The UK State Pension is a contributory based pension payable worldwide, without regard to nationality, to those who meet the eligibility criteria. But it is up-rated abroad only where there is a legal requirement to do so - for example, where UK State Pension recipients are living within the European Economic Area, Switzerland and Gibraltar or in countries where there is a reciprocal agreement that provides for up-rating of the UK State Pension. This is a longstanding policy of successive Governments which has remained consistent for around 70 years.<\/p>
<\/p>
At May 2017, the latest date for which data is available, there were 1,215,200 recipients of the State Pension residing overseas; 678,100 recipients were resident in countries where annual increases of State Pension are paid, and 537,100 recipients were resident in countries where the State Pension is not up-rated. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 100.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/3349", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Baroness Buscombe"} } , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Baroness Buscombe"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2018-01-08", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "groupedQuestionUIN" : {"_value" : "HL4404"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2018-01-08T17:04:50.083Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "29"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2017-12-21", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "State Retirement Pensions: British Nationals Abroad"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "2"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25277", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Lords"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask Her Majesty's Government how many state pensions are being paid to people living overseas.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4303", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Baroness Kennedy of Cradley"} } , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Baroness Kennedy of Cradley"} ], "uin" : "HL4403"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/810436", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Work and Pensions"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/810436/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
The UK State Pension is a contributory based pension payable worldwide, without regard to nationality, to those who meet the eligibility criteria. But it is up-rated abroad only where there is a legal requirement to do so - for example, where UK State Pension recipients are living within the European Economic Area, Switzerland and Gibraltar or in countries where there is a reciprocal agreement that provides for up-rating of the UK State Pension. This is a longstanding policy of successive Governments which has remained consistent for around 70 years.<\/p>
<\/p>
At May 2017, the latest date for which data is available, there were 1,215,200 recipients of the State Pension residing overseas; 678,100 recipients were resident in countries where annual increases of State Pension are paid, and 537,100 recipients were resident in countries where the State Pension is not up-rated. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 100.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/3349", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Baroness Buscombe"} } , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Baroness Buscombe"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2018-01-08", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "groupedQuestionUIN" : {"_value" : "HL4403"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2018-01-08T17:04:50.143Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "29"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2017-12-21", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "State Retirement Pensions: British Nationals Abroad"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "2"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25277", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Lords"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask Her Majesty's Government how many people living overseas (1) benefit from annual state pension increases, and (2) have their state pension frozen.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4303", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Baroness Kennedy of Cradley"} } , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Baroness Kennedy of Cradley"} ], "uin" : "HL4404"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/810489", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Work and Pensions"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/810489/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
The Government is carrying out an ongoing programme of assessment work since the Referendum. This will inform our negotiating position with the EU, to define our deep and special partnership and inform our understanding of how EU exit will affect the UK\u2019s domestic policies and frameworks. The Department for Work and Pensions is working in close coordination with the Department for Exiting the European Union, to ensure the delivery of a holistic programme.<\/p>
<\/p>
The Department\u2019s EU exit work is being centrally co-ordinated, but the breadth of issues to be considered, and the interactions between EU exit work and the Department\u2019s other priorities, mean that it is not possible to provide an estimate of staff numbers, or time spent, on work in this area.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4014", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Sir Alok Sharma"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Reading West"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Alok Sharma"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2018-01-12", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2018-01-12T12:32:40.99Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "29"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2017-12-21", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Department for Work and Pensions: Brexit"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions,what estimate he has made of the (a) amount of time and (b) resources that his Department allocated to the production of impact assessments on the UK leaving the EU; and on what date work on those impact assessments started.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/151", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Tom Brake"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Carshalton and Wallington"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Tom Brake"} ], "uin" : "120835"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/810506", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Work and Pensions"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/810506/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
It is important to ensure that decisions on whether someone meets the severe conditions criteria are based on a Work Capability Assessment. This way the claimant has the best opportunity to share with us the most up to date information about the functional impacts of their health condition.<\/p>
<\/p>
Guidance used by Healthcare Professionals, who undertake the Assessments, has been designed to have the least possible impact on claimants. We will ask claimants to complete a new health questionnaire, and where appropriate we will ask their General Practitioner or Specialist Healthcare Professional for further, supporting evidence, so that in the vast majority of cases we should be able to make a decision on whether someone meets the criteria without the need for a face to face assessment.<\/p>
<\/p>
