Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what regulations apply to the size and colours of printed information on benefits published by his Department to ensure access to that information for people with visual impairments.

The Department has the following documented standards for printed information:
• Minimum type size of 10pt FS Me or 12pt Arial, based on recommended best practice from RNIB

• The majority of publications are printed in black and white.

• Where colour is used, we apply international standards for suitable contrast between text and background.

• The Department provides staff guidance explaining how to commission large print, Braille or audio versions of publications in response to individual requests.

• Publications can also be made available in electronic formats suitable for most computers equipped with screen reader software; or as Portable Document Format (PDF) files which have been optimised for the free-of-charge Adobe Reader built-in 'Read out loud' function.