Oral Answers to Questions

Sarah Newton Excerpts

Monday 18th December 2017 Commons Chamber

[Liz Twist (Blaydon) (Lab)]

4. What steps his Department is taking to respond to and implement the recommendations in the concluding observations of the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, published on 3 October 2017.

[The Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work (Sarah Newton)]

We are committed to improving the lives of disabled people, both in the UK and through our international development work, and we are constructively considering the UN’s recommendations going forward. We intend to provide an update to the UN next summer, as requested.

[Liz Twist]

The UN report specifically called on the Government to repeal the Social Security (Personal Independence Payment) (Amendment) Regulations 2017 and to ensure that eligibility criteria in assessments to access PIP, employment and support allowance and universal credit are in line with the human rights model of disability. Will the Minister commit to that today?

[Sarah Newton]

We are absolutely committed to disabled people. We are world leaders in disability rights. We were disappointed that the UN did not consider all the information that we provided, and we strongly rebut much of what it had to say. I am sure that the hon. Lady will join me in welcoming the excellent work on reviewing PIP that was published today by Paul Gray, which sets out a whole series of reforms showing that this Government are determined to ensure that we have a benefit system that really supports disabled people.

[Justin Tomlinson (North Swindon) (Con)]

Not only did the report seemingly fail to recognise that we now spend a record £50 billion on supporting people with disabilities and long-term health conditions, but it also failed to recognise the proactive work with charities and stakeholder groups that helps to shape policies. Will the Minister reconfirm her commitment to that proactive engagement?

[Sarah Newton]

I thank my hon. Friend for his question. I absolutely confirm that I will work with disabled people and organisations that work with disabled people. I pay tribute to the excellent work that my hon. Friend did when he held my position. I am sure that we will continue to build on the work that he did and will ensure that more disabled people have the opportunity to fulfil their full potential in our society.

[Frank Field (Birkenhead) (Lab)]

Will the Minister please consider a root and branch reform of PIP? Someone who came to Feeding Birkenhead was doubly incontinent due to cancer, but she received a nil rating for PIP. While she needed food, she also needed nappies. When she did not turn up after a few days, people went to see how she was, and she was washing babies’ nappies, because she wanted to get about and was too ashamed to come and ask us for more. Is there not something wrong with PIP assessments when those sorts of cases occur?

[Sarah Newton]

I thank the right hon. Gentleman for raising this very sad case. Clearly something went wrong in that individual case. I look forward to answering questions and spending time with his Select Committee later this week. I point him to the response to Paul Gray’s evaluation of PIP that I published today. I am sure we will have more time to look at that in detail, but we remain utterly committed to making sure that we continue to improve PIP.

[Lucy Frazer (South East Cambridgeshire) (Con)]

At my surgery last week I met Frances, who has cerebral palsy. She made an application to the clinical commissioning group to get e-motion wheels for her wheelchair, which has been denied. Does the Minister agree that ensuring that people have the equipment to enable them to go to work is incredibly important and increases their self-esteem and their ability to contribute to the economy?

[Sarah Newton]

My hon. and learned Friend raises an important point. Of course, PIP is a benefit that is available to people in work and out of work, and it is there to support everyone with the additional costs of their disability. Of course, mobility is really important. There is also the excellent Access to Work scheme, which each year is funding more people, enabling them to play their full part in society, including at work.

[Chris Elmore (Ogmore) (Lab)]

5. What assessment he has made of trends in the number of in-work households living in poverty.

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[Sir Desmond Swayne (New Forest West) (Con)]

8. Whether his Department has set a target for the time taken for a personal independence payment claim to be processed from application to decision.

[The Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work (Sarah Newton)]

The DWP does not set a target for processing PIP claims. The Department takes all reasonable steps to obtain evidence of claimants’ individual needs, including independent assessment. We make decisions as quickly as possible based on the available information in order to reach the right outcome. I am sure that my right hon. Friend will be pleased to know, as I was, that the median time from start to end is currently 13 weeks.

[Sir Desmond Swayne]

Notwithstanding further appeal by the Department, will the Minister restore benefits after a successful first-tier decision for the applicant?

[Sarah Newton]

My right hon. Friend raises a very important question, but the Department takes the view that, because we are appealing the decision and it is based on an error of law, that really would not be appropriate. I just want to reassure him and all hon. Members that there are always exceptions, and this could arise where a suspension would cause financial hardship. For most benefits, this is considered before suspension is imposed, but, in all cases, the suspension letter sent to claimants invites them to contact the Department immediately if they are in financial hardship so that we can help them.

[Lilian Greenwood (Nottingham South) (Lab)]

Sixty five per cent of PIP tribunals find in favour of the claimant, meaning that hundreds of disabled people are being denied the support to which they are entitled. This puts an intolerable strain on whole families, including my constituents Chris and Cathryn Stoney who, having coped with Cathryn’s bowel cancer surgeries, brain haemorrhage and cardiac arrest, now face a further ordeal appealing against an unjust assessment. Will the Minister agree to meet me, the Stoneys and Nottingham advice services to hear how the system is failing disabled people?

[Sarah Newton]

I would be very pleased to meet the hon. Lady and her constituents to talk about that case or to listen to their concerns more widely, but we really should put the situation in context: 8% of decisions are appealed and 4% of them are upheld. I am very aware that behind every statistic is a person, but it is actually a small percentage of the millions of people who do receive their benefits, and we are continuously focused on making the right decision, right from the outset, which is why we commission independent reviews. We welcome the findings of the latest independent review by Mr Gray, which has been published today, and we have accepted all his recommendations.

