Asked by: Helen Whately (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Work Capability Assessments have been (a) curtailed and (b) closed early in the last five years.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions does not hold or publish statistics on the number of Work Capability Assessments (WCAs) that have been curtailed or closed early, either over the last five years or in the most recent year for which data is available.
Published statistical releases on Employment and Support Allowance and Universal Credit WCAs report only on completed assessments and do not include information on curtailed or discontinued assessments.
Asked by: Helen Whately (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many PIP assessments required the use of (a) an interpreter and (b) translation services in the period since July 2024.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Functional Assessment Service contracts launched on 9 September 2024. Between then and the end of January 2026, across all delivery areas, a total of 230,000 Personal Independence Payment (PIP) assessments were completed with a translator present.
This includes British Sign Language, Irish Sign Language and lip speaking services, and is not limited to spoken language interpretation.
These numbers are based on completed assessments by either face-to-face, telephone or video where a request for an interpreter or translator was met and are rounded in line with statistical disclosure protocols.
Prior to September 2024, the department does not hold this data for all delivery areas in the outgoing assessment contracts.
Asked by: Helen Whately (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will publish the number and proportion of licensed sponsoring employers for (a) Skilled Worker visa holders and (b) Health and Care Worker visa holders registered in each local authority area.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the code of practice for statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user needs, the resources required to compile the statistics, as well as quality and availability of data.
Statistics regarding the UK population is a matter for the independent Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Asked by: Helen Whately (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people since the start of 2025 have been assessed for PIP a) in-person b) over the phone or c) via video call.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
While this information is not currently published by the department, we will be sharing this data in a future statistical release.
Asked by: Helen Whately (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people since the start of 2025 have been awarded PIP after an assessment a) in-person b) over the phone or c) via video call.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
While this information is not currently published by the department, we will be sharing this data in a future statistical release.
Asked by: Helen Whately (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will publish the number and proportion of applicants granted (a) Skilled Worker visas and (b) Health and Care Worker visas whose declared workplace is located in each local authority area.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the code of practice for statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user needs, the resources required to compile the statistics, as well as quality and availability of data.
Statistics regarding the UK population is a matter for the independent Office for National Statistics (ONS).