Oral Answers to Questions

Diana Johnson Excerpts

Monday 14th September 2020 Commons Chamber

[Justin Tomlinson]

I pay tribute to the Motor Neurone Disease Association, which has been at the heart of this review. The Secretary of State and I are committed to delivering an improved system that raises awareness of the support, improves consistency and tackles the issue raised around the six-month rule. We are determined that this will be done as quickly as possible.

[Dame Diana Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) (Lab)]

What steps her Department is taking to (a) investigate and (b) rectify errors made in the payment of the state pension to retired women.

[Paula Barker (Liverpool, Wavertree) (Lab)]

What steps her Department is taking to (a) investigate and (b) rectify errors made in the payment of the state pension to retired women.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Guy Opperman) [V]]

We are aware of a number of cases in which individuals have been underpaid category BL basic state pension. We corrected our records and reimbursed those affected as soon as the underpayments were identified, and we continue to check and remedy further cases that are identified.

[Dame Diana Johnson]

With up to 130,000 women potentially affected, and with many of those women who have already contacted the DWP having been told, wrongly, that they are not entitled to any additional money, will the Minister say what more he is going to do, in the light of the miscommunication that affected thousands of women represented by the Women Against State Pension Inequality campaign, to ensure that the women affected are contacted and given the correct information?

[Guy Opperman]

As the hon. Lady knows, I cannot comment on the live litigation in respect of the WASPI women, although I can say that at the first hearing before the judicial review, notification and communication were found for on behalf of the Government—this Government, the coalition Government and the Labour Government whom she served. In respect of category BL pensions, we are improving the training and the ability of the individuals who are handling the cases.

Oral Answers to Questions

Diana Johnson Excerpts

Monday 29th June 2020 Commons Chamber

[Jeff Smith (Manchester, Withington) (Lab)]

What recent estimate her Department has made of the number of universal credit applicants awaiting a decision on applications made since the start of the covid-19 outbreak.

[Dame Diana Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) (Lab)]

What recent estimate her Department has made of the number of universal credit applicants awaiting a decision on applications made since the start of the covid-19 outbreak.

[Sarah Champion (Rotherham) (Lab)]

What recent estimate her Department has made of the number of universal credit applicants awaiting a decision on applications made since the start of the covid-19 outbreak.

--- Later in debate ---

[Will Quince]

I do not recognise the picture the hon. Gentleman paints. Universal credit advances are available for those who need them. They are interest free for 12 months and as of next year that will increase to 24 months. We get support to people as quickly as they need it. That is why the payment advance is available, usually within a couple of days.

[Dame Diana Johnson [V]]

When the job retention scheme is wound down, we will see, I am sure, a second wave of universal credit applications, on top of the 70% increase we have already seen in Hull. With unemployment in Hull forecast to get to about 16%, is it not time now to prepare to remove the five-week wait for universal credit and to make the £20 increase a permanent feature?

[Will Quince]

The Department has processed an unprecedented number of claims during this period. We have put over £6.5 billion into our welfare system to support those who need it quickly. In terms of what the hon. Lady defines as the five-week wait, nobody has to wait five weeks for a payment. An advance is available, usually within a couple of days, for those who need it.

Oral Answers to Questions

Diana Johnson Excerpts

Monday 1st July 2019 Commons Chamber

[Justin Tomlinson]

I will commit to continuing to do everything we can to ensure that all people with disabilities and long-term health conditions have the maximum chance to get into work. I am very proud of the fact that over the last five years alone, 950,000 more disabled people are in work, and we continue to make good progress towards our target of a further 1 million disabled people in work by 2027.

[Diana Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) (Lab)]

5. What assessment her Department has made of the effect of the roll-out of universal credit on the level of referrals to food banks.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Will Quince)]

There are a range of reasons why people make use of food banks. The key for the DWP is to ensure that welfare claimants are able to access funds in a timely manner. That is why advances are available, so that no one has to wait five weeks for their first universal credit payment.

[Diana Johnson]

Even before universal credit was rolled out in Hull, the use of the Hull food bank was very high because we have widescale in-work poverty, and a third of the children in Hull are living in poverty. The Trussell Trust has said that nearly half of all food bank referrals are due to a delay in benefits being paid when universal credit is rolled out, which happened in Hull before Christmas. Does the Minister now accept that, and what is he going to do about it?

