Employment and Support Allowance and Jobseekers' Allowance

Written Question

Migrants

Thursday 2nd May 2024

Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential impact of No Recourse to Public Funds on people who are (a) destitute and (b) facing destitution.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

The Home Office is committed to the continuous review of the NRPF policy and are engaging with public and private sector organisations on a regular basis to understand the impacts of the NRPF condition.

The Government published an overarching Equality Impact Assessment on the Compliant Environment measures, of which No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF) is part; Compliant environment: overarching equality impact assessment (accessible) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

In general, temporary migrants are expected to support themselves and any accompanying family members in the UK without recourse to public funds. This is a well-established principle that protects taxpayer-funded public services from becoming overburdened.

Nonetheless, there are important safeguards in place for those in genuine need. Migrants with permission under the Family or Private Life routes, or the Hong Kong British National (Overseas) routes, can apply, for free, to have their NRPF condition lifted by making a ‘Change of Conditions’ application. An individual on these routes can apply to have their NRPF condition lifted if they are destitute or at risk of imminent destitution, if there are reasons relating to the welfare of a relevant child, or where they are facing exceptional circumstances affecting their income or expenditure.

For all other immigration routes (other than Family or Private Life, or the Hong Kong BN(O) routes), the general expectation is that they will return to their home country should they become unable to meet their essential living needs in the UK. If there are particularly compelling circumstances why leaving the UK is not possible, discretion can be used to consider if the circumstances justify access to public funds.

Local authorities may also provide basic safety net support, regardless of immigration status, if it is established either that there is a risk to the wellbeing of a child or there is a genuine care need that does not arise solely from destitution: for example, where a person has community care needs or serious health problems. Support provided to a child by local authorities is not dependent on the immigration status of the child or their parent(s).

Migrants with NRPF who have paid the necessary National Insurance contributions or have relevant periods of employment or self-employment, can claim contributory benefits and statutory payments such as New Style Jobseekers Allowance, Statutory Sick Pay, and the State Pension.

Written Question

Jobseeker's Allowance

Wednesday 1st May 2024

Asked by: Angela Eagle (Labour - Wallasey)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what percentage of new Jobseeker’s Allowance claims have been completed within the planned processing timescales by (a) nation and (b) region in each year since 2010.

Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

Table 1 - Percentage of new claims that have been completed within the planned processing timescales by benefit.

	2016-17	2017-18	2018-19	2019-20	2020-21	2021-22	2022-23	2023-24
Jobseekers Allowance	88.6%	86.8%	80.6%	53.1%	82.5%	87.1%	67.8%	58.7%
Employment and Support Allowance	84.6%	85.3%	73.3%	96.1%	70.9%	42.5%	47.4%	39.5%
State Pension	87.9%	73.7%	86.8%	86.7%	76.2%	45.6%	72.0%	96.2%
Pension Credit	71.0%	55.2%	53.4%	44.8%	88.2%	74.3%	45.7%	77.7%
Disability Living Allowance (child)	96.8%	96.5%	96.2%	91.3%	92.1%	35.6%	4.6%	3.5%
Personal Independence Payment	85.1%	77.2%	72.3%	40.4%	23.0%	6.8%	38.4%	51.7%
Child Maintenance Service	82.8%	87.4%	88.3%	91.6%	84.3%	84.3%	79.4%	79.6%
Universal Credit			80.4%	85.2%	90.9%	85.7%	84.4%	TBC

Comments to note:

Data has been provided for the years 2016-17 to 2023-24 (UC 2018-19 to 2023-24). Previous years requested are not retained centrally and the breakdown by nation and region for services except UC would only be available at a disproportionate cost.

In the spirit of answering the question we have provided table 1 above.

Service Performance Context:

Jobseekers Allowance

From the start of the pandemic until April 2021, JSA claims were subject to easements that meant face-to-face appointment was removed. In April 2021, Claimant Commitments and regular face to face engagement requirements were reintroduced.

