Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to expand support available through Jobcentres in Southport constituency.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The local Jobcentre team are collaborating with a range of partners to support people into work and help employers fill vacancies. In addition to hosting job fairs, delivering Sector-Based Work Academy Programmes (SWAPs), and hosting employer Group Information Sessions, Southport Jobcentre is working with Sefton Council, local colleges, care & childcare providers, manufacturing, retail, education, agriculture, and hospitality companies, to provide an employment and skills offer to help meet the recruitment needs of local employers.
Southport Jobcentre has been working closely with employers such as Sainsbury’s and McDonald’s to hosts SWAP’s for Southport residents to have direct access to live vacancies. The Jobcentre has also collaborated with Southport College to hosts job fairs to bring together national and local employers for job opportunities as well as providers to support customers with breaking down barriers to work. Additionally, the Jobcentre looks forward to supporting Southport’s future regeneration and exciting projects which includes the Southport Enterprise Arcade, the Garrick Theatre development and the Marine Lake Events Centre.
Disability Employment Advisers (DEA’s) offer advice and expertise on how to help disabled people and people with health conditions into work, alongside close working with Merseycare, The Peer Mentoring Service, Life Rooms, and Sefton Council. Southport Jobcentre colleagues also attend local events to highlight the support available, including Access to Work, Disability Confident and the Working Health Pioneer programme.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to support in-work progression.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Since September 2022 we have increased the Administrative Earnings Threshold (AET) from earnings equivalent to 9 hours per week at the National Living Wage to the equivalent of 18 hours, bringing over 400,000 working customers into regular support from a Work Coach to help them increase in work progression and thereby increase earnings.
In addition, working Universal Credit customers earning above the AET are eligible to access support on a voluntary basis from a Work Coach, providing individual and tailored support designed to help customers.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to support widowed pensioners to manage their finances.
Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government recognises that people face important decisions about how to use their pension savings and ensures everyone has access to free, impartial pension guidance through the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS).
Pension Wise, a service delivered through MaPS’ MoneyHelper brand, can help anyone over 50 understand their options for accessing their Defined Contribution pension pots. After entering retirement, ongoing guidance is available through the MoneyHelper website, hotline and webchat. This ranges from budget planners and retirement-specific benefits, to long-term care and debt support.
MoneyHelper also provides support for people who need help with their money matters when someone has died, including specific guidance on pensions and bereavement. This includes how to register a power of attorney.
Furthermore, in November 2023 the Government, in the response to the ‘Helping savers understand their pension choices: supporting individuals at the point of access’ consultation, signalled its intent to place duties on all trustees of occupational pension schemes to offer a decumulation service to support their members with decisions around accessing their pension savings. This includes offering a range of products at an appropriate quality and price.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to support pensioners to manage their finances.
Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government recognises that people face important decisions about how to use their pension savings and ensures everyone has access to free, impartial pension guidance through the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS).
Pension Wise, a service delivered through MaPS’ MoneyHelper brand, can help anyone over 50 understand their options for accessing their Defined Contribution pension pots. After entering retirement, ongoing guidance is available through the MoneyHelper website, hotline and webchat. This ranges from budget planners and retirement-specific benefits, to long-term care and debt support.
MoneyHelper also provides support for people who need help with their money matters when someone has died, including specific guidance on pensions and bereavement. This includes how to register a power of attorney.
Furthermore, in November 2023 the Government, in the response to the ‘Helping savers understand their pension choices: supporting individuals at the point of access’ consultation, signalled its intent to place duties on all trustees of occupational pension schemes to offer a decumulation service to support their members with decisions around accessing their pension savings. This includes offering a range of products at an appropriate quality and price.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential implications of the state pension rise from April 2024 for the sustainability of pension funding.
Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The new State Pension was introduced in April 2016 with the aim of providing a clearer, sustainable foundation for State Pensions for decades to come.
