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1729641

	registered interest
	date	12/09/2024
	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	Civil Servants: Clothing
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Twycross on 7 August (HL346), whether this clothing policy applies to all staff in the Department for Work and Pensions.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Jenkin of Kennington
	uin	HL1037
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>The DWP’s standards of behaviour statement requires employees to dress in a professional and business-like way. Professional and business-like has a normal, everyday meaning.</p> answering member printed Baroness Sherlock question first answered 18/09/2024 13:38:17 answering member 4147 label Biography information for Baroness Sherlock
	tabling member	4229 label Biography information for Baroness Jenkin of Kennington

1729648

	registered interest
	date	12/09/2024
	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: Transgender People
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask His Majesty's Government whether the Department for Work and Pensions (1) currently has, or (2) has previously had, a National Diversity Ambassador on Trans Issues; and if so, (a) who they were, and (b) during what time period(s) they served.
	tabling member printed	Lord Lucas
	uin	HL1054
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>DWP does not have a National Diversity Ambassador on Trans Issues.</p><p>Since 2018, under the current Permanent Secretary, there has been no formally recognised role of this description. Before this, the term Ambassador may have been used colloquially within the Department to raise awareness of Trans and wider Equity, Diversity and Inclusion matters. However, this role was not confirmed in any official capacity.</p> answering member printed Baroness Sherlock question first answered 18/09/2024 13:24:45 answering member 4147 label Biography information for Baroness Sherlock
	tabling member	1879 label Biography information for Lord Lucas

1729046

	registered interest
	date	11/09/2024
	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: Pay
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to ensure that information published about the total value of benefits paid to claimants, including available discount schemes and grants, can be readily compared with employee salaries, which are usually quoted before tax.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Buscombe
	uin	HL958
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/09/2024 answer text <p>The Government has no such plans. Independent, free and anonymous benefit calculators are available that can help individuals to see how their benefits are affected if they start work or increase their hours. Benefit calculators can be found on gov.uk.</p> answering member printed Baroness Sherlock question first answered 20/09/2024 11:25:24 answering member 4147 label Biography information for Baroness Sherlock
	tabling member	3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe

1728422

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2024
	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	Winter Fuel Payment: Aldridge-Brownhills
	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 impact of changes to eligibility for Winter Fuel Payments on pensioners in Aldridge-Brownhills constituency.
	tabling member constituency	Aldridge-Brownhills
	tabling member printed	Wendy Morton
	uin	5060
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>The State Pension is the foundation of income in retirement and will remain so protecting 12 million pensioners through the triple lock. Based on current forecasts, the full rate of the new state pension is set to increase by around £1,700 over the course of this Parliament.</p><p> </p><p>In making a decision on Winter Fuel Payment eligibility, the Government had regard to an equality analysis in line with the Public Sector Equality Duty requirements</p><p> </p><p>Winter Fuel Payments will continue to be paid to pensioner households with someone receiving Pension Credit or certain other income-related benefits. They will continue to be worth £200 for eligible households or £300 for eligible households with someone aged 80 and over.</p><p> </p><p>We know there are low-income pensioners who aren’t claiming Pension Credit, and we urge those people to apply. This will passport them to receive Winter Fuel Payment alongside other benefits – hundreds of pounds that could really help them. We will ensure that the poorest pensioners get the support they need.</p><p> </p><p>The Household Support Fund is also being extended for a further six months, from 1 October 2024 until 31 March 2025.</p><p>We are also providing support for pensioners through our Warm Homes Plan which will support investment in insulation and low carbon heating – upgrading millions of homes over this Parliament. Our long-term plan will protect billpayers permanently, reduce fuel poverty, and get the UK back on track to meet our climate goals.</p><p>The Warm Home Discount scheme in England and Wales provides eligible low-income households across Great Britain with a £150 rebate on their electricity bill. This winter, we expect over three million households, including over one million pensioners, to benefit under the scheme.</p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 18/09/2024 09:59:20 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	4358 label Biography information for Wendy Morton

1728424

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2024
	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, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that people over the age of 65 receive adequate financial support through the State Pension.
	tabling member constituency	Inverness, Skye and West Ross-shire
	tabling member printed	Angus MacDonald
	uin	5160
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>We are absolutely committed to supporting pensioners and giving them the dignity and security they deserve in retirement.</p><p> </p><p>The Government is committed to the Triple Lock, which means that in April 2025, the basic and new State pension will increase by the higher of the growth in average earnings, price increases or 2.5%.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>Over 12 million pensioners will benefit through our commitment to protect the Triple Lock. Over the course of this parliament, the full yearly rate of the new State Pension is forecast to increase by around £1,700.</p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 18/09/2024 09:45:48 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	5362

1728447

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2024
	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	Employment: Parents
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent steps her Department has taken to help ensure that parents of children with special educational needs can find work that meets their needs.
	tabling member constituency	Epping Forest
	tabling member printed	Dr Neil Hudson
	uin	5147
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>One of the Government’s primary missions is to grow the economy, getting more people into work and helping those in work get better paid jobs is central to achieving this. The Government recognises and appreciates the vital contribution made by informal carers who provide invaluable support for children, relatives, partners, friends, and neighbours who may need care.</p><p> </p><p>Support is offered to those carers in receipt of Universal Credit, either on a voluntary basis for those eligible for Universal Credit Carer Element and / or Carers Allowance, or through individualised work coach support for part time carers. This support can include help from a work coach to access skills provision, referrals to contacted provision such as Restart, careers advice, job search support and access to the Flexible Support Fund to aid job entry.</p><p> </p><p>As part of our commitment to reform employment support through delivery of a new national jobs and careers service we will transform the current service and consider the specialist needs of specific groups in designing our new approach.</p><p> </p><p>Alongside employment support, the Government have also announced Plans to Make Work Pay, which will create a new partnership between business, trade unions and working people. The Plan to Make Work Pay will end exploitative zero hours contracts; end the scourge of fire and rehire practices; and introduce basic rights from day one to parental leave, sick pay, and protection from unfair dismissal. We will strengthen the collective voice of workers and create the Fair Work Agency to ensure employment rights are upheld.</p> answering member constituency Birkenhead answering member printed Alison McGovern question first answered 18/09/2024 13:58:08 answering member 4083 label Biography information for Alison McGovern
	tabling member	4853 label Biography information for Dr Neil Hudson

1728520

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2024
	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	Winter Fuel Payment: Maidstone and Malling
	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 plans to take to support people who will become ineligible for Winter Fuel Payment as a result of the planned introduction of means-testing in Maidstone and Malling constituency.
	tabling member constituency	Maidstone and Malling
	tabling member printed	Helen Grant
	uin	4981
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/09/2024 answer text <p>Winter Fuel Payments will continue to be paid to pensioner households with someone receiving Pension Credit or certain other income-related benefits. We know there are low-income pensioners who aren’t claiming Pension Credit, and we urge those people to apply. This will passport them to receive Winter Fuel Payment alongside other benefits – hundreds of pounds that could really help them. We will ensure that the poorest pensioners get the support they need.</p><p> </p><p>The State Pension is the foundation of income in retirement and will remain so protecting 12 million pensioners through the triple lock. Based on current forecasts, the full rate of the new state pension is set to increase by £1,700 over the course of this Parliament.</p><p> </p><p>We are also providing support for pensioners through our Warm Homes Plan which will support investment in insulation and low carbon heating – upgrading millions of homes over this Parliament. Our long-term plan will protect billpayers permanently, reduce fuel poverty, and get the UK back on track to meet our climate goals.</p><p> </p><p>The Household Support Fund is also being extended for a further six months, from 1 October 2024 until 31 March 2025.  An additional £421 million will be provided to enable the extension of the HSF in England, plus funding for the Devolved Governments through the Barnett formula to be spent at their discretion, as usual.</p><p> </p><p>The Warm Home Discount scheme in England and Wales provides eligible low-income households across Great Britain with a £150 rebate on their electricity bill. This winter, we expect over three million households, including over one million pensioners, to benefit under the scheme.</p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 17/09/2024 16:05:13 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	4018 label Biography information for Mrs Helen Grant

1728521

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2024
	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	Winter Fuel Payment: Impact Assessments
	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 an equality impact assessment for the means-testing of Winter Fuel Payment.
	tabling member constituency	Maidstone and Malling
	tabling member printed	Helen Grant
	uin	4982
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>In making its decision on Winter Fuel Payment eligibility, the Government had regard to an equality analysis in line with the Public Sector Equality Duty requirements. The equality analysis was published on Friday 13th September, and can be found here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/responses-to-freedom-of-information-requests-on-equality-impact-assessments-produced-for-targeting-winter-fuel-payment" target="_blank">GOV.UK</a>.</p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 18/09/2024 15:55:35 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	4018 label Biography information for Mrs Helen Grant

