Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, on what evidential basis the requirement for four points on a single descriptor on the daily living activities assessment criteria for Personal Independence Payments was determined.

PIP provides a contribution to extra costs, but over recent years claims have increased significantly, outstripping the growth in disability prevalence. Some people get PIP from scoring 1, 2 or 3 points, low-level functional needs which could individually be managed with small interventions or the addition of an aid or appliance. We believe that focussing PIP on those with a higher level of functional need in at least one activity - people who are unable to complete activities at all, or who require more help from others to complete them – is the right thing to do to keep the costs of PIP sustainable.