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Written Question
Universal Credit: Students
Monday 11th March 2024

Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of using Universal Credit graduated income deduction rules for income that is received in the form of student loans.

Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

No assessment has been made.

There are no plans to change the way student loans are treated.


Written Question
Attendance Allowance
Thursday 7th March 2024

Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the accessibility of Attendance Allowance claim forms.

Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

DWP continuously reviews and improves the service for people who claim or seek to claim Attendance Allowance to ensure forms and services are accessible and responsive to citizen needs.


The Attendance Allowance claim form and accompanying notes are accessible and work on PC and MAC operating systems. They comply with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1AA and are compatible with assistive software.


Written Question
Universal Credit: Students
Thursday 29th February 2024

Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 22 February 2024 to Question 14619 on Universal Credit: Students, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending eligibility for Universal Credit to higher education students affected by (a) coercive financial control and (b) other forms of domestic abuse.

Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

There are no plans to change current policy.


Written Question
Health and Safety
Wednesday 10th January 2024

Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will have discussions with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) on the potential merits of enabling employers to report to the HSE (a) drug and (b) alcohol misuse as a contributing factor in a reportable incident.

Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR) are made under the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and apply to all sectors and workplaces in Great Britain.

RIDDOR requires responsible persons (usually employers in relation to employees) to report work-related fatalities and certain injuries, dangerous occurrences, and cases of disease. Reporting requirements are based on the outcome of incidents.

RIDDOR does not require the reporting of immediate or underlying causes, such as whether the use of drugs or alcohol were a contributing factor in a particular incident. Causation of an incident will not necessarily be apparent during the statutory timeframe in which a dutyholder is required to report; that information generally only becomes evident during an investigation, either by the dutyholder or the regulator.

Even if such information were required as part of the reporting process, it would be difficult to reliably establish direct causation on a case-by-case basis. Having this information reported would be of limited value to the regulator and disproportionate for the responsible person to ascertain.


Written Question
Cost of Living Payments
Monday 23rd October 2023

Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)

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 extending the upcoming Cost of Living payment eligibility cut off dates for people (a) who are on Universal Credit and in work and (b) whose incomes have fallen as a result of ill health past the eligibility dates.

Answered by Mims Davies - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

The first round of Cost of Living Payments was made in 2022 to over 8 million households on Universal Credit, Pension Credit, and eligible legacy benefits. These means-tested Cost of Living Payments, totalling £650, were made in two payments of £326 from July 2022 and £324 in November 2022. Around 6 million people received £150 Disability Cost of Living Payment, and over 11 million pensioners received up to £300 on top of their Winter Fuel Payment.

The second round of means-tested Cost of Living Payments, with a total amount of £900, are to be made in three payments. The first Cost of Living Payment of £301 was made between 25 April and 17 May 2023. The second Cost of Living Payment of £300 will be made between 31 October and 19 November 2023. The final Payment of £299 will be paid by Spring 2024.

To be eligible to receive a Cost of Living Payment, the individual must be entitled to payment of a qualifying means-tested benefit during the qualifying period, or a payment for an assessment period ending within the qualifying period.

The qualifying means-tested benefits include:

  • Universal Credit (UC)
  • Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
  • Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
  • Income Support
  • Pension Credit
  • Working Tax Credit (WTC)
  • Child Tax Credit (CTC)

We have kept the eligibility rules for the Cost of Living Payments as simple as possible to deliver them promptly and accurately.

The Cost of Living Payment for eligible means-tested benefit claimants will be delivered in three separate payments over 2023/2024.

This reduces the chance of someone missing out altogether, as those who do not qualify for one of the payments due to their changing circumstances may qualify for another one of the payments.


Written Question
Natural Gas: Safety
Thursday 19th October 2023

Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the amount of court time used in proceedings against individuals who have allegedly installed gas-safe products without being gas-safe registered in the last 12 months.

Answered by Mims Davies - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

With regards to cases brought by HSE, HSE does not hold information in relation to these proceedings centrally, so therefore to gather this information and provide it would incur disproportionate costs.

The overall cost to the public purse and court time in relation to all prosecutions goes beyond just the Health and Safety Executive’s (HSE) remit.


Written Question
Natural Gas: Safety
Thursday 19th October 2023

Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)

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 was of the prosecution of individuals undertaking (a) unsafe and (b) illegal installation of gas-safe regulated products in each of the last five years.

Answered by Mims Davies - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

With regards to cases brought by HSE, HSE does not hold information in relation to these proceedings centrally, so therefore to gather this information and provide it would incur disproportionate costs.

The overall cost to the public purse and court time in relation to all prosecutions goes beyond just the Health and Safety Executive’s (HSE) remit.


Written Question

Question Link

Monday 11th September 2023

Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will review the decision to continue the freeze on pensions of overseas pensioners, in particular in nations where there is no reciprocal agreement in place; and what steps he is taking to establish reciprocal agreements where none exist.

Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury

The policy on up-rating UK State Pensions overseas is longstanding and has been supported by successive Governments for over 70 years.

The UK State Pension is payable worldwide to those who meet the qualifying conditions and is up-rated overseas where there is a legal requirement to do so – for example where there is a reciprocal agreement that provides for up-rating. There are no plans to change this policy.


Written Question
Employment and Support Allowance: Overpayments
Tuesday 25th April 2023

Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what data his Department holds on whether the recovery of Employment Support Allowance overpayments from claimants has been waived for mental health reasons in the last two years.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

During the period 1st April 2021 to date, 10 Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) debts were waived on mental health grounds.

The figures relate to legacy ESA and not New Style ESA, eligibility for which is primarily based on a claimant’s National Insurance record.

Overpayment recovery is subject to various legislative limitations and safeguards. Whilst the DWP has an obligation to protect public funds, our policy is to seek recovery without causing undue financial hardship to debtors.

Any claimants struggling with the proposed rate of deductions are encouraged to contact DWP Debt Management to discuss a temporary reduction in their rate of repayment.

In exceptional circumstances, where there are specific and compelling grounds to do so, a waiver can be considered. Full details on this can be found at Chapter 8 of the department’s Benefit Overpayment Recovery Guide:

Benefit overpayment recovery guide - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).


Written Question
Social Security Benefits: Terminal Illnesses
Wednesday 19th April 2023

Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has provided recent guidance to medical clinicians on the use of SR1 forms for patients following changes to benefit applications under the new special rules for people with terminal illnesses.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

The DWP provides guidance to clinicians to support them to provide the SR1 medical evidence form to support their patient at the end of life to make a claim for benefits under the Special Rules for End of Life (SREL). On 3rd April 2023, the DWP updated its clinical guidance on GOV.UK regarding the new SREL eligibility criteria and how to obtain and return an SR1 form. This guidance and a video explaining how to complete the SR1 form can be found at www.gov.uk/dwp/special-rules.

The DWP has worked closely with clinical stakeholders like the Ambitions Partnership for Palliative and End of Life Care and the Royal Colleges; this engagement will continue to raise awareness of the changes to the SREL.