Oral Answers to Questions

John Pugh Excerpts

Monday 9th March 2015 Commons Chamber

[The Minister for Disabled People (Mr Mark Harper)]

To be fair to Maximus, it took over the contract only eight days ago. I remind the hon. Lady that the company that it took it over from, which had well-published problems, was appointed by a Government of the party of whom she is a member. We have been sorting out that problem. Maximus has been in place for eight days and will improve the position, but the hon. Lady needs to give it a fair crack of the whip. It will not sort out all the problems in a week.

[John Pugh (Southport) (LD)]

T6. Will the Minister tell the House how the outlook for women and their pensions has improved since 2010?

[The Minister for Pensions (Steve Webb)]

I am very happy to brief my hon. Friend. Tackling the poorer pension outcomes for women has been a long-term priority for him and for me. Our reformed state pension will come in during 2016 and will deliver a fairer pension for women. Millions of women have been automatically enrolled and so will have a pension of their own, on top of a decent state pension—the difference, dare I say it, that a Liberal Democrat Pensions Minister makes.

Oral Answers to Questions

John Pugh Excerpts

Monday 8th December 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Harper]

This is about making sure that when someone goes for a work capability assessment and is found to be fit for work, the most important thing is that they then engage with the jobs market and get back into the workplace. It is not just about the benefits; it is about making sure that people are getting the benefit of getting into work. For most people with a mental health problem, it is very clear that working will not just be the right thing but will be better for their condition.

[John Pugh (Southport) (LD)]

3. What his policy is on the freezing of pensions of British nationals living abroad; and if he will make a statement.

[The Minister for Pensions (Steve Webb)]

The policy of the Government on the uprating of UK state pensions paid to people living overseas is the same as that of successive post-war Governments—namely, to uprate such pensions where we are legally required to do so under the terms of EU law or a bilateral social security agreement.

[John Pugh]

I thank the Minister for that, I think, but surely there are enough anomalies and inconsistencies in the system to warrant a wholesale review. British pensions should not be country-dependent.

[Steve Webb]

I agree with my hon. Friend in the sense that if one were designing a system from scratch, one would not necessarily design the one that we have arrived at over the course of 50 years. He will be aware, however, that paying for this indexation would cost some half a billion pounds a year, and I do not believe that any party in this House has committed to such an increase in public spending.

Affordable Homes Bill

John Pugh Excerpts

Friday 5th September 2014 Commons Chamber

[Andrew George]

I thank the hon. Lady. I am sure that the Minister will have heard those remarks.

[John Pugh (Southport) (LD)]

Is not the huge amount of discretionary money that the Government have had to throw at this scheme an indication that things are not working and that we need to move towards a more evidence-led policy?

[Andrew George]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for making that point for me very articulately.

Oral Answers to Questions

John Pugh Excerpts

Monday 13th June 2011 Commons Chamber

[John Pugh (Southport) (LD)]

16. What recent representations he has received on his Department’s use of 0845 numbers; and if he will make a statement.

[The Minister of State, Department for Work and Pensions (Chris Grayling)]

The Department—and, indeed, I myself—has received several communications from customers and their representatives asking about our policy on the use of 0845 numbers and whether we have considered changing to 0300 and/or geographical numbers. In the wake of those representations, I have asked the Department to undertake an internal review about our use of 0845 numbers and see what other options might be available to us.

[John Pugh]

I thank the Minister for that response, but given that benefit clients normally have no access to a landline, that calls from mobiles can cost as much as 40p and that they could be kept waiting for information on crisis loans and disability, should we not do more and consider talking to the Telephone Helplines Association about that to make faster progress than we are currently achieving with 0300 numbers?

[Chris Grayling]

I agree with the hon. Gentleman. We offer a ring-back service to anybody who is concerned about the cost of the call that they are making. None the less, there is a genuine problem and I have asked the Department to consider it and ascertain whether better options are available, particularly given the number of claimants who use mobile phones.

Oral Answers to Questions

John Pugh Excerpts

Monday 22nd November 2010 Commons Chamber

[Steve Webb]

On the contrary. The Labour party manifesto said that people who were in work should not be in worse accommodation than people who are out of work. That implies the 30th percentile change, and that is what we have implemented.

[Dr John Pugh (Southport) (LD)]

What are the Government doing to prevent hardened drug addicts with consequent mental health issues claiming DLA in the normal way, which goes straight into their veins and up their noses? What are the Government doing to improve the situation and stop this waste of public money?

[Maria Miller]

As my hon. Friend knows, we are undertaking a thorough review of the assessment process concerning DLA. Those are just the sort of issues that we will be looking at in detail.