Employment and Support Allowance

ESA 2019-20 to 2023-24, the new claim process for New Style Employment and Support Allowance (NSESA) changed. In April 2020 a digital claim was introduced during Covid. Prior to this, as part of the new claim process, a period up to 10 days at beginning was never measured. With the re-designed process all time is included, so it is not possible to make a like-for-like comparison with the new claim process before April 2020.

State Pension

Performance was severely impacted due to the need to repivot resource to other areas, such as Universal Credit, during the global pandemic. In 2021/22, resource was re-deployed to work through the backlogs. Investment in digital services in this area has also aided recovery leading to significant performance improvements in 2023/24.

Pension Credit

2019/20 was impacted by substantial spikes in claims following the BBC decision to remove free TV licences. Uptake in Pension Credit has been encouraged through campaigns and again led to unprecedented claims being received when entitlement was linked to additional Cost of Living payments. This created backlogs and impacted payment timeliness as these were recovered.

Disability Living Allowance (Child)

Disability Living Allowance ceased in 2013 and is no longer an active benefit, it was replaced by Personal Independence Payment. Disability Living Allowance for Children continues to accept new claims and as such we have responded in respect of this benefit.
Demand for Child DLA has increased in recent years and is significantly higher than pre-pandemic volumes.
During 2020-21 we deferred case renewal activity to focus on processing new claims. Since then the service has had to service both high new claims volumes and the deferred renewal work which has led to longer processing times.
We have increased the numbers of staff working on Child DLA to respond to increase new claims volumes, and clear cases in date order to ensure fair customer service.

Personal Independence Payment

PIP performance represents a significant recovery compared to prior periods and the lowest average journey time recorded since 2018 (see published statistics)
PIP New Claims demand is significantly higher than pre-Covid levels, despite the devolution of Scottish claims during this period.

Child Maintenance Service

Child Maintenance Service application volumes have been sharply increasing with CMS receiving more than 50% more in 2023/24 than in 2021/22. This dip in performance over this time can largely be explained by this. More recently, the removal of the Application fee has also resulted in higher volumes.

Universal Credit

Data has been provided for the years 2018-19 to 2023-24. Detailed data by local areas is available via Stat Xplore within the Universal Credit Published Statistics (Universal Credit statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)). Previous years requested are not retained centrally or published and the breakdown by nation and region would only be available at a disproportionate cost.

The 2023-24 figures for UC are not available until May as per the Statistics Release schedule.

Planned timescales for all benefits are listed in table 2 below.

Table 2: Planned Timescales for new claims (current methodology)

Jobseekers Allowance	Within 10 working days
Employment and Support Allowance	Within 10 working days
State Pension	Within 20 working days of State Pension entitlement date or 20 working days of Initial date of claim if claiming after entitlement has started.
Pension Credit	Within 50 working days
Disability Living Allowance (Child)	Within 40 working days
Personal Independence Payment	Within 75 working days
Child Maintenance Service	Payment within 12 weeks
Universal Credit	% Full Payment 1st Assessment Period

Notes: The planned timescales detailed above relate to those used for the 23/24 financial year. The timescales and methodologies to calculate them have changed over time to reflect new processes, technology and demands on our services.

Written Question

Disability Living Allowance

Wednesday 1st May 2024

Asked by: Angela Eagle (Labour - Wallasey)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what percentage of new Disability Living Allowance claims have been completed within the planned processing timescales by (a) nation and (b) region in each year since 2010.

Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

Table 1 - Percentage of new claims that have been completed within the planned processing timescales by benefit.

