Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 11 January 2021 to Question 133744 on Personal Independence Payment: Coronavirus, for what reasons claimants are being advised by a private firm contracted by her Department that timescales are not in place to due to the covid-19.

We have interpreted your question to mean what reason claimants are advised by assessment providers (Capita and Independent Assessment Services), contracted by her department, that timescales are not currently in place due to COVID-19.

The department maintains the same targets for claims clearance as pre-COVID, but recognises the current delivery challenges faced by its providers due to COVID-19. We are working with our providers to provide continued support to claimants in need of Personal Independence Payment (PIP). We remain committed to delivering quality functional assessments and ensuring claimants are assessed as quickly as possible.

So we do not place people at unnecessary risk, we have temporarily suspended face to face PIP assessments. All assessments are currently being progressed on the basis of paper based evidence alone, or that evidence together with a telephone assessment to ensure decisions on PIP can be made without delay.