Asked by: Gerald Jones (Labour - Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when she plans to respond to the enquiry of 10 March 2022 from the hon. Member for Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney, reference POSCMP2022/20265.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
DWP contacted the office of Gerald Jones Labour MP for Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney on Friday 13 May 2022, to provide a response in relation to his constituent’s enquiry.
Asked by: Gerald Jones (Labour - Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when she plans to respond to the enquiry of 18 January 2022 from the hon. Member for Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney with the reference number MC2022/03672.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
A reply was sent to the hon. Member by the Minister for Welfare Delivery, on behalf of the Secretary of State, on 17 March 2022.
Asked by: Gerald Jones (Labour - Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the number of people who have been affected by the under payment of benefits after transitioning from incapacity benefit to employment and support allowance in Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney constituency.
Answered by Chloe Smith
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 19th January to question number 104377.
Asked by: Gerald Jones (Labour - Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney who have reached state pension age were awaiting an initial payment after (a) one month, (b) two months or (c) more than two months after qualifying for that pension.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
This information is not collated as a matter of normal business under this, or previous governments and is only available at disproportionate cost to the Department.
Asked by: Gerald Jones (Labour - Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make it her policy to reconsider the cessation of the temporary universal credit £20 uplift in response to the impact on household finances of rising energy prices.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Chancellor announced a temporary six-month extension to the £20 per week uplift at the Budget on 3 March to support households affected by the economic shock of Covid-19. Universal Credit has provided a vital safety net for six million people during the pandemic, and the temporary uplift was part of a COVID support package worth a total of £407 billion in 2020-21 and 2021-22.
There have been significant positive developments in the public health situation since the uplift was first introduced. With the success of the vaccine rollout and record job vacancies, it is right that our focus is on helping people back into work.
Through our Plan for Jobs, we are targeting tailored support schemes of people of all ages to help them prepare for, get into and progress in work. These include: Kickstart, delivering tens of thousands of six-month work placements for Universal Credit claimants aged 16-24 at risk of unemployment; we have also recruited an additional 13,500 work coaches to provide more intensive support to find a job; and introduced Restart which provides 12 months’ intensive employment support to Universal Credit claimants who are unemployed for a year. Our Plan for Jobs interventions will support more than two million people.
We recognise that some people continue to require extra support, which is why we have introduced a £421 million Household Support Fund to help vulnerable people in England with essential household costs over the winter as the economy recovers. The Barnett Formula will apply in the usual way, with the devolved administrations receiving almost £80 million (£41m for the Scottish Government, £25m for the Welsh Government and £14m for the NI Executive), for a total of £500 million.
The Cold Weather Payment scheme also helps vulnerable people in receipt of certain income-related benefits to meet the additional costs of heating during periods of severe cold weather. Cold Weather Payments are targeted at those in receipt of eligible benefits with a pension element or disability component or where there is a child under five in the household.
Asked by: Gerald Jones (Labour - Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney)
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 adequacy of the length of the timeframe for mandatory reconsideration during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
DWP is continuing to process Mandatory Reconsiderations during the current Covid-19 pandemic and is aiming to avoid delay where possible.
Asked by: Gerald Jones (Labour - Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney)
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 adequacy of the application process for personal independent payments for applicants that are homeless and do not have access to (a) a telephone and (b) IT facilities .
Answered by Justin Tomlinson - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
A claim to PIP can be made via a freephone telephone number by a 3rd party on behalf of the customer as long as they are present at the time of the call. This can be done through a number of support organisations or agencies, that are free to use, such as Citizens Advice.
It is likely that the individual would already be working with or have been signposted to the Local Jobcentre Plus network and there is provision within JCP to support and access telephony within the JCP to make a claim to PIP.
If the claimant is without a correspondence address or a fixed abode, the telephony agent will advise the claimant that letters can be sent to a local Jobcentre. The telephony agent will then assist the claimant to identify the address of a local Jobcentre.
Asked by: Gerald Jones (Labour - Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney)
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 suitability of the application process for personal independent payments for people with post-traumatic stress disorder.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Claimants with a severe mental health or behavioural condition, learning disability, developmental disorder or cognitive problems can be provided with additional support during the claims process. This support can include help filling in the form or the questionnaire and additional protections for failing to return the questionnaire or for failing to attend a face-to-face assessment.
Before attending a face-to-face consultation, claimants will be given the opportunity to alert their assessment provider of any additional requirements they may have, and the providers will meet any such reasonable requests. Claimants identified as being vulnerable (i.e. having mental health or learning disabilities) can access additional support at any point in the claim or assessment process.
Asked by: Gerald Jones (Labour - Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney)
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 suitability of the application process for personal independence payements for people with a learning disability.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Claimants with a severe mental health or behavioural condition, learning disability, developmental disorder or cognitive problems can be provided with additional support during the claims process. This support can include help filling in the form or the questionnaire and additional protections for failing to return the questionnaire or for failing to attend a face-to-face assessment.
Before attending a face-to-face consultation, claimants will be given the opportunity to alert their assessment provider of any additional requirements they may have, and the providers will meet any such reasonable requests. Claimants identified as being vulnerable (i.e. having mental health or learning disabilities) can access additional support at any point in the claim or assessment process.
Asked by: Gerald Jones (Labour - Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney)
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 suitability of the application process for personal independence payments for applicants with agoraphobia.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
Claimants with a severe mental health or behavioural condition, learning disability, developmental disorder or cognitive problems can be provided with additional support during the claims process. This support can include help filling in the form or the questionnaire and additional protections for failing to return the questionnaire or for failing to attend a face-to-face assessment.
Before attending a face-to-face consultation, claimants will be given the opportunity to alert their assessment provider of any additional requirements they may have, and the providers will meet any such reasonable requests. Claimants identified as being vulnerable (i.e. having mental health or learning disabilities) can access additional support at any point in the claim or assessment process.