	2016-17	2017-18	2018-19	2019-20	2020-21	2021-22	2022-23	2023-24
Jobseekers Allowance	88.6%	86.8%	80.6%	53.1%	82.5%	87.1%	67.8%	58.7%
Employment and Support Allowance	84.6%	85.3%	73.3%	96.1%	70.9%	42.5%	47.4%	39.5%
State Pension	87.9%	73.7%	86.8%	86.7%	76.2%	45.6%	72.0%	96.2%
Pension Credit	71.0%	55.2%	53.4%	44.8%	88.2%	74.3%	45.7%	77.7%
Disability Living Allowance (child)	96.8%	96.5%	96.2%	91.3%	92.1%	35.6%	4.6%	3.5%
Personal Independence Payment	85.1%	77.2%	72.3%	40.4%	23.0%	6.8%	38.4%	51.7%
Child Maintenance Service	82.8%	87.4%	88.3%	91.6%	84.3%	84.3%	79.4%	79.6%
Universal Credit			80.4%	85.2%	90.9%	85.7%	84.4%	TBC

Comments to note:

Data has been provided for the years 2016-17 to 2023-24 (UC 2018-19 to 2023-24). Previous years requested are not retained centrally and the breakdown by nation and region for services except UC would only be available at a disproportionate cost.

In the spirit of answering the question we have provided table 1 above.

Service Performance Context:

Jobseekers Allowance

From the start of the pandemic until April 2021, JSA claims were subject to easements that meant face-to-face appointment was removed. In April 2021, Claimant Commitments and regular face to face engagement requirements were reintroduced.

Employment and Support Allowance

ESA 2019-20 to 2023-24, the new claim process for New Style Employment and Support Allowance (NSESA) changed. In April 2020 a digital claim was introduced during Covid. Prior to this, as part of the new claim process, a period up to 10 days at beginning was never measured. With the re-designed process all time is included, so it is not possible to make a like-for-like comparison with the new claim process before April 2020.

State Pension

Performance was severely impacted due to the need to repivot resource to other areas, such as Universal Credit, during the global pandemic. In 2021/22, resource was re-deployed to work through the backlogs. Investment in digital services in this area has also aided recovery leading to significant performance improvements in 2023/24.

Pension Credit

2019/20 was impacted by substantial spikes in claims following the BBC decision to remove free TV licences. Uptake in Pension Credit has been encouraged through campaigns and again led to unprecedented claims being received when entitlement was linked to additional Cost of Living payments. This created backlogs and impacted payment timeliness as these were recovered.

Disability Living Allowance (Child)

Disability Living Allowance ceased in 2013 and is no longer an active benefit, it was replaced by Personal Independence Payment. Disability Living Allowance for Children continues to accept new claims and as such we have responded in respect of this benefit.
Demand for Child DLA has increased in recent years and is significantly higher than pre-pandemic volumes.
During 2020-21 we deferred case renewal activity to focus on processing new claims. Since then the service has had to service both high new claims volumes and the deferred renewal work which has led to longer processing times.
We have increased the numbers of staff working on Child DLA to respond to increase new claims volumes, and clear cases in date order to ensure fair customer service.

Personal Independence Payment

PIP performance represents a significant recovery compared to prior periods and the lowest average journey time recorded since 2018 (see published statistics)
PIP New Claims demand is significantly higher than pre-Covid levels, despite the devolution of Scottish claims during this period.

Child Maintenance Service

Child Maintenance Service application volumes have been sharply increasing with CMS receiving more than 50% more in 2023/24 than in 2021/22. This dip in performance over this time can largely be explained by this. More recently, the removal of the Application fee has also resulted in higher volumes.

Universal Credit

Data has been provided for the years 2018-19 to 2023-24. Detailed data by local areas is available via Stat Xplore within the Universal Credit Published Statistics (Universal Credit statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)). Previous years requested are not retained centrally or published and the breakdown by nation and region would only be available at a disproportionate cost.

The 2023-24 figures for UC are not available until May as per the Statistics Release schedule.

Planned timescales for all benefits are listed in table 2 below.