Each year, the Government Actuary’s Department publishes a report showing the impact of uprating decisions on the National insurance Fund. The most recent report in January this year took into account the 8.5% increase in the basic and new State Pensions which will come into force from 8 April. The assessment was that the Fund would have enough money to self-finance for at least the next five years. HM Treasury has the ability to top up the National Fund from the Consolidated Fund when needed, even if receipts do not match expenditure. The report said that a Treasury Grant would not be needed in the next five years.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans he has to use artificial intelligence to help process benefit claims.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
DWP is continually exploring the use of all types of Artificial Intelligence and its potential to support providing more digital services with a human touch in a safe, ethical and considered way. Artificial Intelligence will never replace the role of our colleagues in supporting customers throughout their journey. We are using Artificial Intelligence to undertake administrative or repeatable tasks freeing up our staff to spend more time with their claimants.
As part of our approach, and in-line with the Prime Minister’s Foundation Model Taskforce, DWP has created a Generative Artificial Intelligence Lighthouse Programme which will safely guide our innovation in emerging Artificial Intelligence technology. The role of this programme is to ‘test and learn’ in a safe and governed environment where all types of AI can be used to assist us in the delivery of our customer outcomes and department efficiencies.
Where Artificial Intelligence is used to assist its activities in prevention and detection of fraud within UC applications, DWP always ensures appropriate safeguards are in place for the proportionate, ethical, and legal use of data with internal monitoring protocols adhered to. Through the work of departmental governance, we can always explain how the AI reaches the conclusions through the use of data that it does.
DWP will not use AI to replace human judgement to determine or deny a payment to a claimant; a human agent always makes final decisions, safeguarding the protection of individuals. Where appropriate Equality and Data Protection Impact Assessments have been carried out.
DWP's Personal Information Charter explains how and why we use personal information and citizen’s rights and responsibilities.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what progress his Department has made in addressing the list of vacancies in the job market in (a) Southport and (b) the wider North West region.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
In Southport, and across the North West, our Jobcentre teams are supporting people back into work and helping those in work to progress. We are working with local and national employers to help fill vacancies quickly, delivering a range of support including Sector Work Based Academy Programmes (SWAPs), recruitment days and job fairs. For example, to support recruitment in the run up to Eurovision, 12 successful job fairs were held across Merseyside including in the Sefton Community Learning centre, and Southport college.
The North West team continue to work with local employers to deliver SWAPs in various sectors including transport, education, construction, hospitality, and healthcare, amongst others. SWAP’s deliver short vocational training linked directly to vacancies within a particular employer or in a specific sector, helping customers to learn the skills and behaviours that employers in particular industries look for.
Claimants also have access to the Plan for Jobs offer, delivering a comprehensive range of support to help people back into work. Mainstream employment support is supplemented through DWP’s local Flexible Support Funded (FSF) provision, in response to needs identified within the local community, delivering tailored support to enhance employment prospects.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of establishing a sinking fund to fully fund the State Pension.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
There have been no assessments made regarding the potential merits of establishing a sinking fund. The Government has no plans to change the funding arrangements for the State Pension, which is paid for through the National Insurance Fund.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has plans to fully fund the State Pension.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
There have been no assessments made regarding the potential merits of establishing a sinking fund. The Government has no plans to change the funding arrangements for the State Pension, which is paid for through the National Insurance Fund.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the Disability Unit has made an assessment of the adequacy of current accessibility requirements for local businesses.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
We are fully committed to supporting disabled people in the UK through creating more opportunities, protecting their rights and ensuring they fully benefit from, and can contribute to, every aspect of our society.
Businesses are required to make reasonable adjustments for disabled people in accordance with the Equality Act 2010. The Equality Act 2010 (the Act) protects people from being discriminated against or harassed because of a disability in the provision of services. The Act also requires service providers to make reasonable adjustments to improve access to premises/buildings, provide auxiliary aids and services (such as providing information in an accessible format, provide induction loop for customers with hearing aids, special computer software or additional staff support when required), and allowing access to guide or assistance dogs, so that disabled customers have the same right to goods and services and are not placed at a substantial disadvantage compared to non-disabled customers.
This reasonable adjustment duty is an anticipatory duty. This means that those who provide goods, facilities and services to members of the public are expected to anticipate the reasonable adjustments that disabled customers may require.
The Disability Unit has not made a comprehensive assessment of the adequacy of current accessibility requirements for local businesses. However, we continue to engage closely with stakeholders to build and share the evidence base on the issues affecting disabled people.