Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask His Majesty's Government when they plan to publish their response to the consultation Disability workforce reporting, which closed on 8 April; and when they plan to publish the findings of their review of the Disability Confident scheme.

The commitment to consult on disability workforce reporting was set out in the National Disability Strategy. In January 2022, the High Court declared that the strategy was unlawful because the UK Disability Survey, which informed it, was held to be a voluntary consultation that failed to comply with the legal requirements on public consultations.

The Department aims to minimise the risk of acting inconsistently with the Court’s declaration, without compromising on the ambitious agenda we are delivering for disabled people. As such, we have paused a limited number of policies referred to in the Strategy or directly connected with it, including the planned findings report and next steps publication for the Disability Workforce Reporting consultation and work directly related to the Disability Confident review.

We are committed to disability policy that supports all areas of life, and to taking action to create a society that works for everyone.