Table 2: Planned Timescales for new claims (current methodology)

Jobseekers Allowance	Within 10 working days
Employment and Support Allowance	Within 10 working days
State Pension	Within 20 working days of State Pension entitlement date or 20 working days of Initial date of claim if claiming after entitlement has started.
Pension Credit	Within 50 working days
Disability Living Allowance (Child)	Within 40 working days
Personal Independence Payment	Within 75 working days
Child Maintenance Service	Payment within 12 weeks
Universal Credit	% Full Payment 1st Assessment Period

Written Question

Employment and Support Allowance

Wednesday 1st May 2024

Asked by: Angela Eagle (Labour - Wallasey)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what percentage of new Employment and Support Allowance claims have been completed within the planned processing timescales by (a) nation and (b) region in each year since 2010.

Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

Table 1 - Percentage of new claims that have been completed within the planned processing timescales by benefit.

	2016-17	2017-18	2018-19	2019-20	2020-21	2021-22	2022-23	2023-24
Jobseekers Allowance	88.6%	86.8%	80.6%	53.1%	82.5%	87.1%	67.8%	58.7%
Employment and Support Allowance	84.6%	85.3%	73.3%	96.1%	70.9%	42.5%	47.4%	39.5%
State Pension	87.9%	73.7%	86.8%	86.7%	76.2%	45.6%	72.0%	96.2%
Pension Credit	71.0%	55.2%	53.4%	44.8%	88.2%	74.3%	45.7%	77.7%
Disability Living Allowance (child)	96.8%	96.5%	96.2%	91.3%	92.1%	35.6%	4.6%	3.5%
Personal Independence Payment	85.1%	77.2%	72.3%	40.4%	23.0%	6.8%	38.4%	51.7%
Child Maintenance Service	82.8%	87.4%	88.3%	91.6%	84.3%	84.3%	79.4%	79.6%
Universal Credit			80.4%	85.2%	90.9%	85.7%	84.4%	TBC

Comments to note:

Data has been provided for the years 2016-17 to 2023-24 (UC 2018-19 to 2023-24). Previous years requested are not retained centrally and the breakdown by nation and region for services except UC would only be available at a disproportionate cost.

In the spirit of answering the question we have provided table 1 above.

Service Performance Context:

Jobseekers Allowance

From the start of the pandemic until April 2021, JSA claims were subject to easements that meant face-to-face appointment was removed. In April 2021, Claimant Commitments and regular face to face engagement requirements were reintroduced.

Employment and Support Allowance

ESA 2019-20 to 2023-24, the new claim process for New Style Employment and Support Allowance (NSESA) changed. In April 2020 a digital claim was introduced during Covid. Prior to this, as part of the new claim process, a period up to 10 days at beginning was never measured. With the re-designed process all time is included, so it is not possible to make a like-for-like comparison with the new claim process before April 2020.

State Pension

Performance was severely impacted due to the need to repivot resource to other areas, such as Universal Credit, during the global pandemic. In 2021/22, resource was re-deployed to work through the backlogs. Investment in digital services in this area has also aided recovery leading to significant performance improvements in 2023/24.

Pension Credit

2019/20 was impacted by substantial spikes in claims following the BBC decision to remove free TV licences. Uptake in Pension Credit has been encouraged through campaigns and again led to unprecedented claims being received when entitlement was linked to additional Cost of Living payments. This created backlogs and impacted payment timeliness as these were recovered.

Disability Living Allowance (Child)

Disability Living Allowance ceased in 2013 and is no longer an active benefit, it was replaced by Personal Independence Payment. Disability Living Allowance for Children continues to accept new claims and as such we have responded in respect of this benefit.
Demand for Child DLA has increased in recent years and is significantly higher than pre-pandemic volumes.
During 2020-21 we deferred case renewal activity to focus on processing new claims. Since then the service has had to service both high new claims volumes and the deferred renewal work which has led to longer processing times.
We have increased the numbers of staff working on Child DLA to respond to increase new claims volumes, and clear cases in date order to ensure fair customer service.

