Baroness Thomas of Winchester
Main Page: Baroness Thomas of Winchester (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)Personal Independence Payments
Baroness Thomas of Winchester Excerpts
Baroness Thomas of Winchester
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking in response to the First Tier Tribunal overturning 70 per cent of the decisions of the Department for Work and Pensions in respect of Personal Independence Payments assessments between April and June.
Baroness Thomas of Winchester (LD) [V]
My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper and declare that I receive a disability benefit.
Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con)
My Lords, in the majority of PIP cases, there is no appeal. From April 2013 to March 2021, 4.4 million initial decisions following a PIP assessment were made. By June 2021, 9% have been appealed and only 5% overturned at appeal. We have recently made improvements to our decision-making processes to ensure that more disabled people and people with health conditions get the support they are entitled to as quickly as possible.
Baroness Thomas of Winchester (LD) [V]
My Lords, I thank the Minister and welcome that reply—as far as it went. However, is it not high time that assessments right now are improved, which would make most of these PIP appeals unnecessary? If assessors need reports from GPs or other healthcare professionals, they should ask for them at the mandatory reconsideration stage. Does the Minister also agree that there is no point in reassessing those with a progressive condition?
Baroness Scott of Bybrook (Con)
I agree with the noble Baroness’s second point, and that is what we are doing. If a person has long-term health needs, they are not being reassessed as they were. We are changing the way we do things. Since 2019, we have had a holistic approach to decision-making, particularly in the mandatory reconsideration stage after the first assessment. That gives time for people to talk to the claimant and get further evidence to support their claim. This means that fewer people are now going to appeal.