Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average time taken was for a substantive response to letters to her office from hon. Members in the latest period for which figures are available.

The information is not available in the format requested.

The volume of correspondence to the Department’s Ministers is currently three times higher than it was prior to the coronavirus pandemic. In recent weeks the Department has also redeployed thousands of staff to manage the significant increase in claims for benefits and to ensure that claimants are paid in a timely manner. The Department ensures that urgent cases raised by hon. Members are prioritised and is taking steps to provide substantive replies in as short a time as possible.