Show Search Form

Search Results

registered interest	true false
date	exactly: or between: and
answering body
answering dept id
answering dept short name
answering dept sort name
hansard heading
house id
legislature	pref label
question text
tabling member constituency
tabling member printed
uin
answer	is ministerial correction true false date of answer exactly: or between: and answer text answering member constituency answering member printed question first answered answering member label previous answer version answering member constituency answering member printed answering member label
tabling member	label

Search

1057082

registered interest
date	08/02/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Independent Case Examiner
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 improve the performance of the Independent Case Examiner.
tabling member constituency	Motherwell and Wishaw
tabling member printed	Marion Fellows
uin	218827
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/02/2019 answer text <p>During 2017/18, the Independent Case Examiner’s Office received high levels of demand.</p><p>In the 2018/19 reporting year, the Office received funding for thirteen additional staff and productivity increased. By the end of January 2019 the Office had cleared 1,047 complaints, compared to 782 at the end of January 2018.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 13/02/2019 12:31:56 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
tabling member	4440 label Biography information for Marion Fellows

1055034

registered interest
date	05/02/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Personal Independence Payment: Medical Examinations
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 21 January 2019 to Question 208914 on Personal Independence Payment: Medical Examinations, what her Department’s definition is of prescriptive.
tabling member constituency	Motherwell and Wishaw
tabling member printed	Marion Fellows
uin	217023
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/02/2019 answer text <p>The word ‘prescriptive’ is not defined in the Personal Independence Payment audit criteria.</p><p>Where DWP considers that assessment reports are not fit for purpose it may return them to Assessment Providers for rework, which will be carried out at their expense.</p><p>The criteria are that reports will be:</p><ul><li>fair and impartial;</li><li>legible and concise;</li><li>in accordance with relevant legislation;</li><li>comprehensive, clearly explaining the medical issues raised, fully clarifying any contradictions in evidence;</li><li>in plain English and free of medical jargon and unexplained medical abbreviations;</li><li>presented clearly; and</li><li>complete.</li></ul><p>The rework action to be taken by Assessment Providers will vary on a case-by-case basis. Wherever possible, cases should be discussed with the original Health Professional or referred back to them for further action to be taken.</p> answering member constituency Truro and Falmouth answering member printed Sarah Newton question first answered 12/02/2019 11:07:09 answering member 4071 label Biography information for Sarah Newton previous answer version 100775 answering member constituency Truro and Falmouth answering member printed Sarah Newton answering member 4071 label Biography information for Sarah Newton
tabling member	4440 label Biography information for Marion Fellows

1055055

registered interest
date	05/02/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Independent Case Examiner
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what her Department's target timetable is for deciding whether complaints to the Independent Case Examiner will be accepted for investigation; what (a) proportion and (b) number of complaints met that target in each year for which information is available; and how many complaints are currently awaiting a decision on whether or not they will be investigated.
tabling member constituency	Motherwell and Wishaw
tabling member printed	Marion Fellows
uin	217031
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/02/2019 answer text <p>Funding for the Independent Case Examiner’s (ICE) Office is reviewed on an annual basis. In the current financial year, the ICE Office has received funding for thirteen additional posts.</p><p> </p><p>Productivity in the ICE Office has increased by 34% in the current reporting year, with the Office having cleared 1,047 cased by the end of January 2019, compared with 782 in the same period during 2017/18.</p><p>The Office has an internal target to inform 90% of complainants within four weeks of its reciept, whether thier complaint can be accepted for investigation. The Office can only accept a complaint for investigation once it has (a) established that the complainant has exhausted the relevant business complaints process, and (b) reached agreement with the complainant regarding the scope of any investigation.</p><p> </p><p>The table below provides the available performance data.</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>Year</p></td><td><p>Number of complaints received</p></td><td><p>Number of complaints not accepted for investigation</p></td><td><p>Number of complaints accepted for investigation</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2017/18</p></td><td><p>5,886</p></td><td><p>2,247 (81% within internal target of four weeks)</p></td><td><p>3,639 (38% within internal target of four weeks)</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2018/19 (1<sup>st</sup> April 2018 to 6<sup>th</sup> February 2019)</p></td><td><p>4,169</p></td><td><p>2,928 (68% within internal target of four weeks)</p></td><td><p>1,073 (47% within internal target of four weeks)</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>As at 6<sup>th</sup> February 2019, there were 168 complainants awaiting a decision on whether their complaint could be accepted for examination.</p><p> </p><p>During the period covered by this response the Independent Case Examiner’s Office received 4,118 complaints from women concerning changes to State Pension age, which directly impacted on its ability to meet its internal target for determining whether a complaint can be accepted for examination.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 08/02/2019 12:40:02 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
tabling member	4440 label Biography information for Marion Fellows

