Paul Maynard: DWP: Written Answers (40)

Written Question

Local Housing Allowance: Blackpool

Wednesday 4th March 2020

Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much was paid in local housing allowance in the Blackpool local authority area in financial year 2018-19.

Answered by Will Quince

Local Housing Allowance is used to calculate the maximum amount of Housing Benefit payable to claimants.

In 2018/19 the amount paid under the Local Housing Allowance Scheme for Housing Benefit claimants in the Blackpool local authority area was £51 million. This excludes the equivalent paid out in Local Housing Allowance for Universal Credit claimants, which is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Written Question

Disability

Tuesday 3rd March 2020

Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when an annual progress report in respect of the Fulfilling Potential Outcomes and Indicators Framework was last published.

Answered by Justin Tomlinson - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The last progress report for the Fulfilling Potential Outcomes and Indicators Framework was published in November 2015 and can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fulfilling-potential-outcomes-and-indicators-framework-second-annual-progress-report

We want to achieve practical changes for disabled people, which remove barriers and increase opportunity. The Government has committed to publish a National Strategy for Disabled People before the end of 2020.

Written Question

Bus Services: Blackpool

Friday 26th February 2016

Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reason his Department decided not to renew funding of the extension of the Number 14 bus service to Peel Park.

Answered by Justin Tomlinson - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)

The commitment at the time of the relocation of staff to Peel Park was to provide a bus service for three years. The cost of the current contract to provide the bus service is £216,955.50 per year and the actual usage of the service is low.

Blackpool Transport have made it clear any new contract will be at an increased amount and a decision was made that it was not possible to justify public expenditure and subsidy on this scale.

We are exploring alternatives which would offer better value for money, but no decision has yet been made.

Written Question

Children: Maintenance

Tuesday 14th October 2014

Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proof of self-employed earnings is required for child support cases; and whether he is satisfied with those requirements.

Answered by Steve Webb

In the 1993 and 2003 schemes, self-employed earnings are usually taken from the self-assessment return that is submitted to HM Revenue and Customs, or from a tax calculation notice. This is consistent with the policy that, as for employed earners, the basis of the child maintenance liability is taxable earnings. If, at any stage, a parent with care believes that the Child Support Agency should make more enquiries it can be asked to do so, although some evidence about the matter they feel needs investigating is often required.

For self-employed paying parents in the 2012 Scheme, gross income is determined by reference to gross taxable profits for the latest available tax-year. As with the 2003 and 1993 schemes, there is scope for receiving parents to provide additional evidence if they feel further enquiries into a paying parents income are required to establish the correct liability in their case.

Written Question

Children: Maintenance

Tuesday 14th October 2014

Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many requests for a departure direction were made in the latest period for which figures are available; and how many were granted.

Answered by Steve Webb

Information on the number of requests made for a departure direction is not routinely recorded for management information purposes and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Written Question

Children: Maintenance

Tuesday 14th October 2014

Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many unresolved Child Support Agency, Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission and Child Maintenance Service cases have been closed or are inactive, without a request from the claimant.

Answered by Steve Webb

There are currently three statutory maintenance schemes. The 1993 and 2003 schemes are delivered by the Child Support Agency and the 2012 Scheme is delivered by the Child Maintenance Service.

For cases administered by the Child Support Agency, information on the reasons for cases closing following calculation is available on page 51 of the Child Support Agency Quarterly Summary of Statistics which is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/347753/csa_qtr_summ_stats_jun14i.pdf

We are not yet in a position to release full statistics for the 2012 Scheme, administered by the Child Maintenance Service. When system data becomes available and fully assured they will be released as part of a managed process, which will be pre-announced and in line with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.

Written Question

Children: Maintenance

Tuesday 14th October 2014

Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of Child Support Agency, Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission and Child Maintenance Service cases involving self-employed non-resident parents result in disputes between the parties over alleged earnings.

Answered by Steve Webb

This information is not routinely recorded for management information purposes and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Written Question

Children: Maintenance

Tuesday 14th October 2014

Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

Answered by Steve Webb

There are currently three statutory maintenance schemes. The 1993 and 2003 schemes are delivered by the Child Support Agency and the 2012 Scheme is delivered by the Child Maintenance Service.

For cases administered by the Child Support Agency, as at June 2014, the proportion of the live caseload where the non-resident parent is self employed was 7.5%.

Written Question

Question Link

Monday 12th May 2014

Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, which organisations have received how much funding from his Department aimed at supporting access to short breaks and respite provision for children, young people and their families experiencing all types of disadvantage in each of the last five financial years.

Answered by Mike Penning

The Department has no schemes of this nature.

Written Question

Question Link

Thursday 27th March 2014

Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of initial employment and support allowance claims have taken over 91 days in each of the last three years for which figures are available.

Answered by Mike Penning

The table estimates, for all new Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) claims made in each of the last three years, which have had a determination in relation the Work Capability Assessment (WCA), the proportion of claims that were completed in over 91 days.

Number and proportion of completed initial ESA claims each year between April 2010 and March 2013 that were completed in more than 13 weeks by year of claim start date

	ESA claim start date between:
	Apr-10 to Mar-11	Apr-11 to Mar-12	Apr-12 to Mar-13

Completed in more than 13 weeks	231,700	316,000	364,700


Percentage completed in more than 13 weeks	58	83	78

Source: Department for Work and Pensions benefit administration dataset

Notes:

All values are rounded; therefore addition of all volumes for outcomes may not sum to total cases. Caseload volumes have been rounded to the nearest 100.
For around 10% of all new claims, the duration cannot be determined due to data not being available, so these have been excluded from the analysis above. These are mainly claims with the one or other of the dates missing so the time from the claim start to the notification of the WCA output cannot be calculated. Those still waiting for an assessment are also excluded.
The data presented above comes from benefit claims data held by the Department for Work and Pensions. It related to new ESA claims; Incapacity Benefit (IB) claims reassessments are not included. In October 2008, ESA replaced IB for new claims. Starting with a trial in October 2010, and reaching a full scale national roll-out in April 2011, existing IB claims began to be phased out, with claimants reassessed to see if they qualify for ESA instead.
As the Official Statistics on ESA and the WCA do not focus on benefit durations, the underlying data used to provide the information has not been quality assured to the same level, and should be treated with caution.
ESA payments commence from the start of the claim. Where the WCA takes longer than 91 days and the claimant is found to be eligible for the benefit payments of the relevant component will be backdated to the 92^nd day.