1728523

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2024
	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	Winter Fuel Payment
	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 6 September 2024 to Question 2476 on Winter Fuel Payment, if she will provide this information for current constituency boundaries.
	tabling member constituency	Harborough, Oadby and Wigston
	tabling member printed	Neil O'Brien
	uin	5107
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/09/2024 answer text <p>Winter Fuel Payment statistics covering winter 2023/24 are due to be published on 24 September at 9:30am: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/announcements/winter-fuel-payment-statistics-for-winter-2023-to-2024" target="_blank">Winter Fuel Payment statistics for winter 2023 to 2024 - Official statistics announcement</a>. This publication will include information for the current constituency boundaries.</p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 17/09/2024 15:14:21 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	4679 label Biography information for Neil O'Brien

1728530

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2024
	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 estimate of the potential impact of the steps her Department has taken to increase the number of people claiming Pension Credit on the cost to the public purse of expenditure on that benefit.
	tabling member constituency	West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine
	tabling member printed	Andrew Bowie
	uin	5079
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>The Government announced on the 29 July 2024 that eligibility for Winter Fuel payments will be linked to those on Pension Credit or other means tested benefits for pensioners from Winter 2024. We have received around 38,500 Pension Credit claims in the 5 weeks since the announcement on 29th July (which is up to and including w/c 26th August). This is compared to around 17,900 Pension Credit claims in the 5 weeks preceding the announcement. This represents a 115% increase in Pension Credit claims received by the Department in the past 5 weeks compared to the 5 weeks before. These published statistics can be found here: Weekly Pension Credit claims received from 1 April 2024 to 1 September 2024 - GOV.UK (<a href="http://www.gov.uk" target="_blank">www.gov.uk</a>). It is not currently possible to estimate the expenditure that will result from this.</p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 18/09/2024 15:33:12 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	4601 label Biography information for Andrew Bowie

1728531

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2024
	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	Winter Fuel Payment: Rural Areas
	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 impact of changes to the eligibility criteria for the Winter Fuel Payment on pensioners in rural areas.
	tabling member constituency	West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine
	tabling member printed	Andrew Bowie
	uin	5080
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/09/2024 answer text <p>Winter Fuel Payments will continue to be paid to pensioner households with someone receiving Pension Credit or certain other income-related benefits. They will continue to be worth £200 for eligible households, or £300 for eligible households with someone aged 80 and over.</p><p> </p><p>We know there are low-income pensioners who aren’t claiming Pension Credit, and we urge those people to apply. This will passport them to receive Winter Fuel Payment alongside other benefits – hundreds of pounds that could really help them. We will ensure that the poorest pensioners get the support they need.</p><p> </p><p>Energy support, including customers off-grid, is provided by local authorities, the responsibility of Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and the devolved governments.</p><p> </p><p>The Warm Home Discount is available to eligible low-income households, who pay their electricity bill directly to a participating domestic supplier. A specific scheme is available to support eligible park homes residents, under the industry initiatives element of the Warm Home Discount Scheme.</p><p> </p><p>The Home Upgrade Grant provides grants to low-income households to upgrade the energy performance of the worst quality, off gas grid homes in England by installing energy efficiency measures and low carbon heating.</p><p> </p><p>This will typically include insulation measures in combination with a heat pump to make the home heat efficient and suitable for the future as we build towards net zero.</p><p></p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds grouped question UIN 5201 question first answered 16/09/2024 16:48:42 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	4601 label Biography information for Andrew Bowie

1728590

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2024
	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	Unemployment: Young People
	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 (a) identify and (b) reduce the barriers facing young people not in work or education.
	tabling member constituency	Liverpool Wavertree
	tabling member printed	Paula Barker
	uin	5132
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>Our plan to get Britain Working includes a new Youth Guarantee for all young people aged 18-21 to ensure that they can access quality training opportunities, an apprenticeship or employment support. This will sit alongside; a new national jobs and careers service to help get more people into work, work health and skills plans for the economically inactive, and the launch of Skills England to open new opportunities for young people. We will set out further detail in the upcoming ‘Get Britain Working’ White Paper.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>Currently through the Youth Offer, we provide labour market support to young people aged 16-24 claiming Universal Credit through a range of tailored interventions to help reduce the barriers young people may face, bringing them closer to work or education.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>Jobcentre Plus School Advisers target support to young people that schools have identified as being at greatest risk of not being in work or education, or who may be disadvantaged in the labour market.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Birkenhead answering member printed Alison McGovern question first answered 18/09/2024 08:26:15 answering member 4083 label Biography information for Alison McGovern
	tabling member	4828 label Biography information for Paula Barker

1728632

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2024
	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	Winter Fuel Payment: Harpenden and Berkhamsted
	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 impact of means-testing Winter Fuel Payments on pensioner poverty in Harpenden and Berkhamsted constituency.
	tabling member constituency	Harpenden and Berkhamsted
	tabling member printed	Victoria Collins
	uin	5174
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>No such assessment has been made, as statistics for the total number of people living in poverty are not available at a constituency level.</p><p> </p><p>This Government is committed to pensioners – everyone in our society, no matter their working history or savings deserves a comfortable and dignified retirement.</p><p> </p><p>Winter Fuel Payments will continue to be paid to pensioner households with someone receiving Pension Credit or certain other income-related benefits. They will continue to be worth £200 for eligible households, or £300 for eligible households with someone aged over 80.</p><p>Immediate support for pensioners includes our commitment to the Triple Lock, with over 12 million pensioners set to benefit through the course of this parliament, with the full yearly rate of the new State Pensions forecast to increase by around £1700.</p><p>The Warm Home Discount scheme in England and Wales provides eligible low-income households across Great Britain with a £150 rebate on their electricity bill. This winter, we expect over three million households, including over one million pensioners, to benefit under the scheme.</p><p>We are also providing support for pensioners through our Warm Homes Plan which will support investment in insulation and low carbon heating – upgrading millions of homes over this Parliament. Our long-term plan will protect billpayers permanently, reduce fuel poverty, and get the UK back on track to meet our climate goals.</p><p>The Household Support Fund is also being extended for a further six months, from 1 October 2024 until 31 March 2025.   An additional £421 million will be provided to enable the extension of the HSF in England, plus funding for the Devolved Governments through the Barnett formula to be spent at their discretion, as usual.</p><p> </p><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 18/09/2024 15:52:22 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	5201

1728645

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2024
	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: Equality
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many positions in her Department included (a) diversity, (b) inclusion, (c) equity and (d) equality in their job title in each of the last five years; and what the total cost of the salaries of each such job was in each of those years.
	tabling member constituency	Great Yarmouth
	tabling member printed	Rupert Lowe
	uin	5187
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/09/2024 answer text <p>The information requested is not collated centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.</p> answering member constituency Stretford and Urmston answering member printed Andrew Western question first answered 17/09/2024 13:53:23 answering member 4979 label Biography information for Andrew Western
	tabling member	5158

1728659

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2024
	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	Winter Fuel Payment: Rural Areas
	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 impact of the changes to the eligibility criteria for Winter Fuel Payments on pensioners in rural communities.
	tabling member constituency	West Dorset
	tabling member printed	Edward Morello
	uin	5201
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/09/2024 answer text <p>Winter Fuel Payments will continue to be paid to pensioner households with someone receiving Pension Credit or certain other income-related benefits. They will continue to be worth £200 for eligible households, or £300 for eligible households with someone aged 80 and over.</p><p> </p><p>We know there are low-income pensioners who aren’t claiming Pension Credit, and we urge those people to apply. This will passport them to receive Winter Fuel Payment alongside other benefits – hundreds of pounds that could really help them. We will ensure that the poorest pensioners get the support they need.</p><p> </p><p>Energy support, including customers off-grid, is provided by local authorities, the responsibility of Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and the devolved governments.</p><p> </p><p>The Warm Home Discount is available to eligible low-income households, who pay their electricity bill directly to a participating domestic supplier. A specific scheme is available to support eligible park homes residents, under the industry initiatives element of the Warm Home Discount Scheme.</p><p> </p><p>The Home Upgrade Grant provides grants to low-income households to upgrade the energy performance of the worst quality, off gas grid homes in England by installing energy efficiency measures and low carbon heating.</p><p> </p><p>This will typically include insulation measures in combination with a heat pump to make the home heat efficient and suitable for the future as we build towards net zero.</p><p></p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds grouped question UIN 5080 question first answered 16/09/2024 16:48:42 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	5326

