen Fletcher
uin	97592
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/10/2020 answer text <p>DWP is focused on paying people their correct entitlement and a quality checking regime is in place. However, there are occasions where administrative or ‘official errors’ have arisen from processing or delays, which we look to correct as quickly as possible.</p><p> </p><p>The latest National Statistics Fraud and Error statistics were published on 14<sup>th</sup> May 2020 and show that estimated losses from official error in 2019/20 accounted for 0.4% of total benefit expenditure.</p><p> </p><p>These statistics can be found at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/fraud-and-error-in-the-benefit-system-financial-year-2019-to-2020-estimates" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/fraud-and-error-in-the-benefit-system-financial-year-2019-to-2020-estimates</a></p><p> </p><p>Whilst the official error rate is the same as in the previous 4 years, changes to the way in which the statistics are calculated make it difficult to make exact comparisons beyond 2018/19.</p><p> </p><p>The Department is unable to provide data in response to the second question, as any request to reduce the rate of repayment due to financial hardship will have been the result of individual circumstances.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 06/10/2020 13:23:17 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince previous answer version 51972 answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	4378 label Biography information for Colleen Fletcher