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Written Question
Personal Independence Payment: Tribunals
Monday 6th April 2020

Asked by: Baroness Thomas of Winchester (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they are taking to address the reported backlog of Personal Independence Payments tribunal claims.

Answered by Lord Keen of Elie

HM Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS) has been working with the Tribunal’s judiciary both to appoint additional judges and panel members and to list more Personal Independence Payment (PIP) appeals into each tribunal session. Case-management “triage” sessions have also been introduced, with the aim of reducing the time taken for appeals to reach final determination. In addition, HMCTS has recently launched a new digital service with a view to enabling speedier processing of appeals.

All these measures have the aim of increasing the capacity of the Tribunal and reducing the time taken to deal with PIP appeals. The number of PIP appeals outstanding in the latest period for which data are available shows a decrease of 13% when compared to the same period in 2018.


Written Question
Personal Independence Payment: West Yorkshire
Wednesday 5th February 2020

Asked by: Baroness Thomas of Winchester (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the longest waiting time for Personal Independence Payments tribunals for claimants in West Yorkshire.

Answered by Lord Keen of Elie

The information requested is not held centrally.


Written Question
Disability Living Allowance: Appeals
Tuesday 8th October 2019

Asked by: Baroness Thomas of Winchester (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what percentage of appeals against Disability Living Allowance decisions by claimants before tribunals have been successful during the last quarter for which figures are available.

Answered by Lord Keen of Elie

Between April and June 2019 (the latest quarter for which data are available), 75% of Personal Independence Payment appeals were successful1; for Disability Living Allowance appeals, it was 67%.


Written Question
Personal Independence Payment: Appeals
Tuesday 8th October 2019

Asked by: Baroness Thomas of Winchester (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what percentage of appeals against Personal Independence Payment decisions by claimants before tribunals have been successful during the last quarter for which figures are available.

Answered by Lord Keen of Elie

Between April and June 2019 (the latest quarter for which data are available), 75% of Personal Independence Payment appeals were successful1; for Disability Living Allowance appeals, it was 67%.


Written Question
Personal Independence Payment: Appeals
Thursday 6th June 2019

Asked by: Baroness Thomas of Winchester (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to decrease waiting times for Personal Independence Payment tribunal appeals.

Answered by Lord Keen of Elie

It is important that appeals are heard as quickly as possible. The Ministry of Justice recognises that there are delays in the system and is in the process of recruiting more judicial office holders in order to increase capacity and help to reduce waiting times for appellants. In the Social Security and Child Support (SSCS) jurisdiction, 225 new medical members and 119 disability-qualified members have recently been appointed and are now hearing cases. The SSCS jurisdiction will also benefit from the fact that 250 fee-paid judges and 100 salaried judges are being recruited across tribunals more widely. In addition, we have recently launched a new digital service with a view to enabling speedier processing of appeals and providing a better service for all parties to the proceedings.


Written Question
Personal Independence Payment: Appeals
Thursday 14th March 2019

Asked by: Baroness Thomas of Winchester (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Buscombe on 13 February (HL13342), what steps they are taking to reduce the waiting time for Personal Independence Payment appeals from the date on which an appeal is lodged to the final outcome.

Answered by Lord Keen of Elie

The Ministry of Justice recognises that there are delays in the system and is in the process of recruiting more judicial office holders in order to increase capacity and help to reduce waiting times for appellants. In the Social Security and Child Support (SSCS) jurisdiction, 225 new medical members have already been appointed and 119 disability-qualified members have recently been recruited. The SSCS jurisdiction will also benefit from the fact that 250 fee-paid judges and 100 salaried judges are being recruited across tribunals more widely. In addition, we have recently launched a new digital service with a view to enabling speedier processing of appeals and providing a better service for all parties to the proceedings. Information on the new digital service can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/appeal-benefit-decision/submit-appeal


Written Question
Tribunals
Wednesday 9th November 2016

Asked by: Baroness Thomas of Winchester (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Keen of Elie on 17 October (HL2078), which stakeholders, including disability groups, officials are engaging with, and on what relevant matters, in the consultation on the tribunal system <i>Transforming our Justice System</i>.

Answered by Lord Keen of Elie

‘Transforming our Justice System’ sets out the Government’s plans to modernise the justice system and it consults on specific elements of these reform proposals. This includes certain issues that are relevant to the tribunals, such as tribunal panel composition and the provision of ‘assisted digital’ services.


As the noble Lady will be aware, the consultation is available to the public, and anyone with an interest is welcome to feed in their views. Ministry of Justice and HMCTS have engaged directly with the judiciary, who are fundamental to the success of reform, in considering the operational implications of the reform proposals. They have also engaged and worked with other relevant Government departments, key legal institutions, and a range of stakeholders with an interest in disability and mental health. These discussions are ongoing and will continue as the plans are further developed and implemented.


Written Question
Social Security Benefits: Appeals
Thursday 27th October 2016

Asked by: Baroness Thomas of Winchester (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the proposal to remove a panel member with direct experience of disability from appeals for Disability Living Allowance, Personal Independence Payment and Attendance Allowance.

Answered by Lord Keen of Elie

The Government is investing close to £1 billion to reform and digitise our courts and tribunals to deliver swifter and more certain justice.

Technology will be at the forefront of our reforms but specific support will be provided to ensure tribunals remain accessible to all and physical hearings will continue to be used to resolve many cases.

An impact assessment was published alongside the Transforming our Justice System consultation paper.

The panel composition reforms will ensure that the most appropriate panel is always selected to hear a case. As now, relevant expertise will always be available where needed, regardless of how a case is resolved. The Senior President of Tribunals will continue to determine when panel members are used.


Written Question
Tribunals
Monday 17th October 2016

Asked by: Baroness Thomas of Winchester (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government why the consultation on transforming the tribunal system <i>Transforming our Justice System</i> is not cross-referenced to the Department for Work and Pensions consultations website, given its relevance to the appeals process for Personal Independence Payment.

Answered by Lord Keen of Elie

The noble Lady will be aware that the Government is investing £1 billion to modernise our world-leading justice system. That means creating a system that is just, proportionate and accessible.

The ‘Transforming our Justice System’ consultation is about the administration of justice across all courts and tribunals and not one specific area. My officials are engaging with appropriate stakeholders, including disability groups, on relevant matters.