1728660

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2024
	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	Winter Fuel Payment: West Dorset
	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 in West Dorset constituency are in receipt of the Winter Fuel Payment.
	tabling member constituency	West Dorset
	tabling member printed	Edward Morello
	uin	5202
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>According to Winter Fuel Payment Statistics, an estimated 30,232 people in West Dorset Constituency (2010 boundary) received Winter Fuel Payment in 2022-2023.The latest published Winter Fuel Payment Statistics are for the year 2022-2023 and they are published here: Winter Fuel Payment statistics for winter 2022 to 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 18/09/2024 08:35:32 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	5326

1728674

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2024
	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	Winter Fuel Payment: Sutton and Cheam
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the number of people that will be affected by the proposed changes to pensioners' eligibility for the Winter Fuel Payment in Sutton and Cheam constituency.
	tabling member constituency	Sutton and Cheam
	tabling member printed	Luke Taylor
	uin	5216
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>The Pension Credit data that is used is based on the 2010 Westminster Parliamentary constituencies, not 2024, in order to be comparable with the Winter Fuel Payment statistics.</p><p> </p><p>It is estimated that around 14,000 pensioners in Sutton and Cheam constituency will be impacted by the decision to amend the eligibility criteria for the Winter Fuel Payment. This is based on February 2024 Pension Credit statistics which are available via <a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/jsf/dataCatalogueExplorer.xhtml" target="_blank">DWP Stat-xplore</a> and the Winter Fuel Payment statistics for Winter 2022 to 2023 which are available via <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/winter-fuel-payment-statistics-for-winter-2022-to-2023" target="_blank">GOV.UK</a>.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>This estimation is calculated by subtracting the number of people claiming Pension Credit in Sutton and Cheam consistency from the number of Winter Fuel Payment recipients in Sutton and Cheam constituency. This is essentially the number of Winter Fuel Payment recipients who are not claiming Pension Credit pre-policy change, as an estimate of those who will no longer receive the Winter Fuel Payment.</p><p> </p><p>Please note that the above figures do not take into account any potential increase in Pension Credit take-up that we might see as a result of the Government’s Pension Credit Awareness Campaign. We do not have data on those additional Pension Credit claims by Parliamentary constituencies or Local Authorities.</p><p> </p><p>The published Pension Credit figures refer to households, so the number of individuals receiving Pension Credit will be higher (i.e., taking account of households where it is a couple claiming Pension Credit).</p><p> </p><p>In addition, while Pension Credit claimants constitute the majority of those that will be eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment, pensioners who claim other qualifying means-tested benefits will also be eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment. It is not, however, possible to include those on other qualifying means-tested benefits in these figures.</p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 18/09/2024 15:49:01 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	5103

1728675

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2024
	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: Women
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department plans to compensate women wrongly underpaid their state pension.
	tabling member constituency	Makerfield
	tabling member printed	Josh Simons
	uin	5217
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/09/2024 answer text <p>The Department is addressing two areas which have resulted in the underpayment of State Pension. We expect the majority of customers affected to be women.</p><p>On the State Pension Underpayment Legal Entitlements and Administrative Practices (LEAP) exercise and the Home Responsibilities Protection LEAP exercise we are identifying and correcting any errors, making arrears payments and amending ongoing State Pension awards.</p><p>The Department understands the importance of putting right any errors we find and adjusting State Pension payments without delay. Everyone should receive the State Pension payments to which they are entitled. Giving pensioners the security and dignity they deserve in retirement is a priority for this Government.</p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 16/09/2024 16:15:09 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	5060

1728692

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2024
	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: Poverty
	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 set up a Pensioner Task Force to (a) assess intersecting issues of income, housing, health and fuel costs and (b) make recommendations to tackle pensioner poverty.
	tabling member constituency	Poole
	tabling member printed	Neil Duncan-Jordan
	uin	5234
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>We are determined to support pensioners and give them the dignity and security they deserve in retirement. The Government has committed to reviewing the pensions landscape. The first phase, focusing on investment outcomes, began in July and we will follow that later this year with the next phase that will consider further steps to improve pension outcomes, including assessing retirement adequacy.</p><p> </p><p>Immediate support for pensioners includes our commitment to the Triple Lock, with over 12 million pensioners set to benefit through the course of this parliament, with the full yearly rate of the new State Pension forecast to increase by around £1,700.</p><p>Pension Credit continues to provide a safety net for the poorest pensioners and those with additional needs, such as those with a severe disability, caring responsibility, responsibility for a child or certain housing costs. We want everybody who could be eligible to claim it, which is why we have launched a nationwide Pension Credit take-up campaign.</p><p>The Household Support Fund (HSF) is also being extended for a further 6 months, from 1 October 2024 until 31 March 2025, to support those most in need, including vulnerable pensioners. An additional £421 million will be provided to enable the extension of the HSF in England, plus funding for the Devolved Governments through the Barnett formula to be spent at their discretion, as usual.<em> </em></p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 18/09/2024 15:43:27 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	5359

1728708

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2024
	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	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask His Majesty's Government how many assessors trained and qualified in autism will work in each of the five regions under the Department for Work and Pension's Health Assessment Advisory Service.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Browning
	uin	HL925
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/09/2024 answer text <p>The department and the Health Assessment Advisory Service (HAAS) are fully committed to supporting those with mental health conditions.</p><p> </p><p>All health professionals (HPs) within the five regions of HAAS are fully qualified in their health discipline and have passed strict recruitment and experience criteria. They must also be registered with a relevant regulatory body such as the General Medical Council, the Nursing and Midwifery Council, Health and Care Professions Council or European Economic Area equivalent. The department has not specified that HAAS employ HPs who are specialists in specific conditions or impairments. Instead, the focus is on ensuring they are experts in disability analysis, focusing on the effects of health conditions and impairments on the claimant’s daily life.</p><p> </p><p>All HPs receive comprehensive training in the functional assessment of mental health conditions and disabilities, including Autism. From 09 September 2024 the educational material for all HAAS HPs was provided by DWP. As part of our review, we identified best practice in the NHS and have implemented the Oliver McGowan training as part of the mandatory training requirements for every HP. This training is recognised to be of significant value to HPs in ensuring they have the skills and knowledge to provide safe, informed, and compassionate assessments to claimants with autism and learning disabilities. This is in addition to our comprehensive education programme for HPs.</p><p> </p><p>Following the completion of core training to undertake the role, HPs will engage in an annual training programme, and HAAS has been provided with materials (such as Continual Professional Development modules) to support the development of their HPs where learning needs are identified. This approach ensures that both service wide and individual training needs are met and will be of benefit to those with neurodiversity where applicable.</p> answering member printed Baroness Sherlock grouped question UIN HL926 question first answered 17/09/2024 14:28:11 answering member 4147 label Biography information for Baroness Sherlock
	tabling member	236 label Biography information for Baroness Browning

1728709

	registered interest
	date	10/09/2024
	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	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what qualifications are stipulated for assessors of people on the autism spectrum by the Health Assessment Advisory Service.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Browning
	uin	HL926
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/09/2024 answer text <p>The department and the Health Assessment Advisory Service (HAAS) are fully committed to supporting those with mental health conditions.</p><p> </p><p>All health professionals (HPs) within the five regions of HAAS are fully qualified in their health discipline and have passed strict recruitment and experience criteria. They must also be registered with a relevant regulatory body such as the General Medical Council, the Nursing and Midwifery Council, Health and Care Professions Council or European Economic Area equivalent. The department has not specified that HAAS employ HPs who are specialists in specific conditions or impairments. Instead, the focus is on ensuring they are experts in disability analysis, focusing on the effects of health conditions and impairments on the claimant’s daily life.</p><p> </p><p>All HPs receive comprehensive training in the functional assessment of mental health conditions and disabilities, including Autism. From 09 September 2024 the educational material for all HAAS HPs was provided by DWP. As part of our review, we identified best practice in the NHS and have implemented the Oliver McGowan training as part of the mandatory training requirements for every HP. This training is recognised to be of significant value to HPs in ensuring they have the skills and knowledge to provide safe, informed, and compassionate assessments to claimants with autism and learning disabilities. This is in addition to our comprehensive education programme for HPs.</p><p> </p><p>Following the completion of core training to undertake the role, HPs will engage in an annual training programme, and HAAS has been provided with materials (such as Continual Professional Development modules) to support the development of their HPs where learning needs are identified. This approach ensures that both service wide and individual training needs are met and will be of benefit to those with neurodiversity where applicable.</p> answering member printed Baroness Sherlock grouped question UIN HL925 question first answered 17/09/2024 14:28:11 answering member 4147 label Biography information for Baroness Sherlock
	tabling member	236 label Biography information for Baroness Browning