I am meeting the Motor Neurone Disease Association in February to discuss the implications of the introduction of the severe condition criteria.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4071", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Sarah Newton"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Truro and Falmouth"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Sarah Newton"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2018-01-10", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2018-01-10T15:33:06.803Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "29"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2017-12-21", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Employment and Support Allowance: Motor Neurone Disease"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 13 July 2017 to Question 3475 on Employment and Support Allowance: Motor Neurone Disease, if he will publish the process required for the 600 people with motor neurone disease who were in the support group for Employment and Support Allowance on 29 September when the severe conditions exemption commenced and are due a reassessment; and if he will make a statement.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4634", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Christine Jardine"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Edinburgh West"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Christine Jardine"} ], "uin" : "120852"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/810509", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Work and Pensions"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/810509/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
Universal Credit Full Service is a digital service designed to enable customers to manage their own data and account online at a time which is convenient for them. As well as giving them access to online statements for payment information, and their journal for interacting with their dedicated Case Manager and Work Coach, customers are able to report changes online when they would previously have called us.<\/p>
<\/p>
We do not currently hold any management information that specifically correlates abandoned calls to use of online services. However, as of November 2017, the percentage of customers claiming online is over 95%, and those reporting changes online is now over 80%. This type of channel shift is helping reduce the calls we receive as a percentage of the caseload: Universal Credit Full Service calls per claim ratio has decreased from 2.7 in April 2016 to 1.0 by the end of October 2017.<\/p>
<\/p>
There was no cost to the public purse for abandoned calls as this forms part of the contract we have with BT, and following the introduction of the free phone numbers to Universal Credit helplines in November 2017 there will no longer be a cost to the customer.<\/p>
<\/p>
Between September 2016 and October 2017 the average length of time before a call was voluntarily abandoned by the Universal Credit Full Service customer was 5 minutes 19 seconds.<\/p>
<\/p>
Notes \u2013<\/p>
<\/p>
1) The data supplied 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>
2) Data is not yet available for November 2017.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/3969", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Damian Hinds"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "East Hampshire"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Damian Hinds"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2018-01-08", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2018-01-08T12:37:18.62Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "29"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2017-12-21", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Universal Credit: Telephone Services"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 19 December to Question 118690, on Universal Credit: Telephone Services, what the evidential basis is to support the position that people abandoned calls to use the online service; what the cost to the public purse was of abandoned calls in each month since September 2016; and what the average length of abandoned calls was in that time period.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4569", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Jim McMahon"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Oldham West and Royton"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Jim McMahon"} ], "uin" : "121092"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/810510", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Work and Pensions"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/810510/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
There are a number of factors that impact on the length of time taken to complete the report following the assessment, for example, whether the assessment was conducted in a person\u2019s home or at an assessment centre. As the Second Independent Review of PIP acknowledged, the logistics in organising and conducting home visits will introduce some time delay in writing up reports immediately after the assessment.<\/p>
<\/p>
The Department expects assessment reports to be completed in a timely manner following the assessment but does not set a fixed timeframe for the completion of assessment reports following the assessment.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4071", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Sarah Newton"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Truro and Falmouth"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Sarah Newton"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2018-01-11", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2018-01-11T17:55:32.123Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "29"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2017-12-21", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Personal Independence Payment: Medical Examinations"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to recommendation eight of the Government\u2019s response to the Second Independent Review of the Personal Independence Payment Assessment, Cm 9540, what the optimum timeframe is for the completion of assessment reports after the assessment has taken place.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4488", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Martyn Day"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Linlithgow and East Falkirk"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Martyn Day"} ], "uin" : "120855"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/810511", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Work and Pensions"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/810511/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
We are developing a process to gather information from Healthcare Professionals who deliver PIP assessments to gauge their opinion on the timescales needed to prepare effectively for assessments. This is due early 2018. The evaluation of the pilot, will help inform decisions about the specification for future contracts regarding pre-assessment preparation.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4071", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Sarah Newton"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Truro and Falmouth"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Sarah Newton"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2018-01-11", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2018-01-11T17:58:12.253Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "29"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Work and Pensions"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2017-12-21", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Personal Independence Payment: Medical Examinations"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to recommendation six of the Government\u2019s response to the Second Independent Review of the Personal Independence Payment Assessment, Cm 9540, what the timescale is for the proposed pilot due in early 2018 to understand the benefits of early case preparation in more complex cases.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4488", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Martyn Day"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Linlithgow and East Falkirk"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Martyn Day"} ], "uin" : "120856"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/810542", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Work and Pensions"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/810542/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "