Personal Independence Payment

Debate between Lord Clark of Windermere and Baroness Buscombe

Wednesday 10th October 2018 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Buscombe]

I am pleased to say to the noble Baroness that appeals actually reduced by 9% in the last quarter, April to June of this year. We are doing a great deal to try to ensure that we get the decision right the first time. To that end, we have changed the guidance to ensure that those on the highest awards, with needs that will not change or will deteriorate, get an ongoing award; we have made changes to the PIP assessment guide; we have restructured our decision letters to make them easier to understand; we have introduced mental health champions to support assessors who undergo specific training to emphasise the functional effects of mental health conditions; we have launched a series of videos outlining the claim process in a simple and clear way; and, to help to improve trust in the assessment process, we are considering options to video record PIP assessments. We are designing a live-testing pilot, due to begin later this year. I assure all noble Lords that my honourable friend in another place, the Minister for Disability, is constantly looking at ways to improve.

[Lord Clark of Windermere (Lab)]

My Lords, will all those individuals who were assessed for PIP in the months leading up to the judicial interference be reassessed? Will they be informed that they are going to be reassessed, and will they be informed of the outcome?

[Baroness Buscombe]

The answer to all those questions is simply yes.