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1422637

registered interest
date	18/02/2022
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	Travel: Concessions
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department has taken to ensure eligible passengers are aware of the Jobcentre Plus Travel Discount Card.
tabling member constituency	Slough
tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
uin	125421
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/02/2022 answer text <p>The rail industry, together with the Department for Work and Pensions, provides the Jobcentre Plus Travel Discount Card that entitles card holders to a 50% discount on selected rail tickets. Certain bus operators also accept the card for discounts and Transport for London accept the card when attached to an Oyster Card. Information about the scheme is included on the National Rail website and the websites of participating rail operators as well as Gov.uk. Work Coaches will issue a fact sheet and application form to all claimants who wish to apply for scheme and meet the eligibility criteria. <strong>    </strong></p> answering member constituency Mid Sussex answering member printed Mims Davies question first answered 24/02/2022 15:33:08 answering member 4513 label Biography information for Mims Davies
tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1422638

registered interest
date	18/02/2022
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	Natural Gas: Safety
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the regulatory framework for gas safety; and what estimate she has made of the (a) number of prosecutions made in connection with installations that fail to meet the gas safe engineer rules in each of the last three years and (b) annual cost to consumers of unsafe works.
tabling member constituency	Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey
tabling member printed	Drew Hendry
uin	125293
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 24/02/2022 answer text <p>In 2018 following discussions with stakeholders the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) amended the current regulations, Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 (GSIUR).</p><p> </p><p>HSE continues to work across UK Government and industry to ensure the regulations are effective to maintain the safety of gas users not just today but in the development of future fuels that form part of the wider Net Zero Strategy.</p><p> </p><p>HSE is currently conducting a Post Implementation Review of the specific amendments they made to the regulations in 2018 and will be reporting their conclusions in 2023.</p><p> </p><p>Since the introduction of GSIUR, the number of reported gas-related fatalities has steadily declined from 48 in 1998/99 to 3 in 2020/21. While any number of fatalities is clearly unwanted, this substantive decline is evidence that these regulations have improved the safety of the gas landscape in GB and that they remain effective.</p><p> </p><p>HSE believes in firm but fair enforcement and the number of breaches prosecuted under GSIUR are outlined below:</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p><strong>Year</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>No. breaches prosecuted under GSIUR</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2018/19</p></td><td><p>46</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2019/20</p></td><td><p>74</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>2020/21</p></td><td><p>33</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The annual cost to consumers of unsafe work is not reported to or held by Government.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Norwich North answering member printed Chloe Smith question first answered 24/02/2022 14:56:10 answering member 1609 label Biography information for Chloe Smith
tabling member	4467 label Biography information for Drew Hendry

1422654

registered interest
date	18/02/2022
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: National Insurance
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 records instances of a person's National Insurance Number being used as a payment reference on benefits statements as a breach of the General Data Protection Regulation; and what steps her Department is taking to protect people's data.
tabling member constituency	Stockton South
tabling member printed	Matt Vickers
uin	125582
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/02/2022 answer text <p>The Department does not record instances of a person’s National Insurance Number (NINO) being used as a payment reference on benefits statement as a breach of General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR). DWP provide banks with a reference up to 18 characters which for most DWP Benefits incorporates the NINO. The Department is aware that banks use the information in the exact format provided to them by DWP, but ultimately how much of it appears on the customer’s statement is the responsibility of the bank.</p><p> </p><p>It is also important to note that the use of the NINO in this way does not breach the Data Protection Act as customers are made aware on the claim forms that their NINO may be shown on bank / building society account statements when payments are made.</p><p> </p><p>The Department takes the security of citizen data very seriously and its strategy is to treat it as an asset. We continue to embed data protection and security by design – ensuring we hold ourselves to the highest security and protection standards. The Department has a suite of security policies, supported by real time risk-based controls, procedures and education and awareness products to protect customer data from inappropriate access or disclosure to unauthorised third parties.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 28/02/2022 14:24:58 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4844 label Biography information for Matt Vickers

1422720

registered interest
date	18/02/2022
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Universal Credit
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate her Department has made of the (a) response time by work coaches to people who have submitted entries on their online universal credit journal, and (b) call waiting time for people seeking support with a universal credit claim from her Department’s helpline; and if she will make an assessment of the adequacy of those waiting times.
tabling member constituency	Slough
tabling member printed	Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi
uin	125419
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/02/2022 answer text <p>Universal Credit is a 24/7 digital service that allows claimants to manage their own data and account online. Via their account, claimants can check their Universal Credit benefit payments, notify us of changes and record notes on the online journal facility. The journal is primarily used to support work search activity and not every journal entry requires a response.</p><p> </p><p>The Case Manager or Work Coach receives a notification in real time each time a claimant submits an entry to their online journal. Journal entries are monitored daily as part of our case management approach.</p><p> </p><p>The Universal Credit helpline is available to support claimants who are unable to access digital services. We regularly review our resources, both internally and with our suppliers, to ensure we meet customer demand across all contact services, including our phone lines.</p><p> </p><p>Average Speed of Answer measures the average customer wait time from the point of entering a queue to connection to an agent. The Average Speed of Answer for all Universal Credit Service Lines for January 2022 was 33 seconds.</p><p> </p><p>Note: The data is derived from unpublished management information which was collected for internal departmental use only and has not been quality assured to National Statistics or Official Statistics publication standard. The data should therefore be treated with caution.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Macclesfield answering member printed David Rutley question first answered 23/02/2022 17:30:50 answering member 4033 label Biography information for David Rutley
tabling member	4638 label Biography information for Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi

