Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an estimate of the number of people for whom the funds spent on Personal Independence Payments (PIP) would provide talking therapy for in place of PIP in (a) Wirral, (b) Merseyside and (c) the UK.

Such information is not available as no decisions on detailed policy design have yet been made. The consultation, Modernising Support for Independent Living: The Health and Disability Green Paper, is instead about opening up a broader conversation about how we could reshape the current welfare system to provide better targeted support to those who need it most.

Part of the Green Paper explores alternative ways of supporting people to live independent and fulfilling lives. This could mean financial support being better targeted at people who have specific extra costs, but it could also involve improved support of other kinds, such as physical or mental health treatment.

The Green Paper was published on Monday 29 April and the 12 week consultation will close on Monday 22 July.

We encourage everyone to respond to the consultation so that we are able to hear from as many people as possible on these important issues, including disabled people, people with health conditions, their representatives, and other stakeholders.