Asked by: Gordon Henderson (Conservative - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
What steps she is taking to ensure that assessments for health and disability benefits are conducted safely during the covid-19 outbreak.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson
In March 2020, to ensure safety, we paused face-to-face assessments and assessed through paper-based review, telephone and video assessments. Working with providers and the Deputy Chief Medical Officer, we developed guidance to ensure the re-opening of assessment centres and resumption of face-to-face assessments can be conducted safely. Face-to-face will initially be for claimants unable to be assessed through other means.
Asked by: Gordon Henderson (Conservative - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
What steps she is taking with the Secretary of State for Justice to reduce the waiting time for welfare benefit tribunal appeals.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson
DWP is working with the Ministry of Justice to develop a new digital system with a view to enabling swifter processing of appeals and a better service for all parties to the proceedings. Personal Independence Payment, Employment and Support Allowance and Universal Credit claimants can now submit their appeal online.
Asked by: Gordon Henderson (Conservative - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the timeframe is for her Department to bring forward legislative proposals for severe disability premium to be available under universal credit.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson
The Department laid The Universal Credit (Managed Migration Pilot and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2019 before Parliament on 22 July 2019. This means we can identify claimants who are potentially eligible for Severe Disability Premium transitional payments and start making these payments as soon as possible.
From 24 July 2019, eligible claimants will be considered for backdated payments covering the time since they moved to Universal Credit. We estimate that by 2024/25, approximately 45,000 of the most vulnerable claimants will benefit from this package of support, worth an estimated £600million over the next six years.
Asked by: Gordon Henderson (Conservative - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when employment and support allowance claimants in receipt of the severe disability premium will be able to migrate to universal credit without losing that additional entitlement.
Answered by Sarah Newton
I refer the honourable member to the answer the Minister for Employment gave on 30 January 2019 to Question 211077: https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2019-01-22/211077/
Asked by: Gordon Henderson (Conservative - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that alternative payment arrangements are put in place as soon as possible to avoid rent arrears for tenants and a loss of income for landlords and agents.
Answered by Lord Sharma - COP26 President (Cabinet Office)
A Managed Payment to Landlords (MPTL) is an Alternate Payment Arrangement (APA) that minimises the risk of claimants failing to pay their rent by paying an amount equivalent to the housing cost of their Universal Credit directly to their landlord, on the claimant’s behalf.
The decision to move a claimant on to managed payments can occur at the outset of the claim or when a claimant has accrued rent arrears - at two months or in some cases following one month due to ‘persistent underpayment’ of their rent. However, an APA can be requested at any point during the Universal Credit claim, as a claimant’s circumstances may change. A MPTL can be requested by the claimant, their representative or their landlord and will be considered on a case by case basis.
Requests for MPTLs are dealt with as a priority. The processing time of these requests is also regularly monitored. Landlords who are given access to the Landlord Portal are also given Trusted Partner status which allows them to make recommendations on whether an MPTL should be put in place. All APA recommendations from Trusted Partners will be implemented in good faith by DWP.
Asked by: Gordon Henderson (Conservative - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether letters of support from Members of Parliament (a) are considered for and (b) have an effect on decisions on a claimant's (i) mandatory reconsideration and (ii) tribunal appeal for (A) employment support allowance and (B) personal independence payment.
Answered by Sarah Newton
At mandatory reconsideration all evidence that had been considered at the initial decision stage is reviewed and, crucially, the claimant is prompted to provide any further evidence that the initial decision maker had not considered. If a claimant remains dissatisfied with the decision on their claim following mandatory reconsideration and proceeds to appeal, all previously submitted evidence will be reviewed, as will any evidence that is subsequently submitted and passed on to the Department.
It is important to note that decisions on benefit entitlement are made in accordance with the relevant legislative provisions and the decision maker’s consideration of the available evidence. A letter of support from a Member of Parliament would be considered on its own merits alongside any other available evidence.
Asked by: Gordon Henderson (Conservative - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, at what age a person with dementia is eligible for benefit entitlement as a result of that condition.
Answered by Sarah Newton
Entitlement to benefit is not dependent on a specific diagnosis, meaning that claimants may apply at any age above the minimum age requirement specific to each individual benefit claimed.
For those diagnosed with dementia, once the impact is such that a person has care or mobility needs which may give rise to additional costs, they may apply for a disability benefit.
Asked by: Gordon Henderson (Conservative - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
Whether universal credit claimants will lose money if they receive a disability premium in addition to income-based benefits.
Answered by Sarah Newton
We simplified and rationised the various, complex disability premiums that exist in the legacy system and anyone in the Support Group who only qualifies for the Enhanced Disability Premium, will be better off in Universal Credit by over £90 per month.
Asked by: Gordon Henderson (Conservative - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will take steps to change the calculation for child maintenance payments to take into account the outgoings of the non-resident parent.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
We have no plans to change the treatment of a non-resident parent’s outgoings within the calculation of child maintenance.
There is currently allowance made for:
Certain additional costs can also be taken into account - for example costs incurred in caring for a disabled child.
The calculation of a child maintenance liability is based on a percentage of the Non-Resident Parent’s income. This is broadly aligned with the proportion of their income a parent would normally spend on their child if they lived with them. This gives the Non-Resident Parent freedom to decide how to adjust their spending in light of their obligation to their child or children, as they would do if they lived with them.
Asked by: Gordon Henderson (Conservative - Sittingbourne and Sheppey)
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 ensure that absent parents financially support their children.
Answered by Priti Patel - Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs
Child Maintenance Options provide free and impartial information and support to help separated parents make decisions about their child maintenance arrangements. For parents who are unable to make a family-based arrangement the government has introduced a new statutory Child Maintenance Service, which will bring speedier processing of applications, simpler calculations and faster enforcement action, where necessary.
Where parents fail to fulfil their financial responsibilities towards their children we have a range of strong enforcement powers at our disposal. These powers include deducting maintenance directly from earnings, instructing bailiffs to collect arrears or seize goods, forcing the sale of property, disqualification from driving and commitment to prison.