Women’s State Pension Age Communication: PHSO Report

Shockat Adam Excerpts

Tuesday 17th December 2024 Commons Chamber

[Liz Kendall]

May I say gently that I know what is on my website? We did campaign with WASPI women, including in 2017 and 2019, but we lost those elections. This decision is not about the increase in the state pension age, which was what that campaign was about—that decision has been taken—but about how that increase was communicated. I know that it will cause disappointment and anger among many 1950s-born women, but we do not believe that the ombudsman’s approach to injustice or remedy is right, which is why we have taken this decision.

[Shockat Adam (Leicester South) (Ind)]

In July, this country overwhelmingly voted for a change, but it is getting more of the same—more failure and more austerity. Nothing has changed apart from the excuses. It is no wonder that the Prime Minister’s approval rating has plummeted to minus 66%. Given that Labour has recently removed even more money from our pensioners’ pockets by taking away the winter fuel payment, will the Secretary of State please reconsider this betrayal and compensate the WASPI women, such as my constituents Ruth Smith and Rev. Elizabeth Maitland?

[Liz Kendall]

I am sure the hon. Gentleman supports an increase in the minimum wage that will deliver a £1,400-a-year pay increase for someone who is working full time on the minimum wage in Leicester. I am sure he agrees with the £22 billion additional investment in the NHS this year and next, and with a boost of £420 per year on average for people on universal credit in Leicester through the fair repayment rate. Those are the changes we are delivering, but on this issue, we do not believe the ombudsman’s approach on injustice or remedy is right. When 90% of 1950s-born women knew that the state pension age was increasing, we do not believe that giving flat-rate compensation is a fair or appropriate use of taxpayers’ money.

Food Banks

Shockat Adam Excerpts

Tuesday 19th November 2024 Westminster Hall

[Shockat Adam (Leicester South) (Ind)]

May I say what an honour it is to speak under your stewardship, Ms Vaz? I congratulate the hon. Member for Aberdeenshire North and Moray East (Seamus Logan) on securing this vital debate. Echoing my fellow Members’ sentiments, the need for food banks is unacceptable, but those who donate to them and run them provide testimony of our country’s unity, compassion and kindness.

I will mention a few in my constituency: Goldhill adventure playground, Wesley Hall pantry, which is very close to the house I grew up in—the queue goes past my house now, unfortunately—the Eyre Monsell club for young people, and a Sikh community charity called Midland Langar Seva Society, which does incredible work in a church serving all members of the community regardless of faith. Their work, however, should not be needed. We are the sixth-richest nation in the world, and we have millions using our food banks. The situation will only get worse, according to the Trussell Trust, with a record 9.3 million people, including one in five children, facing hunger and hardship. That is 4 million more than five years ago.

I will briefly touch on a few points that we need to address. First, as mentioned by the hon. Member for Cheltenham (Max Wilkinson), we must remove the myth that those using food banks are somehow deserving of it. Having employment is not a reliable route out of hardship, as 58% of people facing hunger and hardship live in families in which at least one person is working.

Secondly, food banks are used disproportionately by people with disabilities. Twenty-six per cent of the UK’s population suffers from some form of disability, whether mental health or physical disability, but 69% of those referred to the Trussell Trust’s food banks are disabled. Among the main reasons cited for that is a lack of information about entitlements; difficulties in claiming and sustaining benefits such as the personal independence payment; insufficient income from the benefits once people receive them; and further reductions due to sanctions cap deductions and debt.

Thirdly, there is the impact on children. One of the quickest ways we can bring children out of poverty is to scrap the two-child benefit cap instantly. Finally, I have some anecdotal evidence about the increased use of food banks from those where I have volunteered. They are being used by individuals and students who are being brought in by agencies from abroad. We need to address rogue people who are bringing people in.

Carer’s Allowance

Shockat Adam Excerpts

Wednesday 16th October 2024 Commons Chamber

[Alison McGovern]

Obviously whistleblowing is very important. The Hillsborough law that is being introduced is not my responsibility, so the hon. Lady will understand that I cannot go over it extensively, but I will say, as someone who worked on the Hillsborough issue for many years, that it is very important to me personally.

These problems are significant, and given the scale of the challenges, we will not be able to solve all of them overnight, but we have taken important first steps, including tackling the issue of overpayments of carer’s allowance related to earnings. We have all heard the stories of some of the thousands of carers who have been affected, we have all heard and know about the stress and anxiety that it has caused them, and we all want—I hope—to establish the facts.

To address this problem, we must first truly understand what has gone wrong. That is why the DWP has announced today an independent review of overpayments of carer’s allowance that have exceeded the entitlement threshold. The review will investigate how the overpayments have occurred, what can best be done to support those who have accrued them, and how to reduce the risk of such problems occurring in future. We are delighted that Liz Sayce OBE has agreed to lead the review. My colleagues the Minister for Social Security and Disability, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Ham (Sir Stephen Timms), and the Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, my hon. Friend the Member for Stretford and Urmston (Andrew Western), have already met representatives of Carers UK, along with carers themselves, to discuss their report on overpayments, and we will consider the findings of that report alongside the independent review.

[Shockat Adam (Leicester South) (Ind)]

On that point, does the Minister agree that there should be a failsafe system? If an overpayment is made and the receiver is not notified, they should be allowed not to pay back any of the money.

[Alison McGovern]

I thank the hon. Member for his intervention. I am sure that many Members will want to provide their views to the review, which is welcome. I will come to some of the steps we have already taken to try to address the problems in a moment.

It is vital to move quickly to understand exactly what has gone wrong, so that we can set out a plan to put things right. Right now, we want to make it as easy as possible for carers to tell us when something has changed that could affect their carer’s allowance. We will continue to look at improving communications, and we are now reviewing the results of a test of text alerts to claimants who may be at risk of building up overpayments.

In response to the point that the right hon. Member for Kingston and Surbiton (Ed Davey) made about the need for a review, I assure him that we are not waiting for an extensive review in order to act; we have acted already. Our pilot involved texting 3,500 claimants to alert them when we were told by HMRC that they have breached the current earnings limit. Going forward, we want to make the best use of earnings data already held by HMRC in order to reduce the burdens on busy carers, which also responds to the point made earlier.