Personal Independence Payment

PIP performance represents a significant recovery compared to prior periods and the lowest average journey time recorded since 2018 (see published statistics)
PIP New Claims demand is significantly higher than pre-Covid levels, despite the devolution of Scottish claims during this period.

Child Maintenance Service

Child Maintenance Service application volumes have been sharply increasing with CMS receiving more than 50% more in 2023/24 than in 2021/22. This dip in performance over this time can largely be explained by this. More recently, the removal of the Application fee has also resulted in higher volumes.

Universal Credit

Data has been provided for the years 2018-19 to 2023-24. Detailed data by local areas is available via Stat Xplore within the Universal Credit Published Statistics (Universal Credit statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)). Previous years requested are not retained centrally or published and the breakdown by nation and region would only be available at a disproportionate cost.

The 2023-24 figures for UC are not available until May as per the Statistics Release schedule.

Planned timescales for all benefits are listed in table 2 below.

Table 2: Planned Timescales for new claims (current methodology)

Jobseekers Allowance	Within 10 working days
Employment and Support Allowance	Within 10 working days
State Pension	Within 20 working days of State Pension entitlement date or 20 working days of Initial date of claim if claiming after entitlement has started.
Pension Credit	Within 50 working days
Disability Living Allowance (Child)	Within 40 working days
Personal Independence Payment	Within 75 working days
Child Maintenance Service	Payment within 12 weeks
Universal Credit	% Full Payment 1st Assessment Period

Written Question

Personal Independence Payment

Wednesday 1st May 2024

Asked by: Angela Eagle (Labour - Wallasey)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what percentage of new Personal Independence Payment claims have been completed within the planned processing timescales by (a) nation and (b) region in each year since 2013.

Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

Table 1 - Percentage of new claims that have been completed within the planned processing timescales by benefit.

	2016-17	2017-18	2018-19	2019-20	2020-21	2021-22	2022-23	2023-24
Jobseekers Allowance	88.6%	86.8%	80.6%	53.1%	82.5%	87.1%	67.8%	58.7%
Employment and Support Allowance	84.6%	85.3%	73.3%	96.1%	70.9%	42.5%	47.4%	39.5%
State Pension	87.9%	73.7%	86.8%	86.7%	76.2%	45.6%	72.0%	96.2%
Pension Credit	71.0%	55.2%	53.4%	44.8%	88.2%	74.3%	45.7%	77.7%
Disability Living Allowance (child)	96.8%	96.5%	96.2%	91.3%	92.1%	35.6%	4.6%	3.5%
Personal Independence Payment	85.1%	77.2%	72.3%	40.4%	23.0%	6.8%	38.4%	51.7%
Child Maintenance Service	82.8%	87.4%	88.3%	91.6%	84.3%	84.3%	79.4%	79.6%
Universal Credit			80.4%	85.2%	90.9%	85.7%	84.4%	TBC

Comments to note:

Data has been provided for the years 2016-17 to 2023-24 (UC 2018-19 to 2023-24). Previous years requested are not retained centrally and the breakdown by nation and region for services except UC would only be available at a disproportionate cost.

In the spirit of answering the question we have provided table 1 above.

Service Performance Context:

Jobseekers Allowance

From the start of the pandemic until April 2021, JSA claims were subject to easements that meant face-to-face appointment was removed. In April 2021, Claimant Commitments and regular face to face engagement requirements were reintroduced.

Employment and Support Allowance

ESA 2019-20 to 2023-24, the new claim process for New Style Employment and Support Allowance (NSESA) changed. In April 2020 a digital claim was introduced during Covid. Prior to this, as part of the new claim process, a period up to 10 days at beginning was never measured. With the re-designed process all time is included, so it is not possible to make a like-for-like comparison with the new claim process before April 2020.

State Pension

Performance was severely impacted due to the need to repivot resource to other areas, such as Universal Credit, during the global pandemic. In 2021/22, resource was re-deployed to work through the backlogs. Investment in digital services in this area has also aided recovery leading to significant performance improvements in 2023/24.