[Marsha De Cordova (Battersea) (Lab)]

Does the Minister agree that Paul Gray’s recommendations in the second independent review of personal independence payments that the routine provision of the assessment report to the claimant would both improve identification of error and incentivise better performance at the assessment stage, and will she fully accept that particular recommendation?

[Sarah Newton]

As I have said before, I am really delighted with the review and to have received its findings. We have accepted all the findings in the review. At the moment, those reports are available, so that everyone can request them. We do not think it is a good use of taxpayers’ money to provide them to people who are happy with the result, who will not be going on to make any further appeal and who are actually getting on with receiving their benefit.

[Stephen Pound (Ealing North) (Lab)]

9. What estimate his Department has made of the number of sanctions that will be applied each month as universal credit is rolled out.

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[Jeff Smith (Manchester, Withington) (Lab)]

11. What assessment his Department has made of the effect of the personal independence payments application process on people with mental health issues.

[The Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work (Sarah Newton)]

The claiming process for personal independence payment was co-produced with disabled people, carers and organisations supporting them, including mental health charities. We will continue to explore opportunities to monitor and improve the process, making use of customer testing and engagement with disability groups.

[Jeff Smith]

The charity, Rethink Mental Illness, surveyed PIP claimants, and found that two in five felt that delays in decisions led to deterioration in their mental health, and that one in five had to take higher doses of medication to cope with the increased stress. Does the Minister think that that is acceptable, and will she look at the findings of the survey and review the assessment process in the light of them?

[Sarah Newton]

I pay tribute to Rethink and its campaign—I have read the findings of its survey with interest—as well as to Mind. These organisations are key stakeholders that help the Department to get these things right. No, I do not want people to be stressed by the process, which is why we are implementing a wide range of reforms that we have worked on with our stakeholders. We will make a paper-based decision wherever possible—wherever the information enables us to—and people also have the opportunity to be assessed at home.

[Laura Pidcock (North West Durham) (Lab)]

Constituents and support agencies in North West Durham have told me that the assessment to determine entitlement to PIP is too black and white, and is not able truly to capture a person’s day-to-day life with all the nuances that involves, especially when assessing mental health problems. This is leading to traumatic and humiliating experiences, and claims being refused to people who really need them. Will the Minister please look into this process in detail for those with mental health problems?

[Sarah Newton]

I thank the hon. Lady for her comment. We keep the process under constant review, and we have it independently assessed to make sure that, if there are any problems at all, we will work to overcome them. However, I can assure her that, compared with the previous benefit—disability living allowance—many more PIP recipients with mental health conditions are getting the enhanced rates.

[Mary Creagh (Wakefield) (Lab)]

12. What recent assessment he has made of the (a) accuracy and (b) efficiency of contracted-out health assessments for (i) employment and support allowance and (ii) personal independence payments.

[The Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work (Sarah Newton)]

We are committed to ensuring that claimants receive high-quality, accurate assessments. We monitor assessment quality through independent audit. Decision makers can return reports for rework or additional advice. A range of measures, including provider improvement plans, address performance failings when we experience standards below what we want. We continually look to improve the assessment process.

[Mary Creagh]

Forty people in Wakefield have written to me with their concerns that, at their employment and support allowance or PIP assessment, they were not seen by an appropriate person. That includes one person with mental health problems, who was assessed by a paramedic. The Work and Pensions Committee recently heard that Atos and Capita employ only four doctors between them, and statistics released by the Minister’s Department today show that those contractors have consistently failed to meet their targets for the number of unacceptable assessments, so how can sick and disabled people in Wakefield have any confidence in the assessment process?

[Sarah Newton]

I am looking forward to discussing this matter in more depth with the Select Committee when I come before it on Wednesday. However, I can absolutely assure the hon. Lady that all the assessors receive absolutely appropriate training for what they are there to do. These are functional assessments, and people are properly trained to make those assessments—there are doctors, nurses, paramedics and physiotherapists. We constantly keep the accuracy of the process under review, and that includes the experience of the claimants themselves.

[Mr Speaker]

We are immensely grateful to the Minister.

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[Laura Smith (Crewe and Nantwich) (Lab)]

T5. Some 68% of personal independence payment decisions taken to tribunal are being overturned by judges, so is it any surprise that my constituent Mr Parish and others in his situation have no faith in the assessment process? What assessment has the Secretary of State made of the accuracy of PIP assessments in the light of statistics that show that there has been a ninefold increase in complaints to the Department in just one year?

[The Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work (Sarah Newton)]

I thank the hon. Lady for the opportunity to make this clarification. As I have mentioned before, 8% of decisions are taken to appeal, and only half of those are upheld. I appreciate that every one of those people is disappointed with the result, and we are working tirelessly to improve the process. But, overall, most people get a good decision on time, and their benefits.

[Alex Burghart (Brentwood and Ongar) (Con)]

On Friday, I visited my local jobcentre and saw the genuine enthusiasm that work coaches have for the new universal credit system. Will my hon. Friend confirm that additional help is available for users who are not too tech savvy?

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[Naz Shah (Bradford West) (Lab)]

T6. A constituent of mine in Bradford West had three same-day assessments cancelled in a period of five weeks. Eventually, she got an appointment—a home visit—after seven months. What assessment has the Department made of same-day cancellations of work capability assessments by Maximus-employed health professionals—the number, the reasons given and the impact on the mental health of applicants?

[Sarah Newton]

I assure the hon. Lady that we have a very robust quality assurance process. Clearly, the case she has highlighted today is unacceptable. If she would like to bring me that case and discuss it with me, I would be very happy to do so.

[Steve Double (St Austell and Newquay) (Con)]

Every year, billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money is lost due to fraud or errors in benefit claims. Will the Secretary of State say whether the introduction of universal credit will improve this situation?