Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of extending the eligibility criteria for Carer’s Allowance to a larger number of unpaid carers; and if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of unpaid care work on the (a) physical and (b) mental health of women.

The Government keeps Carer’s Allowance under review to see whether it is meeting its objectives. It has no current plans to extend the eligibility criteria.

Questions on the impact of unpaid care work on individuals are matters for the Department of Health and Social Care in England and for the Devolved Administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Carer’s Allowance is a devolved benefit in Scotland.