Pension Credit

2019/20 was impacted by substantial spikes in claims following the BBC decision to remove free TV licences. Uptake in Pension Credit has been encouraged through campaigns and again led to unprecedented claims being received when entitlement was linked to additional Cost of Living payments. This created backlogs and impacted payment timeliness as these were recovered.

Disability Living Allowance (Child)

Disability Living Allowance ceased in 2013 and is no longer an active benefit, it was replaced by Personal Independence Payment. Disability Living Allowance for Children continues to accept new claims and as such we have responded in respect of this benefit.
Demand for Child DLA has increased in recent years and is significantly higher than pre-pandemic volumes.
During 2020-21 we deferred case renewal activity to focus on processing new claims. Since then the service has had to service both high new claims volumes and the deferred renewal work which has led to longer processing times.
We have increased the numbers of staff working on Child DLA to respond to increase new claims volumes, and clear cases in date order to ensure fair customer service.

Personal Independence Payment

PIP performance represents a significant recovery compared to prior periods and the lowest average journey time recorded since 2018 (see published statistics)
PIP New Claims demand is significantly higher than pre-Covid levels, despite the devolution of Scottish claims during this period.

Child Maintenance Service

Child Maintenance Service application volumes have been sharply increasing with CMS receiving more than 50% more in 2023/24 than in 2021/22. This dip in performance over this time can largely be explained by this. More recently, the removal of the Application fee has also resulted in higher volumes.

Universal Credit

Data has been provided for the years 2018-19 to 2023-24. Detailed data by local areas is available via Stat Xplore within the Universal Credit Published Statistics (Universal Credit statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)). Previous years requested are not retained centrally or published and the breakdown by nation and region would only be available at a disproportionate cost.

The 2023-24 figures for UC are not available until May as per the Statistics Release schedule.

Planned timescales for all benefits are listed in table 2 below.

Table 2: Planned Timescales for new claims (current methodology)

Jobseekers Allowance	Within 10 working days
Employment and Support Allowance	Within 10 working days
State Pension	Within 20 working days of State Pension entitlement date or 20 working days of Initial date of claim if claiming after entitlement has started.
Pension Credit	Within 50 working days
Disability Living Allowance (Child)	Within 40 working days
Personal Independence Payment	Within 75 working days
Child Maintenance Service	Payment within 12 weeks
Universal Credit	% Full Payment 1st Assessment Period

Written Question

State Retirement Pensions

Wednesday 1st May 2024

Asked by: Angela Eagle (Labour - Wallasey)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what percentage of new State Pension claims have been completed within the planned processing timescales by (a) nation and (b) region in each year since 2010.

Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

Table 1 - Percentage of new claims that have been completed within the planned processing timescales by benefit.

	2016-17	2017-18	2018-19	2019-20	2020-21	2021-22	2022-23	2023-24
Jobseekers Allowance	88.6%	86.8%	80.6%	53.1%	82.5%	87.1%	67.8%	58.7%
Employment and Support Allowance	84.6%	85.3%	73.3%	96.1%	70.9%	42.5%	47.4%	39.5%
State Pension	87.9%	73.7%	86.8%	86.7%	76.2%	45.6%	72.0%	96.2%
Pension Credit	71.0%	55.2%	53.4%	44.8%	88.2%	74.3%	45.7%	77.7%
Disability Living Allowance (child)	96.8%	96.5%	96.2%	91.3%	92.1%	35.6%	4.6%	3.5%
Personal Independence Payment	85.1%	77.2%	72.3%	40.4%	23.0%	6.8%	38.4%	51.7%
Child Maintenance Service	82.8%	87.4%	88.3%	91.6%	84.3%	84.3%	79.4%	79.6%
Universal Credit			80.4%	85.2%	90.9%	85.7%	84.4%	TBC

Comments to note:

Data has been provided for the years 2016-17 to 2023-24 (UC 2018-19 to 2023-24). Previous years requested are not retained centrally and the breakdown by nation and region for services except UC would only be available at a disproportionate cost.

