Asked by: Patricia Ferguson (Labour - Glasgow West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions she has had with the Pensions Ombudsman on the adequacy of the time taken for complaints to be resolved.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
I recently met with the Pensions Ombudsman and Chief Operating Officer to discuss performance of the organisation and significant increases in requests for The Pensions Ombudsman (TPO) services. The time taken by TPO to resolve cases is dependent on several factors often external to TPO. For example, the complexity of the complaint, Ombudsman jurisdiction, and response times taken by the industry and the complainant to reply to information gathering requests from TPO.
In response to these pressures, TPO have implemented an Operating Model Review (OMR) programme. DWP are working closely with TPO to rigorously monitor the impact the OMR is having on the complaint management and resolution of cases.
Asked by: Patricia Ferguson (Labour - Glasgow West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions she has had with the Pensions Ombudsman on the adequacy of the time taken for a complaint to be allocated to an adjudicator.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
I met with the Pensions Ombudsman and Chief Operating Officer to discuss the significant increase over a period of several years in complaints received; a trend that is continuing. This increase has impacted on waiting times for cases to be allocated to an adjudication specialist. In response, The Pension Ombudsman has implemented an Operating Model Review (OMR) programme.
DWP are working closely with TPO to rigorously monitor the impact the OMR is having on waiting times and case allocation to adjudication specialists.
Asked by: Patricia Ferguson (Labour - Glasgow West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the time taken for Access to Work applications to be allocated to a case manager; and what steps she is taking to help reduce this waiting time.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We are committed to reducing waiting times for Access to Work and are considering the best way to deliver that for customers. We have increased the number of staff processing Access to Work claims and applications from customers who are about to start a job or who are renewing are prioritised.
The Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to get Britain Working’ Green Paper was published on 18 March. Alongside the Access to Work reform proposals introduced in the Green Paper, we are considering further options to reduce the waiting time for customers
Asked by: Patricia Ferguson (Labour - Glasgow West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the time taken for cases to be allocated to a case manager.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The department administers a wide range of benefits, and as such the information you have requested is not held centrally and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Patricia Ferguson (Labour - Glasgow West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what guidance her Department has issued on people requiring emergency assistance while they wait for a benefit claim to be assessed.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions seeks to identify individuals who have complex user needs and/or require additional support to enable them to access our benefit and services; this includes people who are vulnerable and are claiming, or need to claim, Universal Credit. We provide a tailored service that recognises those with complex needs at any point throughout their journey and aims to make appropriate support available quickly.
Advances are available to ensure those who need it can receive financial support as soon as possible. Financial support is important so customers are not reliant on high-cost lenders, but may be able instead to get some of their Universal Credit early, interest free, as an advance.