1049995

registered interest
date	28/01/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Social Security Benefits: Overpayments
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the effect on the living standards of benefit claimants of the rate at which repayments of overpayments are repaid to her Department.
tabling member constituency	Motherwell and Wishaw
tabling member printed	Marion Fellows
uin	213410
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 31/01/2019 answer text <p>The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) balances a requirement to protect tax payer’s money with a duty to ensure that claimants are not placed in undue hardship by excessive deductions from their benefit.</p><p> </p><p>For this reason, the maximum deduction rates that can be applied to an on-going benefit award for the recovery of an overpayment are set out in legislation. Different deduction rates will be applied in different circumstances, with the highest rate only being applicable where an overpayment has been classified as fraud.</p><p> </p><p>DWP administers benefits to approximately 20 million people with a wide variety of individual circumstances so it is difficult to make a general assessment on living standards. Therefore, we apply any considerations of this type at an individual level. If a person states they cannot afford the proposed rate of recovery, they are asked to provide details of their income and expenditure. Their individual circumstances will then be taken into account and a temporary reduction in the rate of repayment may be agreed. In exceptional circumstances, a temporary suspension of recovery may be appropriate.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 31/01/2019 14:45:32 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
tabling member	4440 label Biography information for Marion Fellows

1045619

registered interest
date	21/01/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Employment and Support Allowance: Chronic Illnesses
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 Employment Support Allowance (ESA), how many and what proportion of people with the most severe health conditions and disabilities with lifetime award of ESA have been placed in the ESA Support Group or Universal Credit Limited Capability for Work and Work Related Activity category and are exempt from repeat assessments; what steps his Department has taken to ensure individuals with lifelong illnesses will not be required to be reassessed; and for what reasons decision-makers are allocating timeframes for the award of ESA for applicants whose ESA 50 forms have not been reviewed.
tabling member constituency	Motherwell and Wishaw
tabling member printed	Marion Fellows
uin	210604
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/01/2019 answer text <p>In response to (a)(i), information on the number of claimants who have met the severe conditions criteria for Employment and Support Allowance is published and can be found in tables 5a and 5b in the file which can be found at the following link:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/esa-outcomes-of-work-capability-assessments-including-mandatory-reconsiderations-and-appeals-december-2018" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/esa-outcomes-of-work-capability-assessments-including-mandatory-reconsiderations-and-appeals-december-2018</a></p><p> </p><p>With regard to (a)(ii), the information requested is not readily available and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.</p><p> </p><p>In response to (b), the Honourable lady might be interested to know that we have worked with healthcare professionals and other stakeholders to develop a set of criteria to switch off re-assessments for people with the most severe health conditions or disabilities (unless there is a change of circumstances). From 29 September 2017 those placed in ESA’s Support Group and the UC equivalent who have the most severe and lifelong health conditions or disabilities, whose level of function would always mean that they would have Limited Capability for Work and Work-Related Activity, and be unlikely ever to be able to move into work, will no longer be routinely reassessed.</p><p> </p><p>With regards to question (c) to clarify, all ESA50 questionnaires completed and returned by claimants are reviewed by a Healthcare Professional. Their advice to the decision maker including advice on the review period will be based on all of the evidence they have considered.</p> answering member constituency Truro and Falmouth answering member printed Sarah Newton question first answered 24/01/2019 13:46:27 answering member 4071 label Biography information for Sarah Newton
tabling member	4440 label Biography information for Marion Fellows

1043714

registered interest
date	18/01/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	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 her Department's target timetable is for applicants of personal independence payments to be notified of the decision on their application; and what (a) proportion and (b) number of applications met that target in each year for which information is available.
tabling member constituency	Motherwell and Wishaw
tabling member printed	Marion Fellows
uin	210050
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/01/2019 answer text <p>The Department does not have targets for Personal Independence Payment (PIP) applications.</p> answering member constituency Truro and Falmouth answering member printed Sarah Newton question first answered 23/01/2019 16:16:53 answering member 4071 label Biography information for Sarah Newton
tabling member	4440 label Biography information for Marion Fellows