[Will Quince]

I thank the hon. Lady for her question. We continue to provide a strong safety net through the welfare system for those who need extra support and, as I have said, people use food banks for many and varied reasons. We review research carried out by organisations, including the Trussell Trust, to add to our understanding of food bank use. I intend to work far more closely with the Trussell Trust and other food bank providers, including other stakeholders in this area. I want food bank providers and jobcentres to work far more closely together so that we can better understand the issues and then put in place the interventions to make the situation better.

Supporting Disabled People to Work

Diana Johnson Excerpts

Thursday 28th March 2019 Commons Chamber

[Justin Tomlinson]

I thank my hon. Friend and I do understand the importance not just of responding to individual MPs’ correspondence but offering an opportunity to meet, particularly on the more complex cases, and there are many Members I can see here today whom I have met in recent weeks on a variety of issues. We are all first and foremost constituency MPs who are here to champion those in our communities who have challenges. On the question about how many disabled people are employed in the Department, I will have to write to my hon. Friend because I would not wish to give somebody of such experience anything other than the exact answer.

[Diana Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) (Lab)]

Following on from the question from my hon. Friend the Member for Halton (Derek Twigg) about young people with learning disabilities and their ability to access the job market and get employment, can the Minister explain why this report from the NAO did not recognise what the Minister has just said from the Dispatch Box—the review that has been carried out has not had the effect he has just claimed it has?

[Justin Tomlinson]

To be fair, that is looking historically and this came in last year—so it is the first wave of people starting to look—but it is all combined with making sure employers have the confidence that they can take on people who may have some challenges. Often it only means small changes, but we are incredibly proud that we will leave no stone unturned, so that not just the 930,000 people who we have seen over the last five years, but more people, of all disabilities, will have an opportunity to work.

Households Below Average Income Statistics

Diana Johnson Excerpts

Thursday 28th March 2019 Commons Chamber

[Amber Rudd]

We have still lifted 400,000 people out of absolute poverty since 2010, but I acknowledge that there is more to do. Over the past two Budgets, the Chancellor has put in substantial additional sums: £1.7 billion a year is now coming in for the next three years. I hope that these changes will make a significant difference to improving the delivery of our welfare directly to people in the hon. Lady’s constituency.

[Diana Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) (Lab)]

Previous Labour Governments had a commitment to eradicate child poverty by 2020. Will the Secretary of State say by what date her Government plan to eradicate child poverty in this country?

[Amber Rudd]

I am committed to making sure that we reduce poverty and focus particularly on child poverty. We must also remember that the issue is not entirely about welfare benefits; it is also about having a strong economy, in which wages grow and better quality jobs are available for everybody. I reassure the hon. Lady that I am focused on making sure that we reduce poverty.

Oral Answers to Questions

Diana Johnson Excerpts

Monday 18th March 2019 Commons Chamber

[Alok Sharma]

We can all have our theories, but my hon. Friend is absolutely right that that is precisely what happens. What the Labour party should be doing is congratulating the Government on the work we have done over the past nine years to get employment up.

[Diana Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) (Lab)]

17. What recent assessment her Department has made of the (a) accuracy and (b) efficiency of contracted-out health assessments for (i) employment and support allowance and (ii) personal independence payment.

[Mr Paul Sweeney (Glasgow North East) (Lab/Co-op)]

25. What recent assessment her Department has made of the (a) accuracy and (b) efficiency of contracted-out health assessments for (i) employment and support allowance and (ii) personal independence payment.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Justin Tomlinson)]

We are committed to ensuring that individuals receive high-quality assessments. Providers are closely monitored against a range of measures, including through independent audit, to improve the accuracy of the advice they provide to decision makers. We continually look to improve the efficiency of the assessment process by working closely with our providers.

[Diana Johnson]

Quite apart from the problems with and maladministration of work capability and PIP assessments, I have requested that Ministers consider the passporting of people who were affected by the contaminated blood scandal, so that the benefits they are currently on are passported on to the new benefits. I do not understand, when there is a public inquiry into the scandal, why these people are still having to go through the assessments.

Employment and Support Allowance: Underpayments

Diana Johnson Excerpts

Monday 25th February 2019 Commons Chamber

[Sarah Newton]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for a question that goes way beyond what we are discussing today. He makes a very good point about when children are growing up and move from childhood benefits to adult benefits. Those young people will now be applying to universal credit, which has the huge benefit of the personalised tailor-made support that is available through the work coach.

