Asked by: Noah Law (Labour - St Austell and Newquay)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she has made an assessment of the cost effectiveness of the outsourcing the (a) assessment and (b) administration of welfare.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
We do not outsource the assessment or administration of social security in any wholesale manner, although some elements of these services are outsourced to third parties.
Where these services have been outsourced, each arrangement is subject to individual scrutiny both at the planning and commissioning stages, where a number of steps are conducted:
When we do decide to outsource, at the end of the commercial process a contract will be executed, which will capture the key requirements for provision of the service and the service levels expected of the provider to enable the anticipated value for money to be delivered. This will be managed closely by contract management practitioners accredited to, or studying towards accreditation, at Expert or Practitioner level (depending on the complexity of the contract) of the Contract Management Capability Programme managed by Cabinet Office. This enables and ensures that the department realises the best value for money possible from the third party services and the optimum cost effectiveness.
Asked by: Noah Law (Labour - St Austell and Newquay)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to ensure that people with care needs can continue to pay for carers following changes to eligibility for Personal Independence Payments.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We have committed to introduce a new requirement that, in addition to the existing eligibility criteria, claimants must score a minimum of four points in at least one daily living activity to be eligible for the daily living component of Personal Independence Payment. Our intention is that – subject to parliamentary approval – the changes will apply to new claims and award reviews from November 2026.
The changes will focus PIP more on those with the greatest needs, ensuring those who are unable to complete activities at all, or who require more help from others to complete them, still get support.
Through the Green Paper we are consulting on the support needed for those who may lose any entitlements as a result of receiving PIP daily living and what this support could look like.
We will also work closely with the DHSC and others on how the health and eligible care needs of those who would lose entitlement to PIP could be met outside the benefits system. The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions has regular discussions with Cabinet members, including in relation to benefit reform.
Asked by: Noah Law (Labour - St Austell and Newquay)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to support the delivery of the Youth Guarantee.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department is taking a number of steps to deliver the Youth Guarantee, to ensure all 18-21 year olds in England have access to quality education, employment and training opportunities.
The Get Britain Working White Paper announced £45 million of funding to test delivery of the Youth Guarantee in eight trailblazer areas that will start delivering support from April 2025. These are: Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, East Midlands, Liverpool City Region, Tees Valley, West of England, West Midlands, and two areas within the Greater London Authority. The trailblazers will be led by the Mayoral Strategic Authorities, providing learnings that will inform the future roll-out of the Guarantee across England.
The Guarantee will also be supported by our first national partnerships with The Premier League, Channel 4 and the Royal Shakespeare Company, who will generate a range of opportunities that engage young people and set them on the path to success.
There is already a range of existing provision available to young people, including the Department’s Youth Offer, which provides individually tailored Work Coach support for young people aged 16 to 24 and claiming Universal Credit.