1727981

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Boots: Pensions
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the sale of the Boots Pension scheme to an insurance company and (2) the effect of this sale on the protection provided to the pensions held in the Boots Pension scheme by the Pension Protection Fund.
	tabling member printed	Lord Rooker
	uin	HL905
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>When a Defined Benefit pension scheme transfers responsibility for paying some or all of its members’ benefits to an insurer, the scheme pays a premium to the insurance company, which then takes on responsibility for paying the promised benefits. This is a well-established approach used by pension scheme trustees to secure the promised pensions for members with an insurance company.</p><p> </p><p>Arrangements to provide pension benefits to some or all scheme members with an insurer are secure and offer long term protection for member benefits. Insurance companies are regulated by the Prudential Regulation Authority and their policy holders are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.</p><p> </p><p>Pension Protection Fund protection is retained until the whole scheme is transferred to an insurer, and both the sponsor and the trustees are discharged. At that point the members are no longer protected by the Pension Protection Fund. This is because all benefits are now secured with an insurance company.</p><p> </p><p>No assessments of individual schemes are made by Government.</p> answering member printed Baroness Sherlock question first answered 18/09/2024 13:22:48 answering member 4147 label Biography information for Baroness Sherlock
	tabling member	302 label Biography information for Lord Rooker

1727992

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Employment
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of Britain’s labour market, particularly in relation to (1) the decrease in job placements, and (2) the decline in pay growth.
	tabling member printed	Lord Taylor of Warwick
	uin	HL916
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>Job placements, as measured by employment, are currently at 33.2m. These have increased by 265,000 on the quarter and 150,000 on the year. The employment rate remains lower than it was immediately pre-COVID by 1.4 percentage points. This has been driven almost entirely by increased economic inactivity, including long term sickness which is at a near-record high.</p><p> </p><p>Regular pay growth (excluding bonuses) is currently at 5.1% on the year without accounting for inflation. This rate of pay growth has slowed since June 2023 when it reached 7.9%. Regular pay growth after inflation is currently at 2.2% on the year, following falls in real pay in 2022 and 2023 due to high inflation. Regular earnings after inflation are currently only 3% or £15 a week higher in the latest three months than the start of 2008, 16 years ago.</p> answering member printed Baroness Sherlock question first answered 18/09/2024 12:53:25 answering member 4147 label Biography information for Baroness Sherlock
	tabling member	1796 label Biography information for Lord Taylor of Warwick

1728004

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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: Disability
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what percentage of residents of Ceredigion in Wales are currently in receipt of disability benefits.
	tabling member printed	Baroness Buscombe
	uin	HL870
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/09/2024 answer text <p>The table below shows the number of claimants in February 2024 who are on the different disability benefits, Personal Independence Payment (PIP), Disability Living Allowance, including the Child element (DLA) and Attendance Allowance (AA).</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>PIP</p></td><td><p>DLA</p></td><td><p>AA</p></td><td><p>Total</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>4,449</p></td><td><p>1,293</p></td><td><p>2,785</p></td><td><p>8,527</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>This information can be found on the published datasets on <a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/jsf/login.xhtml?invalidSession=true&amp;reason=Session+not+established." target="_blank">Stat-Xplore - Log in (dwp.gov.uk)</a></p><p>The latest available population estimates published by the Office of National Statistics on <a href="https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/datasets/pestsyoala" target="_blank">Population estimates - local authority based by single year of age - Nomis - Official Census and Labour Market Statistics (nomisweb.co.uk)</a> show that the estimated population of Ceredigion in April 2023 is 73,050.</p><p>This means that 12% of the residents of Ceredigion in Wales were claiming disability benefits in February 2024.</p> answering member printed Baroness Sherlock question first answered 17/09/2024 15:18:41 answering member 4147 label Biography information for Baroness Sherlock
	tabling member	3349 label Biography information for Baroness Buscombe

1728009

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	National Insurance: Foreign Nationals
	house id	2
	legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
	question text	To ask His Majesty's Government how many National Insurance numbers were issued to citizens of (1) the European Union, and (2) all other countries, within the last 12 months for which figures are available.
	tabling member printed	Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts
	uin	HL885
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/09/2024 answer text <p>The Department publishes quarterly statistics on National Insurance number allocations to adult overseas nationals entering the UK with the latest statistics to June 2024 available by world area and country on Stat-Xplore. The number issued in the 12 months to June 2024 by world areas is shown in the table below.</p><p> </p><p><strong>NINO Registrations To Adult Overseas Nationals Entering The UK</strong></p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>Nationality</p></td><td><p>Rolling year end June 2023/24</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>European Union</p></td><td><p>69,927</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Non-European Union (Other Europe)</p></td><td><p>49,302</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Asia</p></td><td><p>544,241</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Rest of the World</p></td><td><p>261,711</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Other / unknown</p></td><td><p>14,857</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Total</p></td><td><p>940,039</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p><strong>Source:</strong> <a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/" target="_blank">Stat-Xplore</a></p><p>Note: Statistical disclosure control has been applied to this table to avoid the release of confidential data. Totals may not sum due to the disclosure control applied.</p> answering member printed Baroness Sherlock question first answered 17/09/2024 14:25:45 answering member 4147 label Biography information for Baroness Sherlock
	tabling member	1651 label Biography information for Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts

1728032

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Temporary Accommodation: 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 her Department will remove the cap on housing benefit subsidy rates for temporary accommodation.
	tabling member constituency	Cities of London and Westminster
	tabling member printed	Rachel Blake
	uin	4780
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/09/2024 answer text <p>DWP pays local authorities a Housing Benefit subsidy for temporary accommodation cases. There are restrictions on the amount paid, including a subsidy cap which is £500 per week in certain areas of London or £375 elsewhere.</p><p> </p><p>We appreciate these are difficult times and local authorities are subject to many funding pressures. However, any increases to the Housing Benefit subsidy paid to local authorities would need to be taken in the context of the government’s missions, goals on housing, and the fiscal position.</p><p> </p><p>We will continue to keep the subsidy arrangements under review.</p> answering member constituency East Ham answering member printed Sir Stephen Timms question first answered 16/09/2024 12:02:39 answering member 163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms
	tabling member	5257

1728048

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Youth Services: Employment
	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 role of (a) small and medium sized enterprises and (b) community interest companies in helping to deliver the Youth Guarantee.
	tabling member constituency	Bermondsey and Old Southwark
	tabling member printed	Neil Coyle
	uin	4728
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/09/2024 answer text <p>Our plan to get Britain Working includes a Youth Guarantee for all young people aged 18-21 to ensure that they can access quality training opportunities, an apprenticeship or employment support. This will sit alongside; a new national jobs and careers service to help get more people into work, work health and skills plans for the economically inactive, and the launch of Skills England to open new opportunities for young people.</p><p> </p><p>We have not yet made any assessment on the potential role of small and medium sized enterprises and community interest companies in helping to deliver the Youth Guarantee. In the early development stages, we will engage with our stakeholders who represent young people on the design and delivery of the Youth Guarantee.</p><p> </p><p>We will set out further detail in the upcoming ‘Get Britain Working’ White Paper.</p> answering member constituency Birkenhead answering member printed Alison McGovern question first answered 12/09/2024 10:31:50 answering member 4083 label Biography information for Alison McGovern
	tabling member	4368 label Biography information for Neil Coyle

1728050

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Winter Fuel Payment: Romford
	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 in the Romford constituency will be impacted by the end of universal winter fuel payments.
	tabling member constituency	Romford
	tabling member printed	Andrew Rosindell
	uin	4607
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>The Pension Credit data that is used is based on the 2010 Westminster Parliamentary constituencies, not 2024, in order to be comparable with the Winter Fuel Payments statistics. It is estimated that around 15,000 people in Romford constituency will be affected by the change in policy. This is based on Feb-24 Pension Credit statistics and 22-23 Winter Fuel Payments statistics (sources below).</p><p> </p><p>This estimation is calculated by subtracting the number of Pension Credit recipients for Romford constituency from the number of Winter Fuel Payment recipients for Romford constituency. This is essentially the number of Winter Fuel Payment recipients pre-policy change not claiming Pension Credit, as an estimate of those who will no longer receive Winter fuel payment.</p><p> </p><p>Also, the above figures do not take into account any potential increase in Pension Credit take-up we might see as a result of the Governments Pension Credit Awareness Campaign. We do not have data on those additional Pension Credit claims by Parliamentary constituencies or local authorities.</p><p> </p><p>Furthermore, the published Pension Credit figures refer to households, so the number of individuals will be higher (i.e., taking account of households where it is a couple claiming Pension Credit).</p><p> </p><p>In addition to that, Pension Credit claimants are the majority of those that will be eligible for Winter Fuel Payments, not all. There are other pensioners who are eligible for Winter Fuel Payments (as they claim other means tested benefits) but they are not considered in these figures as it is not possible to do so.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong>Source:</strong></p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>The Winter Fuel Payments statistics are published here:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/winter-fuel-payment-statistics-for-winter-2022-to-2023" target="_blank">Winter Fuel Payment statistics for winter 2022 to 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)</a></p><p>Pension Credit data is published here: <a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/openinfopage?id=PC_New" target="_blank">Pension Credit – Data from May 2018</a></p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 18/09/2024 15:22:21 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	1447 label Biography information for Andrew Rosindell

