Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the estimation in Economic and Fiscal Outlook - March 2026 that health and disability benefits will increase to almost £110 billion by 2030.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions has slowed the increase in health and disability benefit caseloads, and in welfare spending as a proportion of GDP compared to the last Government.
The Timms Review, the first ever full review of PIP, was launched to ensure we have a system that supports disabled people to achieve better health, higher living standards and greater in-dependence, including through employment.
The steering group is now moving towards designing and testing its recommendations for change, which will be published in a final report in due course.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of pensioners with income at or near the level of the state pension who are now liable for income tax as a result of the freeze in personal allowance thresholds.
Answered by Lord Pitt-Watson - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The number of individual income taxpayers over State Pension Age can be seen in the table below[1]:
Tax year | Number of individual Income Taxpayers over State Pension Age |
2023 to 2024 | 8,160 |
2024 to 2025* | 8,780 |
2025 to 2026* | 9,080 |
2026 to 2027* | 9,580 |
*Projected estimates based on the 2023 to 2024 Survey of Personal Incomes using economic assumptions consistent with the OBR’s March 2026 Economic and Fiscal Outlook for the forecast period. | |
The previous Conservative Government made the decision to maintain income tax thresholds at their current levels from April 2021 until April 2028 and this is reflected in the numbers.
The current Government has set out that individuals whose only income is the basic or new State Pension, without increments, will not pay income tax over this Parliament. Further details on this will follow.
[1] Income Tax liabilities statistics: tax year 2022 to 2023 to tax year 2025 to 2026 - GOV.UK
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of changing the rates of Capital Gains Tax to move in line with income tax rates; and what assessment they have made of how effective such a change would be.
Answered by Lord Pitt-Watson - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Decisions on tax policy are taken by the Chancellor at fiscal events.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether the taper rate of Universal Credit should be changed.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The current taper rate of 55 per cent gradually withdraws Universal Credit as earnings increase, allowing customers to retain at least 45 pence of each additional £1 earned, striking the right balance between supporting work incentives and targeting support at those on the lowest incomes. This policy is kept under regular review to ensure it continues to provide the right incentives for people receiving Universal Credit to move into work and progress in employment.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what representations they have received following the decision of the Northern Ireland Minister for the Economy to exempt businesses employing fewer than 10 workers from the provisions on trade union recognition in the 'Good Jobs' Employment Rights Bill; and what is their assessment of the impact of that decision on Northern Ireland adherence to the principles set out for trade union members across the UK.
Answered by Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent - Captain of the King's Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard (HM Household) (Deputy Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Under Section 4, Paragraph 1 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998, employment law and trade union matters are transferred to the Northern Ireland Executive. Any decisions regarding employment law are therefore the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Executive.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that those in the criminal justice system benefit from the National Year of Reading.
Answered by Lord Timpson
The National Year of Reading is a welcome opportunity to promote a wide range of activity to improve literacy and engagement with reading for people in custody and on probation.
As part of this work we have appointed the first ever Prison Reading Laureate, the author Lee Child. He will champion the transformative power of reading across the criminal justice system, continue expansion of his successful literacy pilot programme which has been running in a number of prisons since 2025 and will bring in more authors to work with prisons across the country, promoting the benefits of reading to rehabilitation.
Reading is a priority for HMPPS who work with many voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations such as the Reading Agency and National Literacy Trust. A programme of work is planned throughout this year to improve national access to books and facilitate workshops with authors. The Youth Custody Service is also launching its first ever Literacy Festival to inspire reading amongst some of the most complex children in our society.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to promote literary enrichment in the criminal justice system as part of the National Year of Reading.
Answered by Lord Timpson
The National Year of Reading is a welcome opportunity to promote a wide range of activity to improve literacy and engagement with reading for people in custody and on probation.
As part of this work we have appointed the first ever Prison Reading Laureate, the author Lee Child. He will champion the transformative power of reading across the criminal justice system, continue expansion of his successful literacy pilot programme which has been running in a number of prisons since 2025 and will bring in more authors to work with prisons across the country, promoting the benefits of reading to rehabilitation.
Reading is a priority for HMPPS who work with many voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations such as the Reading Agency and National Literacy Trust. A programme of work is planned throughout this year to improve national access to books and facilitate workshops with authors. The Youth Custody Service is also launching its first ever Literacy Festival to inspire reading amongst some of the most complex children in our society.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to reinstate in-person interviews for all applicants for sickness benefits.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We already undertake a number of face-to-face health assessments for people applying for sickness benefits. However, as announced in Pathways to Work Green Paper, we are planning to increase the number of face-to-face assessments. We will preserve alternative health assessment channels to meet the specific needs of people who require a different channel, for example as a reasonable adjustment.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Chapman of Darlington on 20 May (HL7156), whether they plan to send a representative to the Turkish Cypriot Cultural Festival as part of their engagement with the Turkish Cypriot community.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington
The Government does not currently have plans to send a representative to the specific event referenced in PQ HL7889. However, we continue to engage members of the Cypriot diaspora and welcome the strong contribution that the diaspora has and continues to make to UK culture and communities.
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they have taken to work with the Turkish-Cypriot diaspora in the United Kingdom to promote community engagement and stronger ties between the United Kingdom and Northern Cyprus.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington
In accordance with the rest of the international community, with the sole exception of Turkey, the UK does not recognise the self-declared 'Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus' as an independent state. Several UN Security Council Resolutions and other multilateral agreements limit links between the UK and the north of Cyprus. However, we support measures aimed at reducing the isolation of the Turkish Cypriot community within these constraints. This includes promoting rule of law, good governance, open societies, and positive inter-communal relations. Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) officials regularly engage members of the Cypriot diaspora, including from the Turkish Cypriot community.