Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
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 implications for his Department’s policies of the report entitled Women’s State Pension age: our findings on injustice and associated issues published by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman on 21 March 2024, HC 638.
Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
In laying the report before Parliament at the end of March, the Ombudsman has brought matters to the attention of this House, and a further update to the House will be provided once the report's findings have been fully considered.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he is taking steps to encourage young people under the age of 18 to opt in to pensions.
Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The 2017 Review of Automatic Enrolment (AE) sets out our ambition to reduce the qualifying age for AE below 22, so that younger workers can begin to save as soon as they join the labour market.
The government supported the Pensions (Extension of Automatic Enrolment) Act 2023 which gives us the legislative powers to implement this expansion of AE subject to consultation with employers and workers. Government is committed to make this change in the mid-2020s.
In the meantime, the current AE framework allows workers who are not automatic enrolled to opt-in to a workplace pension, including those below age 22, and many employers already choose to enrol those workers.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of trends in the number of people claiming long-term sickness benefits.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We are determined to have a welfare system that encourages and supports people into work, while providing a vital safety net for those who need it most. The Government has an ambitious programme of initiatives to support disabled people and people with health conditions to start, stay and succeed in work.
Building on existing provision and the £2 billion investment announced at the 2023 Spring Budget, we announced a new package of support in Autumn Statement 2023, including doubling the number of places on the Universal Support employment programme and launching WorkWell in approximately 15 pilot areas.
In the Health and Disability White Paper published alongside the 2023 Spring Budget we announced our intention to remove the Work Capability Assessment so that those who are able to can progress in or towards work, without the worry of being reassessed and losing their benefits.
Ahead of these longer-term plans, from 2025 we are reforming the WCA to reflect new flexibilities in the labour market and greater employment opportunities for disabled people and people with health conditions, whilst maintaining protections for those with the most significant conditions.
We also announced our new Chance to Work Guarantee which will effectively remove the WCA for most claimants who have already been assessed without work-related requirements, removing the fear of reassessment and giving this group the confidence to try work, within existing permitted work rules in ESA and work allowance rules in UC.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of expediting applications for Personal Independence Payments made by people with life-threatening conditions.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
DWP is committed to improving the way the benefit system supports people nearing the end of their life.
There is no automatic entitlement to PIP in relation to a health condition - except in cases of people nearing the end of life.
A PIP claimant is currently regarded as being end of life if they suffer from a progressive disease and their death in consequence of that disease can reasonably be expected within 12 months.
Special considerations apply to such claimants. Currently, claims are processed within 3 days on average.
In the longer term, the Health Transformation Programme will transform the entire PIP service to simplify and shorten the application process for all PIP claimants, including those with life-threatening conditions.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will take steps to introduce legislative proposals to increase the amount of caring allowance available to people who care for more than one person.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given 19 September 2023 to PQ199589 relating to England and Wales. Carer’s Allowance is a devolved matter in Scotland, and social security is a transferred matter in Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has had recent discussions with the Department for Communities in Northern Ireland on trends in the number of children living in households in relative poverty in that region.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
DWP officials regularly meet with colleagues at the Department for Communities and the meetings cover a broad range of topics, including poverty.
Absolute poverty is the government’s preferred measure as the poverty line is fixed in real terms so is not affected by overall median income. In the three years up to 2021/22 (excluding 2020/21), 17% of children in Northern Ireland were in absolute poverty after housing costs compared to 26% in the three years up to 2009/10.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has had recent discussions with the Trussell Trust on the trends in the level of donations required to meet demand for food banks.
Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
DWP officials regularly engage with a wide range of stakeholders including the Trussell Trust. Foodbanks are independent, charitable organisations and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) does not have any role in their operation.
The next release of the Households Below Average Income statistics, covering the year 2022/23, is due in March 2024. This will include updated national statistics on both food security and food bank use.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help support women experiencing menopause in the workplace.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department of Health and Social Care continue to identify menopause as a priority area in the second year of the Women’s Health Strategy, and Government more widely sees women’s health, and particularly menopause, as an essential factor when supporting the recruitment and retention of older women in the workforce.
Helen Tomlinson - Head of Talent (UK & Ireland) at The Adecco Group - was appointed to the voluntary role of Government’s Menopause Employment Champion on 6 March 2023 by the Department for Work and Pensions and is working closely with the Minister for Disabled People, Health & Work. The Menopause Champion is driving awareness of issues surrounding menopause in the workplace; encouraging employers to develop policies that create a more supportive environment to help women stay in work and progress.
On World Menopause Day (18 October 2023), Government launched the Menopause Resources Hub on the Help to Grow portal - new guidance providing businesses, large and small, with the resources they need to help educate their organisation and workers about the menopause.
The report “No Time to Step Back” summarises the work of Helen Tomlinson in the first six months after her appointment and highlights progress made by businesses during this time. The Menopause Employment Champion’s 12-month progress report “shattering the silence about the Menopause” is due to be published on International Women’s Day.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to include scoliosis as a reportable condition under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases, and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013.
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.
The 2013 regulations clarified and simplified the list of reportable ill-health conditions (occupational diseases), as a result of a recommendation made by Professor Löfstedt in his report “Reclaiming health and safety for all: An independent review of health and safety (legislation,” published in 2011.
Under the regulations, HSE is required to review RIDDOR every five years. A review has recently been completed and its recommendations published. One of these recommendations was to review the list of reportable occupational diseases. HSE is currently considering how best to take this forward.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much has been overpaid to (a) Universal Credit and (b) Employment and Support Allowance claimants in each of the last twelve months.
Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
DWP measures its overpayments via annual national statistics published each May.
Latest published figures show that 12.8% (£5,540m) of UC and 3.4% (£410m) ESA was overpaid. These figures include fraud, official error and claimant error.
Fraud and error in the benefit system: financial year 2022 to 2023 estimates - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)