1728065

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Winter Fuel Payment: Tatton
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many pensioners in Tatton constituency will lose entitlement to winter fuel payments as a result of the proposed changes.
	tabling member constituency	Tatton
	tabling member printed	Esther McVey
	uin	4711
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/09/2024 answer text <p>To be comparable with the Winter Fuel Payment statistics, the Pension Credit data that has been used is based on the 2010 Westminster Parliamentary constituencies, not 2024.</p><p> </p><p>It is estimated that around 18,200 pensioners in Tatton constituency (2010 boundary) will be impacted by the decision to amend the eligibility criteria for the Winter Fuel Payment. This is based on February 2024 Pension Credit statistics which are available via <a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/jsf/dataCatalogueExplorer.xhtml" target="_blank">DWP Stat-xplore</a> and the Winter Fuel Payment statistics for Winter 2022 to 2023 which are available via <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/winter-fuel-payment-statistics-for-winter-2022-to-2023" target="_blank">GOV.UK</a>.</p><p> </p><p>This estimation is calculated by subtracting the number of people claiming Pension Credit in Tatton constituency from the number of Winter Fuel Payment recipients in Tatton constituency. This is essentially the number of Winter Fuel Payment recipients who are not claiming Pension Credit pre-policy change, as an estimate of those who will no longer receive the Winter Fuel Payment.</p><p> </p><p>Please note that the above figures do not take into account any potential increase in Pension Credit take-up that we might see as a result of the Government’s Pension Credit Awareness Campaign. We do not have data on those additional Pension Credit claims by Parliamentary constituencies or Local Authorities.</p><p> </p><p>The published Pension Credit figures refer to households rather than individuals, so the number of individuals receiving Pension Credit will be higher (i.e. taking account of households where it is a couple claiming Pension Credit).</p><p> </p><p>In addition, while Pension Credit claimants constitute the majority of those that will be eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment, pensioners who claim other qualifying means-tested benefits will also be eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment. It is not, however, possible to include those on other qualifying means-tested benefits in these figures.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 17/09/2024 17:02:35 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	4084 label Biography information for Esther McVey

1728091

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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 he will make an assessment of the potential merits of (a) simplifying and (b) automating the process to apply for Pension Credit.
	tabling member constituency	Leeds Central and Headingley
	tabling member printed	Alex Sobel
	uin	4775
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/09/2024 answer text <p>The Department continues to assess the Pension Credit service. This led to the introduction of the online claim process, providing customers with a convenient alternative claim route, alongside the existing telephony and paper application methods. As the Department continues to modernise the Pension Credit service, we continue to review the user experience, balancing simplification of application with capturing the right information to ensure accuracy of award.</p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 16/09/2024 15:37:04 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	4658 label Biography information for Alex Sobel

1728092

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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: Women
	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 creating a hardship fund for women affected by the change to the State Pension age.
	tabling member constituency	South Holland and The Deepings
	tabling member printed	Sir John Hayes
	uin	4596
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/09/2024 answer text <p>The Government believes the best way to support people, including women who have been affected by the change to the State Pension Age is to help them to retrain, return to or progress in work. That is why the Government is reforming employment support to ensure it supports people of all ages and we will set out more details in a forthcoming White Paper.</p><p>For those women who are unable to work but who are not eligible for pensioner benefits because of their age, financial support is still available through the welfare system.</p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 16/09/2024 16:13:07 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	350 label Biography information for Sir John Hayes

1728097

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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: Disability
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department plans to implement the proposals outlined in the consultation entitled Modernising support for independent living: the health and disability green paper, published in April 2024.
	tabling member constituency	Dundee Central
	tabling member printed	Chris Law
	uin	4735
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/09/2024 answer text <p>The consultation on <em>Modernising support for independent living: the health and disability green paper</em> ran for 12 weeks and closed on Monday 22 July.</p><p> </p><p>The Department received over 16,000 responses to the consultation. This demonstrates the depth of feeling about the previous Government’s proposals. I thank the British public, as well as the numerous charities and organisations who responded on behalf of their members, for the time and effort taken to share their thoughts and views.</p><p> </p><p>Whilst engaging with responses, I can confirm that responses to the set of proposals on the reform of Personal Independence Payments was mixed and for some proposals consistently negative.</p><p> </p><p>We will be setting out our own plans for social security in due course and will fulfil our continued commitment to work with disabled people so that their views and voices are at the heart of all that we do.</p> answering member constituency East Ham answering member printed Sir Stephen Timms question first answered 16/09/2024 10:51:10 answering member 163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms
	tabling member	4403 label Biography information for Chris Law

1728098

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Employment: Multiple Sclerosis
	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 plans to take to help ensure that people with multiple sclerosis are (a) treated fairly and (b) supported at work.
	tabling member constituency	Dundee Central
	tabling member printed	Chris Law
	uin	4736
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/09/2024 answer text <p>The Government has ambitious plans relating to employment, including disability employment, and we will be setting this out through a forthcoming White Paper, the Employment Rights Bill and the Equality (Race and Disability) Bill. We know that there is more to do to address the labour market challenges of today and tomorrow.</p><p> </p><p>Appropriate work is generally good for health and wellbeing, so we want everyone to get work and get on in work, whoever they are and wherever they live. We want people to avoid poverty, and for this to happen we must ensure that disabled people with health conditions, including <strong>multiple sclerosis,</strong> have the opportunity to work and save for as long as they wish and are able to.</p><p> </p><p>A fully inclusive labour market that enables disabled people and people with health conditions to have access to the same opportunities as everyone else to the benefits of work is crucial to meeting our ambition for an 80% employment rate. As part of the Get Britain Working Plan, more disabled people and those with health conditions will be supported to enter and stay in work, by devolving more power to local areas so they can shape a joined-up work, health, and skills offer that suits the needs of the people they serve.</p><p> </p><p>Employers play a key role in increasing employment opportunities and supporting disabled people and people with health conditions, including multiple sclerosis, to thrive as part of the workforce. Our support to employers includes increasing access to Occupational Health, <a href="https://www.support-with-employee-health-and-disability.dwp.gov.uk/support-with-employee-health-and-disability" target="_blank">a digital information service for employers</a> and the Disability Confident scheme.</p><p> </p><p>Under the Equality Act 2010, protection is available where a worker or job applicant’s condition fits the definition of a disability set out in section 6 of the Act. Where a person meets the Act’s definition of a disabled person, the employment provisions in the Act make it unlawful for an employer to discriminate against disabled employees and applicants. As with all provisions under the Act, it is for the person who believes they have been discriminated against in the provision of services to personally seek advice or redress. Should they wish to do so, they can begin this process by contacting the Equality Advisory and Support Service, which provides free bespoke advice to individuals with discrimination concerns.</p> answering member constituency Birkenhead answering member printed Alison McGovern question first answered 16/09/2024 13:16:54 answering member 4083 label Biography information for Alison McGovern
	tabling member	4403 label Biography information for Chris Law

1728099

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Statutory Sick Pay
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Labour Party's publication entitled Labour’s plan to make work pay: Delivering a new deal for working people, published in May 2024, whether she plans to incorporate (a) that plan and (b) the proposed changes to statutory sick pay outlined in that plan into the Employment Rights Bill.
	tabling member constituency	Dundee Central
	tabling member printed	Chris Law
	uin	4737
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/09/2024 answer text <p>This Government is committed to delivering the Plan to Make Work Pay in full and updating Britain's employment protections, so they are fit for our modern economy and the future of work. As set out in the Plan to Make to Work Pay we are committed to strengthen Statutory Sick Pay (SSP), so it provides a safety net for those who need it most. We will remove the Lower Earnings Limit to make it available to all employees and remove the waiting period so that SSP is paid from the first day of sickness absence. Ministers are identifying the most appropriate delivery mechanisms for the commitments in the Plan, including an Employment Rights Bill that will be introduced to Parliament within 100 days of taking office.</p><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member constituency Birkenhead answering member printed Alison McGovern question first answered 16/09/2024 13:12:06 answering member 4083 label Biography information for Alison McGovern
	tabling member	4403 label Biography information for Chris Law