In the spirit of answering the question we have provided table 1 above.

Service Performance Context:

Jobseekers Allowance

From the start of the pandemic until April 2021, JSA claims were subject to easements that meant face-to-face appointment was removed. In April 2021, Claimant Commitments and regular face to face engagement requirements were reintroduced.

Employment and Support Allowance

ESA 2019-20 to 2023-24, the new claim process for New Style Employment and Support Allowance (NSESA) changed. In April 2020 a digital claim was introduced during Covid. Prior to this, as part of the new claim process, a period up to 10 days at beginning was never measured. With the re-designed process all time is included, so it is not possible to make a like-for-like comparison with the new claim process before April 2020.

State Pension

Performance was severely impacted due to the need to repivot resource to other areas, such as Universal Credit, during the global pandemic. In 2021/22, resource was re-deployed to work through the backlogs. Investment in digital services in this area has also aided recovery leading to significant performance improvements in 2023/24.

Pension Credit

2019/20 was impacted by substantial spikes in claims following the BBC decision to remove free TV licences. Uptake in Pension Credit has been encouraged through campaigns and again led to unprecedented claims being received when entitlement was linked to additional Cost of Living payments. This created backlogs and impacted payment timeliness as these were recovered.

Disability Living Allowance (Child)

Disability Living Allowance ceased in 2013 and is no longer an active benefit, it was replaced by Personal Independence Payment. Disability Living Allowance for Children continues to accept new claims and as such we have responded in respect of this benefit.
Demand for Child DLA has increased in recent years and is significantly higher than pre-pandemic volumes.
During 2020-21 we deferred case renewal activity to focus on processing new claims. Since then the service has had to service both high new claims volumes and the deferred renewal work which has led to longer processing times.
We have increased the numbers of staff working on Child DLA to respond to increase new claims volumes, and clear cases in date order to ensure fair customer service.

Personal Independence Payment

PIP performance represents a significant recovery compared to prior periods and the lowest average journey time recorded since 2018 (see published statistics)
PIP New Claims demand is significantly higher than pre-Covid levels, despite the devolution of Scottish claims during this period.

Child Maintenance Service

Child Maintenance Service application volumes have been sharply increasing with CMS receiving more than 50% more in 2023/24 than in 2021/22. This dip in performance over this time can largely be explained by this. More recently, the removal of the Application fee has also resulted in higher volumes.

Universal Credit

Data has been provided for the years 2018-19 to 2023-24. Detailed data by local areas is available via Stat Xplore within the Universal Credit Published Statistics (Universal Credit statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)). Previous years requested are not retained centrally or published and the breakdown by nation and region would only be available at a disproportionate cost.

The 2023-24 figures for UC are not available until May as per the Statistics Release schedule.

Planned timescales for all benefits are listed in table 2 below.

Table 2: Planned Timescales for new claims (current methodology)

Jobseekers Allowance	Within 10 working days
Employment and Support Allowance	Within 10 working days
State Pension	Within 20 working days of State Pension entitlement date or 20 working days of Initial date of claim if claiming after entitlement has started.
Pension Credit	Within 50 working days
Disability Living Allowance (Child)	Within 40 working days
Personal Independence Payment	Within 75 working days
Child Maintenance Service	Payment within 12 weeks
Universal Credit	% Full Payment 1st Assessment Period

Written Question

Pension Credit

Wednesday 1st May 2024

Asked by: Angela Eagle (Labour - Wallasey)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what percentage of new Pension Credit claims have been completed within the planned processing timescales by (a) nation and (b) region in each year since 2010.

Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

Table 1 - Percentage of new claims that have been completed within the planned processing timescales by benefit.

