Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to ensure jobseekers with complex disabilities receive the support and equipment they need to look for work.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We are delivering the biggest employment support package for disabled people and people with health conditions in more than a generation, worth a total of £3.8 billion over this Parliament. We are building towards a guarantee of personalised work, health and skills support to improve returns to work. Once fully rolled out this will include:
Further to this, we are reviewing all aspects of Access to Work as we develop plans for reform. The Access to Work Scheme provides grant funding to disabled people, as well as those with a health condition, to support workplace adjustments that go beyond what would normally be expected from an employer through their duty to provide reasonable adjustments as outlined in the Equality Act 2010.
The two main types of provision are Assessments and Elements. Assessments seek to understand a person's barriers and how they may be overcome, whilst elements are the types of support to overcome them. These may include specialist equipment, physical adaptations to premises, help with the cost of travelling to work or a support worker. Not all claimants will require an assessment
To be eligible for the Scheme, you must have a physical or mental health condition or disability that means you need support to do your job or get to and from work. You must be 16 or over, be in (or about to start or return to) paid work, and live in England, Scotland or Wales. Customers starting a job within 4 weeks are prioritised. The Scheme also includes the Mental Health Support Service (MHSS) which provides up to nine months of non-clinical support for people who need additional help with their wellbeing while in employment.
In addition, the Flexible Support Fund is a non-recoverable discretionary fund used to support eligible customers to move into employment, increase their earnings whilst in work (through increased hours or job change) or move closer to the labour market. Common barriers it can help to remove include, childcare costs; travel costs, clothing, and essential tools and equipment. For example, a screen reader pen might be purchased to aid a disabled customer’s job search or financial assistance to attend specific job or training related interviews for disabled people and, if necessary, a chaperone.
The Flexible Support Fund is locally managed and eligible customers’ needs are considered on a case-by-case basis by Jobcentre Plus Work coaches. Where the existing menu of support offered by Jobcentre Plus does not provide what customers need, and if there is no other non-contracted provision in the area, the Fund can be used to purchase specific training and support for eligible customers. Eligibility for the Flexible Support Fund includes qualifying benefits and Labour Market regimes.
Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to reduce the stigma around benefit assessments.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Following the Pathways to Work Green Paper consultation, we have launched our wider review of the PIP assessment. At the heart of this will be coproduction with disabled people, the organisations that represent them, and MPs so their views and voices are heard. We’ve also made a commitment that those with severe, lifelong conditions will not be called for a UC reassessment – allowing them to live with dignity and security.
We are also taking action to get the basics right and improve the experience for people who use the system of health and disability benefits. This includes exploring ways to improve trust and transparency in Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and Work Capability Assessments through reviewing our approach to safeguarding, recording assessments to increase trust in the process, and moving back to having more face-to-face assessments while continuing to meet the needs of people who may require different methods of assessment. We are committed to providing a multi-channel health assessment service. WCAs are still cleared using a questionnaire and supporting medical evidence where possible. Where this is not possible, individuals will be required to have a face-to-face, telephone or video assessment.
Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to ensure that the correct accessibility equipment is available at all Job Centres.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
As part of its ongoing commitment to service accessibility, the Department provides Customer Computers in all Jobcentres. These devices feature operating systems equipped with integrated assistive technologies—such as screen readers and screen magnifiers—and are managed independently from the broader DWP IT infrastructure.
In addition to accessible software and operating systems, physical peripherals including specialised keyboards, headphones, and tracker-ball mice are available to meet reasonable adjustment needs.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is presently enhancing its customer equipment portfolio. The current range of customer computers will be upgraded to a new operating system that offers improved accessibility and enhanced adherence to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.
Each device is configured so that the browser and operating system deliver comprehensive support for a wide variety of web accessibility tools, including but not limited to:
Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when she plans to introduce a funding scheme for disabled candidates, in the context of Disability Action Plan commitments; and what progress she has made on a funding scheme for disabled candidates.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Disability Action Plan was an initiative of the previous administration.
It is this government’s ambition to see more disabled people in public office. We have been clear that we will champion disabled people’s rights and work closely with them so that disabled people’s views and voices are at the heart of decision-making.
On 9 June we announced a new Access to Elected Office Steering Group to support the development of a new fund to help with the disability-related expenses of gaining elected office. Drawing on their lived experience and expertise of disability, accessing funding or standing for elected office, members will work with the Minister for Social Security and Disability to ensure the fund is effective in increasing disability representation in future elections. More information about this work will be shared in due course.
Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what her planned timeline is for providing a progress update on the implementation of commitments outlined in the Disability Action Plan.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Disability Action Plan was an initiative of the previous administration.This Government is committed to championing the rights of Deaf and disabled people. We will build on the insights shared by disabled people and their representative organisations, working closely with them so that their views and voices are at the heart of everything we do.
We will provide further updates on the Government’s priorities for disability policy in due course.
Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the report published by the University of York entitled The Impact of Chiropractors on Workplace Productivity in NHS MSK Pathways, published on 12 February 2025.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
No assessment has been made on the potential implications for policies of the report published by the University of York entitled The Impact of Chiropractors on Workplace Productivity in NHS MSK Pathways.
Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much his Department has spent on head-hunters in each of the last three years.
Answered by Mims Davies - Shadow Minister (Women)
The following figures apply to Senior Civil Service Recruitment only, to note, this does not include digital recruitment.
2020/21: £190,627.84
2021/22: £211,054.00
2022/23 YTD: £171,608.46
These figures represent executive search activity spend on SCS (Deputy Director – Director General) recruitment for non-digital roles across these years.
Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the cost to the public purse has been of Ministerial severance pay in his Department in each year since 1 January 2016.
Answered by Mims Davies - Shadow Minister (Women)
Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
What recent discussions she has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the potential merits of introducing a universal basic income.
Answered by Will Quince
The Secretary of State has not had any discussions with the Chancellor on this issue. This government does not believe a Universal Basic Income has merit, as it does not target provision according to people’s needs and circumstances, which would inevitably lead to an inefficient use of public funds.
Asked by: Christine Jardine (Liberal Democrat - Edinburgh West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, on what date people who have not entered the UK on a visa will be able to apply for a national insurance number.
Answered by Guy Opperman
Prior to allocating a National Insurance Number, the applicants identity must be confirmed.
For the majority of applicants, who have already had their identity verified through another government department, primarily the Home Office, they are able to apply for a National Insurance Number. This includes visa holders, EU/EEA nationals who have been granted settled or pre-settled status through the EU Settlement Scheme and UK passport holders.
For applicants who have not had their identity verified, they will still be required to attend a face to face identity check. The reopening of our face to face service is linked to the recent government guidelines on Covid-19 restrictions and we are currently working on plans to reopen the service at the earliest opportunity in line with these guidelines.