Oral Answers to Questions

Simon Clarke Excerpts

Monday 2nd July 2018 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

Well, the Secretary of State had a stab at it, and we are extremely grateful to her for doing so.

[Mr Simon Clarke (Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland) (Con)]

10. How much her Department has spent on supporting people with disabilities and health conditions in the last 12 months; and what the change in that amount has been in real terms since 2010.

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

In 2017-18, the Department for Work and Pensions spent £51.9 billion on benefits to support disabled people and people with health conditions. This year it is forecast to rise to £54 billion, £9.3 billion more in real terms than in 2010-11. Spending on the main disability benefits—PIP, DLA and attendance allowance—has risen by over £5 billion since 2010 and is at a record high this year.

[Mr Clarke]

I thank the Minister for her answer. Will she join me in congratulating the East Cleveland employment and training hub in Skinningrove, which opened in February and has done brilliant work for a number of my constituents, including those with the health and disability issues to which my question refers?

[Sarah Newton]

My hon. Friend is a real champion for all his constituents, and I am pleased to join him in praising the work of the East Cleveland employment and training hub, which I understand plays a pivotal role in the community in enabling people to be supported into employment and is particularly valuable for those people who recently lost their jobs at the local potash mine.