1043721

registered interest
date	18/01/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Independent Case Examiner
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much money has been spent from the public purse on the running of the office of the Independent Case Examiner for each available year; and what her Department's plans are for the future funding on that office.
tabling member constituency	Motherwell and Wishaw
tabling member printed	Marion Fellows
uin	210055
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/01/2019 answer text <p>Funding for the Independent Case Examiner’s Office is reviewed on an annual basis. The table below provides details of the budget allocated to the Office in the last four financial years.</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>Financial Year (April to March)</p></td><td><p>Amount</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2015/16</p></td><td><p>£2,563,702</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2016/17</p></td><td><p>£2,733,114</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2017/18</p></td><td><p>£2,534,005</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2018/19</p></td><td><p>£3,008,587</p></td></tr></tbody></table> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 23/01/2019 14:58:53 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
tabling member	4440 label Biography information for Marion Fellows

1043722

registered interest
date	18/01/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Independent Case Examiner
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the Independent Case Examiner's ability to process complaints in a timely manner.
tabling member constituency	Motherwell and Wishaw
tabling member printed	Marion Fellows
uin	210056
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/01/2019 answer text <p>The Independent Case Examiner (ICE) is appointed under contract to adjudicate on escalated complaints about DWP and its contracted service providers, in cases where the complainant has exhausted the relevant internal complaints process and remains dissatisfied. If a complainant is dissatisfied with the outcome of an ICE investigation, or the service provided by the Office (including processing times) they can ask their Member of Parliament to escalate their complaint to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman. The Permanent Secretary is apprised of the Ombudsman’s findings each year.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 23/01/2019 14:50:19 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
tabling member	4440 label Biography information for Marion Fellows

1043723

registered interest
date	18/01/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Independent Case Examiner
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what her Department's target timetable is for complaints to the Independent Case Examiner to be concluded; and what (a) proportion and (b) number of complaints met that target in each year for which information.
tabling member constituency	Motherwell and Wishaw
tabling member printed	Marion Fellows
uin	210057
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/01/2019 answer text <p>The table below provides details of the clearance time targets for the Independent Case Examiner’s Office and its performance against those targets since they were introduced in their current form.</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p> </p></td><td><p>Resolution: Aim to resolve the complaint, to the complainants satisfaction, within 8 weeks of it being accepted for investigation</p></td><td><p>Settlement: Aim to settle the complaint, to the complainants satisfaction, with 15 weeks of the investigation commencing</p></td><td><p>ICE Report: Aim to issue the ICE Report within 20 weeks of the investigation commencing</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2015/16</strong></p></td><td><p>80 complaints resolved 79% within target</p></td><td><p>91 complaints settled 74% within target</p></td><td><p>586 ICE Reports 56% within target</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2016/17</strong></p></td><td><p>84 complaints resolved 86% within target</p></td><td><p>127 complaints settled 87% within target</p></td><td><p>660 ICE Reports 41% within target</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2017/18</strong></p></td><td><p>83 complaints resolved 74% within target</p></td><td><p>141 complaints settled 84% within target</p></td><td><p>698 ICE Reports 40% within target</p></td></tr><tr><td><p><strong>2018/19</strong> <strong>(April to December 2018)</strong></p></td><td><p>131 complaints resolved 68% within target</p></td><td><p>139 complaints settled 81% within target</p></td><td><p>628 ICE Reports 45% within target</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson question first answered 23/01/2019 14:42:35 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
tabling member	4440 label Biography information for Marion Fellows

1041702

registered interest
date	15/01/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Personal Independence Payment: Medical Examinations
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether auditors from her Department have the authority to instruct health professionals to make mandatory (a) specific and (b) general amendments to Independent Assessment Service reports.
tabling member constituency	Motherwell and Wishaw
tabling member printed	Marion Fellows
uin	208914
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/01/2019 answer text <p>The quality assurance audit process following consultation is in place to ensure that the report the Health Professional provides to the Department is of a high standard. This is a very important part of the process to check the information provided is fully explained and justified.</p><p>Where assessments have been graded as either ‘acceptable - report amendment required’ or ‘unacceptable’ the reports are returned to the Assessment Provider for remedial activity. Where possible, this activity should be taken by the Health Professional who carried out the original assessment. DWP is not prescriptive on how changes should be made. The Assessment Provider is responsible for ensuring the returned report is then fit for purpose prior to resubmitting it to DWP.</p> answering member constituency Truro and Falmouth answering member printed Sarah Newton question first answered 21/01/2019 13:27:16 answering member 4071 label Biography information for Sarah Newton
tabling member	4440 label Biography information for Marion Fellows