1728109

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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 much funding was allocated to the Pension Credit week of action campaign, launched on 2 September 2024.
	tabling member constituency	Perth and Kinross-shire
	tabling member printed	Pete Wishart
	uin	4604
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/09/2024 answer text <p>The Government’s Pension Credit awareness week of action, during which the DWP joined up with key stakeholder organisations such as Age UK, Citizens Advice, and local authorities to promote Pension Credit, was one part of the Department’s ongoing promotion of Pension Credit; it did not have its own separate funding allocation.</p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 17/09/2024 15:12:38 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	1440 label Biography information for Pete Wishart

1728221

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Winter Fuel Payment: Meriden and Solihull East
	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 in Meriden and Solihull East constituency will be impacted by planned changes to winter fuel payments.
	tabling member constituency	Meriden and Solihull East
	tabling member printed	Saqib Bhatti
	uin	4789
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>Please note that following boundary changes to Parliamentary Constituencies, data on Meriden and Solihull East constituency is not explicitly available/ published. To obtain the above figure, data on the previous Solihull constituency and previous Meriden constituency have been combined. Therefore, the above figure of 39,091 is likely to be an overestimate as the new Meriden and Solihull East constituency consists of some of the areas of the previous Meriden constituency and the previous Solihull constituency, not all.</p><p> </p><p>It is estimated that around 39,091 people in the previous Meriden and Solihull East constituency will be affected by the change in policy. This is based on Feb-24 Pension Credit statistics and 22-23 Winter Fuel Payments statistics (sources below).</p><p> </p><p>This estimation is calculated by subtracting the number of Pension Credit recipients the previous Meriden and Solihull East constituency from the number of Winter Fuel Payment recipients in the previous Meriden and Solihull East constituency. This is essentially the number of Winter Fuel Payment claimants pre-policy change not claiming Pension Credit, as an estimate of those who will no longer receive Winter fuel payment. The Pension Credit data that is used is based on the 2010 Westminster Parliamentary constituencies, not 2024, in order to be comparable with the Winter Fuel Payments statistics.</p><p> </p><p>Also, the above figures do not take into account any potential increase in Pension Credit take-up we might see as a result of the policy change (means testing Winter fuel payments to those on Pension Credit and other means tested benefits). We do not have data on those additional Pension Credit claims by Parliamentary constituencies or local authorities.</p><p> </p><p>The published Pension Credit figures refer to households rather than individuals, so the number of individuals claiming Pension Credit, will be higher. This means that the number of pensioners eligible for Winter Fuel Payment will be higher and that the estimates provided above overstate the number of pensioners not eligible for Winter Fuel Payment following changes in eligibility.</p><p> </p><p>In addition to that, Pension Credit claimants are the majority of those that will be eligible for Winter Fuel Payments, not all. There are other pensioners who are eligible for Winter Fuel Payments (as they claim other means tested benefits) but they are not considered in these figures as it is not possible to do so.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p><strong>Source:</strong></p><p> </p><p>The Winter Fuel Payments statistics are published here:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/winter-fuel-payment-statistics-for-winter-2022-to-2023" target="_blank">Winter Fuel Payment statistics for winter 2022 to 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)</a></p><p> </p><p>Pension Credit data is published here: <a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/openinfopage?id=PC_New" target="_blank">Pension Credit – Data from May 2018</a></p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 18/09/2024 10:04:25 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	4818 label Biography information for Saqib Bhatti

1728233

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Winter Fuel Payment: Leicester East
	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 in Leicester East constituency will be impacted by the decision to abolish universal winter fuel payments.
	tabling member constituency	Leicester East
	tabling member printed	Shivani Raja
	uin	4801
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>To be comparable with the Winter Fuel Payment statistics, the Pension Credit data that has been used is based on the 2010 Westminster Parliamentary constituencies, not 2024.</p><p></p><p>It is estimated that around 11,000 pensioners in Leicester East constituency (2010 boundary) will be impacted by the decision to amend the eligibility criteria for the Winter Fuel Payment. This is based on February 2024 Pension Credit statistics which are available via <a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/jsf/dataCatalogueExplorer.xhtml" target="_blank">DWP Stat-xplore</a> and the Winter Fuel Payment statistics for Winter 2022 to 2023 which are available via <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/winter-fuel-payment-statistics-for-winter-2022-to-2023" target="_blank">GOV.UK</a>.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>This estimation is calculated by subtracting the number of people claiming Pension Credit in Leicester East constituency from the number of Winter Fuel Payment recipients in Leicester East constituency. This is essentially the number of Winter Fuel Payment recipients who are not claiming Pension Credit pre-policy change, as an estimate of those who will no longer receive the Winter Fuel Payment.</p><p> </p><p>Please note that the above figures do not take into account any potential increase in Pension Credit take-up that we might see as a result of the Government’s Pension Credit Awareness Campaign. We do not have data on those additional Pension Credit claims by Parliamentary constituencies or Local Authorities.</p><p> </p><p>The published Pension Credit figures refer to households rather than individuals, so the number of individuals receiving Pension Credit will be higher (i.e. taking account of households where it is a couple claiming Pension Credit).</p><p> </p><p>In addition, while Pension Credit claimants constitute the majority of those that will be eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment, pensioners who claim other qualifying means-tested benefits will also be eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment. It is not, however, possible to include those on other qualifying means-tested benefits in these figures.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 18/09/2024 09:11:31 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	5068

1728235

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Winter Fuel Payment: Harborough, Oadby and Wigston
	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 in Harborough, Oadby and Wigston constituency will be affected by the change in eligibility requirements for Winter Fuel Payment.
	tabling member constituency	Harborough, Oadby and Wigston
	tabling member printed	Neil O'Brien
	uin	4803
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>Please note that following boundary changes to Parliamentary Constituency, data on Harborough, Oadby and Wigston constituency is not explicitly available/ published. To obtain the above figure, data on the previous Harborough constituency has been used.</p><p> </p><p>It is estimated that around 20,405 people in the previous constituency of Harborough will be affected by the change in policy. This is based on Feb-24 Pension Credit statistics and 22-23 Winter Fuel Payments statistics (sources below).</p><p> </p><p>This estimation is calculated by subtracting the number of Pension Credit recipients for Harborough constituency from the number of Winter Fuel Payment recipients for Harborough constituency. This is essentially the number of Winter Fuel Payment claimants pre-policy change not claiming Pension Credit, as an estimate of those who will no longer receive Winter fuel payment. The Pension Credit data that is used is based on the 2010 Westminster Parliamentary constituencies, not 2024, in order to be comparable with the Winter Fuel Payments statistics.</p><p> </p><p>Also, the above figures do not take into account any potential increase in Pension Credit take-up we might see as a result of the Government’s Pension awareness campaigns. We do not have data on those additional Pension Credit claims by Parliamentary constituencies or local authorities.</p><p> </p><p>The published Pension Credit figures refer to households rather than individuals, so the number of individuals claiming Pension Credit, will be higher (i.e., taking account of households where it is a couple claiming Pension Credit).</p><p> </p><p>In addition to that, Pension Credit claimants are the majority of those that will be eligible for Winter Fuel Payments, not all. There are other pensioners who are eligible for Winter Fuel Payments (as they claim other means tested benefits) but they are not considered in these figures as it is not possible to do so.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p><strong>Source:</strong></p><p> </p><p>The Winter Fuel Payments statistics are published here:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/winter-fuel-payment-statistics-for-winter-2022-to-2023" target="_blank">Winter Fuel Payment statistics for winter 2022 to 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)</a></p><p> </p><p>Pension Credit data is published here: <a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/openinfopage?id=PC_New" target="_blank">Pension Credit – Data from May 2018</a></p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 18/09/2024 09:10:46 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	4679 label Biography information for Neil O'Brien

