Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department has performance standards for clearance times for Personal Independence Payments.

There is no target for the completion of a claim to PIP through to the first payment. However, we are committed to ensuring that people can access financial support through Personal Independence Payment (PIP) in a timely manner. We always aim to make an award decision as quickly as possible, taking into account the need to review all the available evidence, including that from the claimant, any supporting evidence supplied and the advice from an assessment.