1422753

registered interest
date	18/02/2022
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	State Retirement Pensions: British Nationals Abroad
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reason UK pensioners who have (a) fully contributed throughout their working lives and (b) moved abroad after retirement have their state pension frozen at the rate which applied when they emigrated; and if she will (i) review the ethical basis of and (ii) take steps to bring an end to that practice.
tabling member constituency	New Forest East
tabling member printed	Dr Julian Lewis
uin	124935
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/02/2022 answer text <p>The policy on the up-rating of UK State Pensions overseas is longstanding and has been supported by successive Governments for over 70 years. There are no plans to change this policy.</p><p> </p><p>This Government continues to take the view that priority should be given to those living in Great Britain when drawing up expenditure plans for pensioner benefits.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 23/02/2022 15:48:07 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	54 label Biography information for Sir Julian Lewis

1422783

registered interest
date	18/02/2022
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	Children: Maintenance
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 11 February 2022 to Question 119710 on Children: Maintenance, what steps her Department is taking to revise the step by step procedural instructions and training given to Child Maintenance Service caseworkers, in the context of the number of Deduction from Earnings Orders, instead of Deduction from Earnings Requests, to the Ministry of Defence’s Defence Business Services having increased between 2018-19 and 2020-21.
tabling member constituency	Linlithgow and East Falkirk
tabling member printed	Martyn Day
uin	125320
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 28/02/2022 answer text <p>The Child Maintenance Service (CMS) has introduced Modular learning products to re-enforce the correct process to follow in applying a Deduction from Earnings Request (DER). In April 2021, as part of a broader System automation improvement, there were additional education and supporting products implemented to support correct decision making, including the correct use of DERs.</p><p> </p><p>CMS uses Customer Insight to ensure it learns from customer experience and has used this in developing these products and building colleague conversations around adherence to procedures and the impact of not doing so.</p><p> </p><p>In the context of DERs, collaborative working with Ministry of Defence (MOD) through a dedicated Forces Focal point secures regular feedback to direct specific colleague upskilling and manage customer service. CMS Forces Focal Point work closely with MOD’s Joint Personnel Administration Centre (JPAC) and has responsibility for assuring correct implementation of DERs. This includes confirming if the Paying Parent is in receipt of full pay or if they deployed on Operations. This is designed to support the successful implementation of a DER.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 28/02/2022 14:28:05 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4488 label Biography information for Martyn Day

1422806

registered interest
date	18/02/2022
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	Identity Cards: Disability
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of introducing an identity scheme for people with hidden disabilities.
tabling member constituency	Aberavon
tabling member printed	Stephen Kinnock
uin	125195
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/02/2022 answer text <p>The Government has no plans to introduce a new national disability identity card. We are aware that some disabled people are actively against having to carry a card which confirms their impairment. Other people who may meet the criteria for the Equality Act 2010 definition of disability do not identify as disabled, yet may require reasonable adjustments.</p><p> </p><p>The Equality Act requires service providers to make adjustments to their practices, policies and procedures for all people who meet its definition of a disabled person, where reasonable.</p><p> </p><p>There are however a number of optional schemes and cards in the UK that have been created to meet particular needs and which give people the choice to use them if they wish, such as the Hidden Disability Sunflower Scheme which discreetly identifies where additional support may be needed and is gaining widespread recognition, and Nimbus Disability’s Access Card which can help when communicating with a business about the types of support or reasonable adjustments that might be needed to access their services.</p> answering member constituency Norwich North answering member printed Chloe Smith question first answered 23/02/2022 16:50:17 answering member 1609 label Biography information for Chloe Smith
tabling member	4359 label Biography information for Stephen Kinnock

1422813

registered interest
date	18/02/2022
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	State Retirement Pensions: Females
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when the last submission of evidence to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman's investigation into the communication of changes to women's State Pension age was made by her Department.
tabling member constituency	Paisley and Renfrewshire North
tabling member printed	Gavin Newlands
uin	125272
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/02/2022 answer text <p>The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman has not completed their 3-stage investigation. It would not be appropriate to comment whilst the investigation is ongoing; and section 7(2) of the Parliamentary Commissioner Act 1967 states that Ombudsman investigations “shall be conducted in private”.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 25/02/2022 11:43:40 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	4420 label Biography information for Gavin Newlands

1422817

registered interest
date	18/02/2022
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	Carer's Allowance
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of people in receipt of carers allowance receive the full amount.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Selly Oak
tabling member printed	Steve McCabe
uin	124957
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/02/2022 answer text <p>Of the 932,028 claimants in receipt of Carer's Allowance, 99.5% received the full amount of £67.60, as of August 2021 according to the latest data. The published data can be access here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/dwp-benefits-statistics-february-2022" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/dwp-benefits-statistics-february-2022</a></p> answering member constituency Norwich North answering member printed Chloe Smith question first answered 23/02/2022 15:52:47 answering member 1609 label Biography information for Chloe Smith
tabling member	298 label Biography information for Steve McCabe

1422819

registered interest
date	18/02/2022
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	Carer's Allowance
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment she has made of the potential merits of increasing carers allowance.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Selly Oak
tabling member printed	Steve McCabe
uin	124959
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/02/2022 answer text <p>I refer the Hon member to the answer I gave on 20 December 2021 to question number 91990.</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2021-12-13/91990%0d" target="_blank">https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2021-12-13/91990</a></p><p> </p> answering member constituency Norwich North answering member printed Chloe Smith question first answered 23/02/2022 15:40:32 answering member 1609 label Biography information for Chloe Smith
tabling member	298 label Biography information for Steve McCabe