1728236

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Winter Fuel Payment: North West Norfolk
	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 in North West Norfolk constituency will be affected by the change in eligibility requirement for Winter Fuel Allowance.
	tabling member constituency	North West Norfolk
	tabling member printed	James Wild
	uin	4804
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>To be comparable with the Winter Fuel Payment statistics, the Pension Credit data that has been used is based on the 2010 Westminster Parliamentary constituencies, not 2024.</p><p></p><p>It is estimated that around 21,700 pensioners in North West Norfolk constituency (2010 boundary) will be impacted by the decision to amend the eligibility criteria for the Winter Fuel Payment. This is based on February 2024 Pension Credit statistics which are available via <a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/jsf/dataCatalogueExplorer.xhtml" target="_blank">DWP Stat-xplore</a> and the Winter Fuel Payment statistics for Winter 2022 to 2023 which are available via <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/winter-fuel-payment-statistics-for-winter-2022-to-2023" target="_blank">GOV.UK</a>.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>This estimation is calculated by subtracting the number of people claiming Pension Credit in North West Norfolk constituency from the number of Winter Fuel Payment recipients in North West Norfolk constituency. This is essentially the number of Winter Fuel Payment recipients who are not claiming Pension Credit pre-policy change, as an estimate of those who will no longer receive the Winter Fuel Payment.</p><p> </p><p>Please note that the above figures do not take into account any potential increase in Pension Credit take-up that we might see as a result of the Government’s Pension Credit Awareness Campaign. We do not have data on those additional Pension Credit claims by Parliamentary constituencies or Local Authorities.</p><p> </p><p>The published Pension Credit figures refer to households rather than individuals, so the number of individuals receiving Pension Credit will be higher. This means that the number of pensioners eligible for Winter Fuel Payment will be higher (i.e. taking account of households where it is a couple claiming Pension Credit).</p><p> </p><p>In addition, while Pension Credit claimants constitute the majority of those that will be eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment, pensioners who claim other qualifying means-tested benefits will also be eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment. It is not, however, possible to include those on other qualifying means-tested benefits in these figures.</p><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 18/09/2024 09:16:11 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	4787 label Biography information for James Wild

1728240

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Child Maintenance Service
	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 take steps to reform child maintenance services by (a) abolishing fees for survivors of violence against women and girls and (b) implementing robust enforcement measures for non-paying parents.
	tabling member constituency	Bournemouth East
	tabling member printed	Tom Hayes
	uin	4808
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/09/2024 answer text <p>A consultation on proposed reforms to the CMS was published by the previous Government on 8 May 2024. This included removing Direct Pay and changing the charging structure, with all CMS cases managed in one service to allow the CMS to tackle non-compliance faster. The consultation also explores how victims and survivors of domestic abuse can be better supported.</p><p> </p><p>This Government has extended the consultation to the 30 September 2024 to ensure full stakeholder engagement can take place. We will then consider the next steps for CMS.</p> answering member constituency Stretford and Urmston answering member printed Andrew Western question first answered 17/09/2024 14:33:03 answering member 4979 label Biography information for Andrew Western
	tabling member	5210

1728241

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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: Domestic Abuse
	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 extend the Domestic Violence Easement available to survivors claiming (a) Job Seekers’ Allowance and (b) Universal Credit to disabled survivors who (i) claim Employment Support Allowance and (ii) are in the Support Group for Universal Credit.
	tabling member constituency	Bournemouth East
	tabling member printed	Tom Hayes
	uin	4809
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/09/2024 answer text <p>Claimants in the Support Group for legacy Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) and for those with Limited Capability for Work and Work-related Activity (LCWRA) in New Style Employment Support Allowance (NS ESA) or Universal Credit have no work-related requirements imposed on them.</p><p> </p><p>Where a legacy ESA or NS ESA claimant in the work-related activity group (WRAG) has recently been a victim of domestic abuse, any work-related requirements are paused for a period of 13 consecutive weeks from when the claimant notifies the department. This is the same as the compulsory easements prescribed in Universal Credit legislation where work coaches must switch off work availability and work search requirements for the prescribed length of time. The work coach will decide if the break can be extended beyond 13 weeks in extreme circumstances.</p><p> </p><p>The arrangements are described here <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/domestic-violence-and-abuse-help-from-dwp/help-available-from-the-department-for-work-and-pensions-for-people-who-are-victims-of-domestic-violence-and-abuse" target="_blank">Help available from the Department for Work and Pensions for people who are victims of domestic violence and abuse - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)</a></p><p> </p><p>To keep our easement policies clear, fair, and effective in supporting vulnerable claimants, we keep the conditionality and sanctions policies and processes under continuous review.</p> answering member constituency East Ham answering member printed Sir Stephen Timms question first answered 16/09/2024 10:45:50 answering member 163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms
	tabling member	5210

1728253

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Poverty
	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 bring forward legislation to introduce target dates to eradicate poverty for vulnerable groups.
	tabling member constituency	Bournemouth East
	tabling member printed	Tom Hayes
	uin	4821
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/09/2024 answer text <p>We are committed to tackling poverty. As set out in our manifesto, good work will be the foundation of our approach for people of working age. Our New Deal for Working People, including ensuring that the minimum wage is a genuine living wage, along with reformed employment support will mean that many more people will benefit from the dignity and purpose of employment.</p><p> </p><p>We have also announced a number of initial steps to support children and families including free breakfast clubs in every primary school so children don’t go hungry, protecting renters from arbitrary eviction and banning exploitative zero hours contracts.</p><p> </p><p>Our Ministerial Taskforce, jointly chaired Work and Pensions and Education Secretaries, has started urgent work on an ambitious Child Poverty Strategy and will explore all available levers to drive forward actions across government to reduce child poverty, tackle its root causes and give every child the best start in life. The Strategy will be published in Spring 2025.</p><p><strong> </strong></p> answering member constituency Birkenhead answering member printed Alison McGovern question first answered 16/09/2024 13:18:19 answering member 4083 label Biography information for Alison McGovern
	tabling member	5210

1728254

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Employment: Disability
	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 close the disability employment gap by 2030.
	tabling member constituency	Bournemouth East
	tabling member printed	Tom Hayes
	uin	4822
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/09/2024 answer text <p>The Government has ambitious plans relating to employment, including disability employment, and we will be setting this out through a forthcoming White Paper, the Employment Rights Bill and the Equality (Race and Disability) Bill. We know that there is more to do to address the labour market challenges of today and tomorrow. A fully inclusive labour market that enables disabled people and people with health conditions to have access to the same opportunities as everyone else to the benefits of work is crucial to meeting our ambition for an 80% employment rate.</p> answering member constituency Birkenhead answering member printed Alison McGovern question first answered 16/09/2024 13:19:51 answering member 4083 label Biography information for Alison McGovern
	tabling member	5210

1728262

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Winter Fuel Payment: Low Incomes
	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 is taking to help mitigate the potential impact of the withdrawal of Winter Fuel Payments on low income non-Pension Credit recipient pensioners.
	tabling member constituency	Penistone and Stocksbridge
	tabling member printed	Dr Marie Tidball
	uin	4830
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/09/2024 answer text <p>Winter Fuel Payments will continue to be paid to pensioner households with someone receiving Pension Credit or certain other income-related benefits. They will continue to be worth £200 for eligible households, or £300 for eligible households with someone aged 80 and over.</p><p> </p><p>We know there are low-income pensioners who aren’t claiming Pension Credit, and we urge those people to apply. This will passport them to receive Winter Fuel Payment alongside other benefits – hundreds of pounds that could really help them. We will ensure that the poorest pensioners get the support they need.</p><p> </p><p>The State Pension is the foundation of income in retirement and will remain so protecting 12 million pensioners through the triple lock. Based on current forecasts, the full rate of the new state pension is set to increase by around £1,700 over the course of this Parliament.</p><p> </p><p>We are also providing support for pensioners through our Warm Homes Plan which will support investment in insulation and low carbon heating – upgrading millions of homes over this Parliament. Our long-term plan will protect billpayers permanently, reduce fuel poverty, and get the UK back on track to meet our climate goals.</p><p> </p><p>The Household Support Fund is also being extended for a further six months, from 1 October 2024 until 31 March 2025.   An additional £421 million will be provided to enable the extension of the HSF in England, plus funding for the Devolved Governments through the Barnett formula to be spent at their discretion, as usual.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>The Warm Home Discount scheme in England and Wales provides eligible low-income households across Great Britain with a £150 rebate on their electricity bill. This winter, we expect over three million households, including over one million pensioners, to benefit under the scheme.</p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 17/09/2024 16:12:14 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	5098

1728263

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Winter Fuel Payment: Disability
	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 is taking to help mitigate the potential impact of the withdrawal of Winter Fuel Payments on disabled non-Pension Credit recipient pensioners.
	tabling member constituency	Penistone and Stocksbridge
	tabling member printed	Dr Marie Tidball
	uin	4831
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/09/2024 answer text <p>Disability benefits provide a tax free, non-income-related contribution towards the extra costs people with a long-term health condition or disabilities can face, such as additional heating costs.</p><p> </p><p>Attendance Allowance can be worth up to £5,600 a year. Entitlement to Attendance Allowance is based on the on-going need for frequent personal care and attention, or supervision to ensure personal safety, rather than on the individual’s medical condition. It is paid out of general taxation and is a tax-free, non-contributory, and non-means-tested benefit so is not affected by other income or savings.</p><p> </p><p>Pensioners in receipt of Attendance Allowance and on a low-income may qualify for Pension Credit including an additional amount for disability providing they meet the other eligibility criteria.</p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 16/09/2024 16:05:54 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	5098

