The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is responsible for welfare, pensions and child maintenance policy. As the UK’s biggest public service department it administers the State Pension and a range of working age, disability and ill health benefits to around 20 million claimants and customers.
Members of the Education and Work and Pensions Select Committees have decided to undertake an inquiry that will consider how …
Oral Answers to Questions is a regularly scheduled appearance where the Secretary of State and junior minister will answer at the Dispatch Box questions from backbench MPs
Other Commons Chamber appearances can be:Westminster Hall debates are performed in response to backbench MPs or e-petitions asking for a Minister to address a detailed issue
Written Statements are made when a current event is not sufficiently significant to require an Oral Statement, but the House is required to be informed.
Department for Work and Pensions does not have Bills currently before Parliament
A Bill to make provision about pension schemes; and for connected purposes.
This Bill received Royal Assent on 29th April 2026 and was enacted into law.
A Bill to Make provision to remove the two child limit on the child element of universal credit.
This Bill received Royal Assent on 18th March 2026 and was enacted into law.
A Bill to make provision about the prevention of fraud against public authorities and the making of erroneous payments by public authorities; about the recovery of money paid by public authorities as a result of fraud or error; and for connected purposes.
This Bill received Royal Assent on 2nd December 2025 and was enacted into law.
Make provision to alter the rates of the standard allowance, limited capability for work element and limited capability for work and work-related activity element of universal credit and the rates of income-related employment and support allowance.
This Bill received Royal Assent on 3rd September 2025 and was enacted into law.
e-Petitions are administered by Parliament and allow members of the public to express support for a particular issue.
If an e-petition reaches 10,000 signatures the Government will issue a written response.
If an e-petition reaches 100,000 signatures the petition becomes eligible for a Parliamentary debate (usually Monday 4.30pm in Westminster Hall).
We call on the Government to fairly compensate WASPI women affected by the increases to their State Pension age and the associated failings in DWP communications.
Raise statutory maternity/paternity pay to match the National Living Wage
Gov Responded - 25 Apr 2025 Debated on - 27 Oct 2025Statutory maternity and paternity pay is £4.99 per hour for a full-time worker on 37.5 hours per week - approximately 59% less than the 2024 National Living Wage of £12.21 per hour for workers aged 21+, which has been set out to ensure a basic standard of living.
Commons Select Committees are a formally established cross-party group of backbench MPs tasked with holding a Government department to account.
At any time there will be number of ongoing investigations into the work of the Department, or issues which fall within the oversight of the Department. Witnesses can be summoned from within the Government and outside to assist in these inquiries.
Select Committee findings are reported to the Commons, printed, and published on the Parliament website. The government then usually has 60 days to reply to the committee's recommendations.
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It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
It has not proved possible to respond to this question in the time available before Prorogation. Ministers will correspond directly with the Member.
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Information about waivers used in the past five years under the Great Britain (GB) Prior Informed Consent (PIC) Regulations is in the table provided below:
Year | Exports notified | Waivers used for export |
2025 | 962 | 12 (1.2% of exports notified) |
2024 | 853 | 24 (2.8% of exports notified) |
2023 | 914 | 21 (2.3% of exports notified) |
2022 | 919 | 22 (2.4% of exports notified) |
2021 | 1017 | 25 (2.5% of exports notified) |
Prior to 2021, and so during the time when the United Kingdom was a member of the European Union, waivers were issued by the European Commission.
The current waiver provision in the GB PIC Regulations applies hazard criteria to the use of the waiver for those chemicals that are listed under the Rotterdam Convention (i.e., those chemicals listed in Part 3 of the GB PIC list). This goes beyond what the Convention requires and potentially creates a barrier to the export of a chemical that falls within these criteria when the importing country fails to respond to repeated requests for consent to import.
In order to facilitate regulatory decision-making, harmonise conditions, and create greater clarity for businesses, the draft Chemicals (Health and Safety) (Amendment, Consequential and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2026 includes an amendment to Article 14(7) in the GB PIC Regulations. This will ensure the same waiver conditions apply to all chemicals that require explicit/prior informed consent to import.
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The government has committed to reviewing Universal Credit. I have spoken to many stakeholders on many different parts of UC, including how the system supports self-employed customers. We have engaged extensively with stakeholders, frontline staff and customers, including a large-scale survey of nearly 10,000 Universal Credit customers.
Housing Benefit regulations contain a landlord definition used to determine whether supported housing and supported living qualifies as specified accommodation. Exempt accommodation is one of four categories of specified accommodation. Exempt accommodation can only be provided by non-metropolitan county councils in England, housing associations, registered charities and voluntary organisations where that body, or person acting on its behalf, also provides the claimants with care, support or supervision. Non-metropolitan county councils in England were included in the definition because these authorities were the only ones who did not administer Housing Benefit.
We continue to keep this under review and are considering ways in which this definition could be improved as we progress work with MHCLG to implement the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act. Any future decision on whether the definition should be changed will be considered in the context of the Government’s missions, including Local Government Reorganisation, as well as goals on housing and the financial environment.
Housing Benefit regulations contain a landlord definition used to determine whether supported housing and supported living qualifies as specified accommodation. Non-metropolitan county councils in England were included in the definition because these authorities were the only ones who did not administer Housing Benefit.
We continue to keep this under review and are considering ways in which this definition could be improved as we progress work with MHCLG to implement the Supported Housing (Regulatory Oversight) Act. Any future decision on whether the definition should be changed will be considered in the context of the Government’s missions, including Local Government Reorganisation, as well as goals on housing and the financial environment.
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