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1144793

registered interest
date	04/09/2019
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	Universal Credit
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reasons her Department has decided that a 30 per cent deduction from a universal credit claimant’s standard allowance prevents those claimants from being exposed to excessive financial hardship.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Selly Oak
tabling member printed	Steve McCabe
uin	286621
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/09/2019 answer text <p>A claimant’s Universal Credit award will reflect individual circumstances, topping up any earnings or other income that they may have, so Universal Credit may constitute only a proportion of their total income.</p><p> </p><p>Our deductions policy is designed to protect vulnerable claimants by providing a last resort method for arrears of essential services which might otherwise result in those services being cut off, or being evicted from their home. Under Universal Credit there is a structured approach to deductions from benefit, which simplifies the current complex arrangements of the legacy system. This policy also enables social obligations to be enforced when other repayment methods have failed or are not cost effective.</p><p> </p><p>If a claimant is in financial difficulty as a result of the level of deductions being made they can contact the Department to request that a reduction in deductions be considered. Any adjustment to the rate of repayment will be based on the individual circumstances of the claimant. To support this intention, from October 2019 we are reducing the maximum rate of deductions to 30 per cent and from October 2021 we are increasing the maximum recovery period for advances from 12 to 16 months.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 09/09/2019 15:54:55 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	298 label Biography information for Steve McCabe

1144794

registered interest
date	04/09/2019
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	Universal Credit
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 20 June 2019 to Question 254731 on Universal Credit, for what reason there is a difference between the number of men and women that have been unable to repay their advance within 12 monthly instalments narrows for those aged 40 years old and over.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Selly Oak
tabling member printed	Steve McCabe
uin	286622
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/09/2019 answer text <p>The data supplied in answer to Question 254731 used May 2019 figures. This showed that of the 264,500 with an advance repayment more than 12 months old, 83,500 were aged over 40 years old, and 49,500 (59%) of those were male, and 34,000 (41%) were female. We would expect there to be a difference in the advances outstanding over 12 months’ figures, although the gender split in the original table is more pronounced.</p><p> </p><p>We have no evidence to explain this greater gender difference in outstanding advances over 12 months old.</p><p> </p><p>All data used in researching this response has been sourced from internal management information. It offers a snapshot in time and cannot be compared to any other, similar data released by the Department</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 09/09/2019 16:07:44 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	298 label Biography information for Steve McCabe

1144796

registered interest
date	04/09/2019
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	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 information her Department holds on reductions to deductions for claimants of universal credit in latest period for which data is available.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Selly Oak
tabling member printed	Steve McCabe
uin	286623
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/09/2019 answer text <p>The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.</p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 09/09/2019 13:38:08 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	298 label Biography information for Steve McCabe

1143537

registered interest
date	02/09/2019
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: Post-polio Syndrome
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether personal independence payment assessors receive training on the symptoms of post-polio syndrome so that they are able to identify the complex symptoms experienced by claimants with that syndrome.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Selly Oak
tabling member printed	Steve McCabe
uin	285189
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/09/2019 answer text <p>The Personal Independence Payment assessment is not a medical assessment and there is no requirement for the Health Professional to diagnose a condition and recommend treatment options. Health Professionals are trained to be experts in disability analysis and to assess how a disability or syndrome affects the functional capability of each individual claimant. Whilst there is no specific training relating to post-polio syndrome, all Health Professionals have access to a range of resources, including relevant training on specific impairments, including those that are mental, intellectual and cognitive, as well as experienced clinicians to support them in assessing claimants with conditions that they may not be familiar with.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson grouped question UIN 284945 question first answered 06/09/2019 11:05:40 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
tabling member	298 label Biography information for Steve McCabe

1143538

registered interest
date	02/09/2019
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: Post-polio Syndrome
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether personal independence payment assessments are adjusted to take account of the symptoms experienced by claimants diagnosed with post-polio syndrome.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Selly Oak
tabling member printed	Steve McCabe
uin	284945
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/09/2019 answer text <p>The Personal Independence Payment assessment is not a medical assessment and there is no requirement for the Health Professional to diagnose a condition and recommend treatment options. Health Professionals are trained to be experts in disability analysis and to assess how a disability or syndrome affects the functional capability of each individual claimant. Whilst there is no specific training relating to post-polio syndrome, all Health Professionals have access to a range of resources, including relevant training on specific impairments, including those that are mental, intellectual and cognitive, as well as experienced clinicians to support them in assessing claimants with conditions that they may not be familiar with.</p> answering member constituency North Swindon answering member printed Justin Tomlinson grouped question UIN 285189 question first answered 06/09/2019 11:05:40 answering member 4105 label Biography information for Justin Tomlinson
tabling member	298 label Biography information for Steve McCabe

1143562

registered interest
date	02/09/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Pension Credit
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 increase the number of eligible pensioners claiming pension credit.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Selly Oak
tabling member printed	Steve McCabe
uin	285190
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/09/2019 answer text <p>It is important to highlight that there are over 1.6 million people already claiming some £5.4 billion in Pension Credit but the Government wants to ensure that <em>all</em> pensioners eligible can claim the Pension Credit to which they are rightly entitled.</p><p>On a national basis the DWP targets activity on engaging with people who may be eligible to benefits at pivotal stages, such as when they claim State Pension or report a change in their circumstances. The DWP uses a wide range of channels to communicate information about benefits to potential customers; including information on <a href="https://gov.uk/" target="_blank">https://gov.uk/</a>, in leaflets and by telephone. DWP staff in Pension Centres and Jobcentres including visiting officers are able to provide help and advice about entitlement to benefits, as are staff in Local Authorities who administer Housing Benefit.</p><p> </p><p>Potential customers can use the Pension Credit <a href="https://www.gov.uk/pension-credit-calculator" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/pension-credit-calculator</a> to check if they are likely to be eligible and get an estimate of what they may receive. People wishing to claim Pension Credit can do so by calling the Freephone number 0800 99 1234.</p><p> </p><p>One of the best ways to reach eligible customers is through trusted stakeholder working in the community and we have developed the Pension Credit toolkit, as an on-line tool for agencies and welfare rights organisations to use in order to encourage Pension Credit take-up. It can be found at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pension-credit-toolkit" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pension-credit-toolkit</a></p><p> </p><p>The toolkit contains resources for anyone working with pensioners and includes guides to Pension Credit. It also contains publicity material and guidance designed to help older people understand how they could get Pension Credit and help organisations support someone applying for Pension Credit as well as ideas for encouraging take-up. The toolkit also provides links to information about disability and carers benefits.</p><p> </p><p>Most recently we have provided to relevant stakeholders a fact sheet about Pension Credit and the changes introduced on 15 May for mixed age couples to ensure that accurate information is available in the places where people are most likely to seek information.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 06/09/2019 13:13:15 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	298 label Biography information for Steve McCabe

1141826

registered interest
date	24/07/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Universal Credit: Fraud
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 22 July 2019 to Question 278344 on universal credit: fraud, what recourse is available to people, particularly vulnerable people, who have benefited financially but who were unaware that a universal credit advance was the source of the money.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Selly Oak
tabling member printed	Steve McCabe
uin	281563
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 09/09/2019 answer text <p>It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 09/09/2019 16:04:02 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	298 label Biography information for Steve McCabe

1141827

registered interest
date	24/07/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Universal Credit: Fraud
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 22 July 2019 to Question 278344, on Universal Credit: Fraud, over what period of time the 52 pages were shut down.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Selly Oak
tabling member printed	Steve McCabe
uin	281564
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/09/2019 answer text <p>As a result of internal work within the Department and pre-work with social media companies to identify accounts and determine their fraudulent nature, the first Social Media account was closed on the 9<sup>th</sup> July. We continue to work with social media sites to ensure any pages promoting benefit fraud are closed and have closed down 71 sites to date.</p> answering member constituency Hexham answering member printed Guy Opperman question first answered 05/09/2019 11:32:00 answering member 4142 label Biography information for Guy Opperman
tabling member	298 label Biography information for Steve McCabe

1141847

registered interest
date	24/07/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Parents: Low Incomes
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 a comparative assessment of the proportion of parents in low income families who are (a) out of work and (b) in part-time work (i) during the school summer holidays and (ii) at all other times in the school year.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Selly Oak
tabling member printed	Steve McCabe
uin	281571
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/09/2019 answer text <p>National statistics on the proportion of parents in low income families who are (a) out of work or (b) in part time work are published annually in the “Households Before Average Income” publication. These statistics are not possible to break down by distinct periods of the year.</p><p> </p><p>The statistics can be found using the link below, with the statistics for relative low income found in table 5.5ts, and the statistics for absolute low income found in table 5.8ts, both in the file “workingage-hbai-timeseries-1994-95-2017-18-tables”.</p><p> </p><p><a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/792784/hbai-2017-2018-tables-ods-files.zip" target="_blank">https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/792784/hbai-2017-2018-tables-ods-files.zip</a></p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 05/09/2019 13:55:46 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	298 label Biography information for Steve McCabe

1139894

registered interest
date	17/07/2019
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Universal Credit
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 15 July 2019 to Question 275662, what provision her Department makes for claimants who do not have access to the internet and are unable to check how their award is calculated and a breakdown of what deductions are being made.
tabling member constituency	Birmingham, Selly Oak
tabling member printed	Steve McCabe
uin	278343
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 02/09/2019 answer text <p>Our Universal Credit Claimant Survey, found that 98 per cent of claimants have internet access and did claim online, and the majority of those said they found the claim process overall to be straightforward. This can be accessed at:<a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/universal-credit-full-service-claimant-survey" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/universal-credit-full-service-claimant-survey</a></p><p>All Jobcentre Plus offices across the country have Wi-Fi and computers available for claimants to access the internet. For those that are still unable to access or use digital services, or are not able to travel, assistance to make and maintain their claim is available via the Freephone Universal Credit helpline. In exceptional circumstances, a home visit can be arranged to support a claimant in making and maintaining their claim.</p><p>The Work Coach or Case Manager supporting the claimant can inform them of how their award is calculated and the breakdown of their deductions and, where needed, can provide this in writing.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Colchester answering member printed Will Quince question first answered 02/09/2019 14:45:47 answering member 4423 label Biography information for Will Quince
tabling member	298 label Biography information for Steve McCabe