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Written Question
Social Security Benefits: Injuries and Death
Monday 10th July 2023

Asked by: Debbie Abrahams (Labour - Oldham East and Saddleworth)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many internal process reviews her Department has (a) started and (b) completed on incidences of (i) death or (ii) serious harm between July 2022 and June 2023.

Answered by Tom Pursglove

Information on how many cases have been accepted to be taken forward for a full Internal Process Review (IPR), and where these were referred either due to customer death or harm, is included within this year’s Annual Report and Accounts, available at:

DWP annual report and accounts 2022 to 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

This includes information on cases accepted for an IPR between July 2022 and March 2023. Information in relation to April to June 2023 will be published in next year’s Accounts.

Information on how many IPRs have been completed between July 2022 and June 2023, where these were referred either due to customer death or harm is set out in the table below:

July 2022 – June 2023

Customer Death[1]

47

Customer Harm[2]

14

1 Customer Death includes the categories: death, alleged suicide and confirmed suicide.

2 Customer Harm includes the categories: self-harm, serious harm, attempted suicide and ‘other’.

Written Question
Department for Work and Pensions: Standards
Monday 24th April 2023

Asked by: Debbie Abrahams (Labour - Oldham East and Saddleworth)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many internal process reviews his Department (a) started and (b) completed on incidences of (i) death and (ii) serious harm between July 2022 and March 2023.

Answered by Tom Pursglove

The information requested cannot be shared, as it is intended for publication at a future date within the department’s Annual Report and Accounts.

Speech in Commons Chamber - Tue 05 Jul 2022
Cost of Living

"It is a pleasure to follow the hon. Member for Glasgow South West (Chris Stephens), and I agree with all the points he made, as I did with those raised by the Chair of the Work and Pensions Committee, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Ham (Sir Stephen …..."
Debbie Abrahams - View Speech

View all Debbie Abrahams (Lab - Oldham East and Saddleworth) contributions to the debate on: Cost of Living
Speech in Commons Chamber - Tue 05 Jul 2022
Cost of Living

"I recognise what the hon. Member says. I visited Glasgow last week—the constituency of my friend the hon. Member for Glasgow South West is there—and it was interesting to see the reforms being introduced there, particularly those for disabled people.

Many hon. Members will not be aware of yesterday’s report …..."
Debbie Abrahams - View Speech

View all Debbie Abrahams (Lab - Oldham East and Saddleworth) contributions to the debate on: Cost of Living
Speech in Commons Chamber - Tue 05 Jul 2022
Cost of Living

"We have spoken many times about that. My hon. Friend is absolutely right. We have a system in which there is conditionality, but I believe that there are other ways of recognising that than by taking away somebody’s income and making things even harder for them...."
Debbie Abrahams - View Speech

View all Debbie Abrahams (Lab - Oldham East and Saddleworth) contributions to the debate on: Cost of Living
Speech in Commons Chamber - Tue 05 Jul 2022
Cost of Living

"Absolutely. In fact, I got involved in trying to shift the sanctions regime when a former soldier, David Clapson, died after he was sanctioned. He missed an appointment, and he died as a result of not being able to have electricity to keep the insulin that he relied on. It …..."
Debbie Abrahams - View Speech

View all Debbie Abrahams (Lab - Oldham East and Saddleworth) contributions to the debate on: Cost of Living
Speech in Commons Chamber - Tue 05 Jul 2022
Cost of Living

"I take on board some of the Minister’s points, but I must challenge him in one regard. He seems to have ignored what has been said about the inadequacy of the system before the pandemic and before the cost of living crisis. Would he care to comment on last week’s …..."
Debbie Abrahams - View Speech

View all Debbie Abrahams (Lab - Oldham East and Saddleworth) contributions to the debate on: Cost of Living
Written Question
Social Security Benefits: Injuries and Death
Tuesday 5th July 2022

Asked by: Debbie Abrahams (Labour - Oldham East and Saddleworth)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many internal process reviews her Department has (a) started and (b) completed on incidences of (i) death or (ii) serious harm between (A) July 2019 and June 2020, (B) July 2020 and June 2021 and (C) July 2021 and June 2022.

Answered by Chloe Smith

The attached table shows the Internal Process Reviews (IPR) information requested:

July 2019 to June 2020

July 2020 to June 2021

July 2021 to June 2022

IPR Started - Death

43

59

38

IPR Started - Serious Harm

3

19

17

IPR Completed - Death

39

40

41

IPR Completed - Serious Harm

3

12

16

* Death includes the categories death, alleged suicide and confirmed suicide.

** Serious Harm includes the categories self-harm, serious harm, attempted suicide and ‘other’.

Written Question
Extra Costs Taskforce
Monday 13th June 2022

Asked by: Debbie Abrahams (Labour - Oldham East and Saddleworth)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, which (a) organisations and (b) individuals have been approached to join the Extra Costs Taskforce; and if she will prioritise organisations that are led by disabled people for membership of that taskforce.

Answered by Chloe Smith

Delivery of the Extra Costs Taskforce has been paused at the request of the Secretary of State Work and Pensions, while permission is sought to appeal the High Court's declaration in Binder vs Secretary of State Work and Pensions.

Speech in Commons Chamber - Mon 21 Mar 2022
Cost of Living Increases: Pensioners

"The respected Joseph Rowntree Foundation annual poverty report shows increasing poverty over people’s life course—children, working age adults and pensioners. Both the JRF and the Equality and Human Rights Commission say that the key determinant of this rise in poverty is our inadequate social security system, which has been decimated …..."
Debbie Abrahams - View Speech

View all Debbie Abrahams (Lab - Oldham East and Saddleworth) contributions to the debate on: Cost of Living Increases: Pensioners