[Diana Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) (Lab)]

I am a bit concerned that a Minister of State does not understand the difference between making a statement to the House and what an urgent question means. She has been brought to the House. This is not the first time I have made these comments to this particular Minister. I want to ask about the 20,000 people who have very sadly died without receiving the money they were entitled to. Is the onus now on the Department to seek out those families? If so, what steps are being taken to find those families?

[Sarah Newton]

I am happy to provide the hon. Lady with that clarification. The onus is on the Department. The Department is working really hard to find the family members of anyone who is deceased, so we can make the back payments of their benefits to them.

Universal Credit

Diana Johnson Excerpts

Monday 14th January 2019 Commons Chamber

[Alok Sharma]

Payment to a single person in a household is not a unique feature of universal credit, and such payment also exists in the legacy benefits system. The hon. Lady is right that, right now, 60% of all universal credit payments go to the female’s bank account. The Secretary of State has announced that we will look at what more we can do to enable the main carer to receive universal credit, and very often that will be the female in the household.

[Diana Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) (Lab)]

We have been back for only seven days and this is now the second urgent question on universal credit. Is it not time for the Secretary of State to come to the House and make a Government statement on what she intends to do about the mess of universal credit?

[Alok Sharma]

I am sorry that the hon. Lady is so unhappy. I would have thought that she should be welcoming all the positive changes we have been making. Indeed, the Secretary of State was before the House just last week at Work and Pensions Question Time answering questions on universal credit and other policies.

Universal Credit: Managed Migration

Diana Johnson Excerpts

Tuesday 8th January 2019 Commons Chamber

[Alok Sharma]

Of course I will meet with the hon. Lady, as I have done previously on issues she has raised. As a general rule, one would not expect deductions to be more than 40% of a standard allowance, and of course that figure will come down to 30%.

[Diana Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) (Lab)]

May I express to the Minister my concern about the worry and anxiety that people face when making UC claims? We had the roll-out in December in Hull. If there is a pilot from the middle of 2019 will some of the pilot numbers come from Hull, and will people in Hull be in any way penalised if they do not make a claim in time?

[Alok Sharma]

Of course we want to support people as they come on to UC, whether they are naturally migrating or in the test phase. We have now put in place a provision with Citizens Advice to make sure people are provided with that consistent support across the country and I want that to work well.

Oral Answers to Questions

Diana Johnson Excerpts

Monday 19th November 2018 Commons Chamber

[Justin Tomlinson]

No, because these migrations will bring in very important additional supports, as each and every Member needs to bear in mind when the vote comes forward. We work closely with stakeholders, and I remind Opposition Members that under legacy benefits, more than 700,000 people, who include some of the most vulnerable claimants—the people who contact us as constituency MPs—are, on average, missing out on £285 a month because those legacy benefits are complex and not personalised. It is absolutely right that we do this, but in a controlled and sensible manner.

[Diana Johnson (Kingston upon Hull North) (Lab)]

10. If she will make an assessment of the effect of universal credit on trends in the level of rent arrears.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Justin Tomlinson)]

Many claimants come on to universal credit with pre-existing rent arrears, but we have introduced new measures to make additional payments of two weeks’ housing benefit to support claimants as they transition to universal credit, and to extend trusted partner status to social landlords to further support our claimants.

[Diana Johnson]

Universal credit rolls out in Hull just before Christmas, and the council is already preparing for expected increases in rent arrears. I am sure that the Minister will have watched Sean McAllister’s film “A Northern Soul” on BBC 2 last night. It featured Steve Arnott, a low-paid worker, and his work on the Beats Bus inspiring children on the council estates of Hull. The film showed in-work poverty, food poverty and child poverty. Can the Minister guarantee that the families in that film and in Hull will be better off when universal credit is introduced in December?

[Justin Tomlinson]

The key to universal credit is that, for the first time, a claimant will get personalised, tailored support that can help them navigate all the forms of support available. Under legacy benefits, more than 700,000 people, among whom are some of the most vulnerable people, miss out on an average of £285 a month. Those on universal credit will typically spend 50% longer looking for work. This is key to unlocking the potential of all claimants to improve their life chances.