1728267

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Winter Fuel Payment: Great Yarmouth
	house id	1
	legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
	question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many pensioners in the Great Yarmouth council area will no longer receive the winter fuel allowance.
	tabling member constituency	Great Yarmouth
	tabling member printed	Rupert Lowe
	uin	4835
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/09/2024 answer text <p>It is estimated that around 19,300 pensioners in Great Yarmouth will be impacted by the decision to amend the eligibility criteria for the Winter Fuel Payment. This is based on February 2024 Pension Credit statistics which are available via <a href="https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/jsf/dataCatalogueExplorer.xhtml" target="_blank">DWP Stat-xplore</a> and the Winter Fuel Payment statistics for Winter 2022 to 2023 which are available via <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/winter-fuel-payment-statistics-for-winter-2022-to-2023" target="_blank">GOV.UK</a>.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p>This estimation is calculated by subtracting the number of people claiming Pension Credit in Great Yarmouth from the number of Winter Fuel Payment recipients in Great Yarmouth. This is essentially the number of Winter Fuel Payment recipients who are not claiming Pension Credit pre-policy change, as an estimate of those who will no longer receive the Winter Fuel Payment.</p><p> </p><p>Please note that the above figures do not take into account any potential increase in Pension Credit take-up that we might see as a result of the Government’s Pension Credit Awareness Campaign. We do not have data on those additional Pension Credit claims by Parliamentary constituencies or Local Authorities.</p><p> </p><p>The published Pension Credit figures refer to households rather than individuals, so the number of individuals receiving Pension Credit will be higher (i.e. taking account of households where it is a couple claiming Pension Credit).</p><p> </p><p>In addition, while Pension Credit claimants constitute the majority of those that will be eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment, pensioners who claim other qualifying means-tested benefits will also be eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment. It is not, however, possible to include those on other qualifying means-tested benefits in these figures.</p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 18/09/2024 09:20:06 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	5158

1728268

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Personal Independence Payment
	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 reduce the length of time to undertake a PIP review.
	tabling member constituency	Leeds North West
	tabling member printed	Katie White
	uin	4836
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/09/2024 answer text <p>We continue to prioritise new claims to PIP to ensure claims are put into payment as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, this means many customers are waiting longer than expected for their review to be undertaken.</p><p> </p><p>We have been actively recruiting additional Case Managers to meet increased demand for PIP, which means we are now in a position to begin to deploy additional resource onto award reviews. This will increase the number of review cases we can complete ‘in house’.</p><p> </p><p>We have just moved to a new contract for the delivery of health assessments and our new suppliers will be taking steps to ensure they have sufficient capacity to deliver the required volume of assessments. However, this may take time and there is an extensive training period for new Healthcare Professionals to ensure quality standards are maintained.</p><p> </p><p>We have introduced processes to increase efficiency and move cases through the system more quickly:</p><p> </p><ul><li>Where sufficient evidence/information is available, Case Managers can make decisions on reviews, avoiding the need for a functional assessment, which means many customers receive a decision faster.</li><li>Healthcare Professionals now complete most assessments by telephone, which means the vast majority of customers who need an assessment do not need to attend a face-to-face appointment at an Assessment Centre.</li><li>We’ve introduced a change for customers with the most severe conditions, on the highest level of support, who now receive an ongoing PIP award which is only subject to a light touch review every 10 years. .</li></ul><p> </p><p>For customers waiting for a review, we keep them regularly updated using SMS text messages. We also ensure all PIP customers awaiting a review remain in payment, extending awards for up to 12 months where necessary, notifying customers in writing to allay concerns.</p> answering member constituency East Ham answering member printed Sir Stephen Timms question first answered 16/09/2024 10:48:28 answering member 163 label Biography information for Sir Stephen Timms
	tabling member	5260

1728280

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled You could get Pension Credit – Week of Action to drive take up, published on 1 September 2024, whether she has made an assessment of the impact of that campaign on trends in the level of applications for Pension Credit.
	tabling member constituency	St Helens North
	tabling member printed	David Baines
	uin	4848
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/09/2024 answer text <p>The department has secured funding to support increased staffing and fund our communications strategy to support our programme of activity to drive up Pension Credit claims. The latest data available shows we have received around 38,500 Pension Credit claims in the 5 weeks since the announcement on 29th July (which is up to and including w/c 26th August).</p><p> </p><p>This represents a 115% increase in Pension Credit claims received by the Department in the past 5 weeks compared to the 5 weeks before.</p> answering member constituency Wycombe answering member printed Emma Reynolds question first answered 12/09/2024 13:58:38 answering member 4077 label Biography information for Emma Reynolds
	tabling member	5092

1728285

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Child Maintenance Service: Domestic Abuse
	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 the Child Maintenance Service in protecting victims of domestic abuse when using their service.
	tabling member constituency	Mid Cheshire
	tabling member printed	Andrew Cooper
	uin	4853
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/09/2024 answer text <p>The Department is assessing how it can provide statistics on domestic abuse now the application fee exemption statistics are no longer published. The Department's Chief Statistician will oversee the development of these statistics to make sure they meet the Code of Practice for Statistics.</p><p> </p><p>The Department takes the issue of domestic abuse extremely seriously and the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) offers an accessible, safe, and secure service for all parents. All CMS caseworkers receive training on how to identify the different types of abuse, including financial abuse and how they can appropriately support and signpost victims and survivors.</p><p> </p><p>The CMS reviews its domestic abuse training regularly to ensure caseworkers are equipped to support parents in vulnerable situations and the Department will continue to meet stakeholders regularly to maintain an open dialogue on how to improve the service.</p><p> </p><p>There are several secure ways to receive maintenance directly without having to divulge sensitive personal details, including for victims of domestic abuse and other vulnerable parents. The CMS can help arrange for payments to be made to bank accounts that cannot be traced to a physical location which helps to protect the parent’s location. The CMS does not put parents directly in touch with each other, nor does it share their current location via correspondence.</p><p> </p><p>A consultation on proposed reforms to the CMS was published by the previous Government on 8 May 2024. This included removing Direct Pay and managing all CMS cases in one service to allow the CMS to tackle non-compliance faster and explore how victims and survivors of domestic abuse can be better supported. This follows the Child Support Collection (Domestic Abuse) Act receiving royal assent in July 2023.</p><p> </p><p>The consultation has been extended to the 30 September 2024 to ensure full stakeholder engagement can take place.</p> answering member constituency Stretford and Urmston answering member printed Andrew Western grouped question UIN 4855 question first answered 17/09/2024 13:46:38 answering member 4979 label Biography information for Andrew Western
	tabling member	5195

1728287

	registered interest
	date	09/09/2024
	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	Child Maintenance Service: Domestic Abuse
	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 estimate of the number of victims of domestic abuse experiencing financial abuse while using the Child Maintenance Service.
	tabling member constituency	Mid Cheshire
	tabling member printed	Andrew Cooper
	uin	4855
	answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/09/2024 answer text <p>The Department is assessing how it can provide statistics on domestic abuse now the application fee exemption statistics are no longer published. The Department's Chief Statistician will oversee the development of these statistics to make sure they meet the Code of Practice for Statistics.</p><p> </p><p>The Department takes the issue of domestic abuse extremely seriously and the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) offers an accessible, safe, and secure service for all parents. All CMS caseworkers receive training on how to identify the different types of abuse, including financial abuse and how they can appropriately support and signpost victims and survivors.</p><p> </p><p>The CMS reviews its domestic abuse training regularly to ensure caseworkers are equipped to support parents in vulnerable situations and the Department will continue to meet stakeholders regularly to maintain an open dialogue on how to improve the service.</p><p> </p><p>There are several secure ways to receive maintenance directly without having to divulge sensitive personal details, including for victims of domestic abuse and other vulnerable parents. The CMS can help arrange for payments to be made to bank accounts that cannot be traced to a physical location which helps to protect the parent’s location. The CMS does not put parents directly in touch with each other, nor does it share their current location via correspondence.</p><p> </p><p>A consultation on proposed reforms to the CMS was published by the previous Government on 8 May 2024. This included removing Direct Pay and managing all CMS cases in one service to allow the CMS to tackle non-compliance faster and explore how victims and survivors of domestic abuse can be better supported. This follows the Child Support Collection (Domestic Abuse) Act receiving royal assent in July 2023.</p><p> </p><p>The consultation has been extended to the 30 September 2024 to ensure full stakeholder engagement can take place.</p> answering member constituency Stretford and Urmston answering member printed Andrew Western grouped question UIN 4853 question first answered 17/09/2024 13:46:38 answering member 4979 label Biography information for Andrew Western
	tabling member	5195