	2016-17	2017-18	2018-19	2019-20	2020-21	2021-22	2022-23	2023-24
Jobseekers Allowance	88.6%	86.8%	80.6%	53.1%	82.5%	87.1%	67.8%	58.7%
Employment and Support Allowance	84.6%	85.3%	73.3%	96.1%	70.9%	42.5%	47.4%	39.5%
State Pension	87.9%	73.7%	86.8%	86.7%	76.2%	45.6%	72.0%	96.2%
Pension Credit	71.0%	55.2%	53.4%	44.8%	88.2%	74.3%	45.7%	77.7%
Disability Living Allowance (child)	96.8%	96.5%	96.2%	91.3%	92.1%	35.6%	4.6%	3.5%
Personal Independence Payment	85.1%	77.2%	72.3%	40.4%	23.0%	6.8%	38.4%	51.7%
Child Maintenance Service	82.8%	87.4%	88.3%	91.6%	84.3%	84.3%	79.4%	79.6%
Universal Credit			80.4%	85.2%	90.9%	85.7%	84.4%	TBC

Comments to note:

Data has been provided for the years 2016-17 to 2023-24 (UC 2018-19 to 2023-24). Previous years requested are not retained centrally and the breakdown by nation and region for services except UC would only be available at a disproportionate cost.

In the spirit of answering the question we have provided table 1 above.

Service Performance Context:

Jobseekers Allowance

From the start of the pandemic until April 2021, JSA claims were subject to easements that meant face-to-face appointment was removed. In April 2021, Claimant Commitments and regular face to face engagement requirements were reintroduced.

Employment and Support Allowance

ESA 2019-20 to 2023-24, the new claim process for New Style Employment and Support Allowance (NSESA) changed. In April 2020 a digital claim was introduced during Covid. Prior to this, as part of the new claim process, a period up to 10 days at beginning was never measured. With the re-designed process all time is included, so it is not possible to make a like-for-like comparison with the new claim process before April 2020.

State Pension

Performance was severely impacted due to the need to repivot resource to other areas, such as Universal Credit, during the global pandemic. In 2021/22, resource was re-deployed to work through the backlogs. Investment in digital services in this area has also aided recovery leading to significant performance improvements in 2023/24.

Pension Credit

2019/20 was impacted by substantial spikes in claims following the BBC decision to remove free TV licences. Uptake in Pension Credit has been encouraged through campaigns and again led to unprecedented claims being received when entitlement was linked to additional Cost of Living payments. This created backlogs and impacted payment timeliness as these were recovered.

Disability Living Allowance (Child)

Disability Living Allowance ceased in 2013 and is no longer an active benefit, it was replaced by Personal Independence Payment. Disability Living Allowance for Children continues to accept new claims and as such we have responded in respect of this benefit.
Demand for Child DLA has increased in recent years and is significantly higher than pre-pandemic volumes.
During 2020-21 we deferred case renewal activity to focus on processing new claims. Since then the service has had to service both high new claims volumes and the deferred renewal work which has led to longer processing times.
We have increased the numbers of staff working on Child DLA to respond to increase new claims volumes, and clear cases in date order to ensure fair customer service.

Personal Independence Payment

PIP performance represents a significant recovery compared to prior periods and the lowest average journey time recorded since 2018 (see published statistics)
PIP New Claims demand is significantly higher than pre-Covid levels, despite the devolution of Scottish claims during this period.

Child Maintenance Service

Child Maintenance Service application volumes have been sharply increasing with CMS receiving more than 50% more in 2023/24 than in 2021/22. This dip in performance over this time can largely be explained by this. More recently, the removal of the Application fee has also resulted in higher volumes.

Universal Credit

Data has been provided for the years 2018-19 to 2023-24. Detailed data by local areas is available via Stat Xplore within the Universal Credit Published Statistics (Universal Credit statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)). Previous years requested are not retained centrally or published and the breakdown by nation and region would only be available at a disproportionate cost.

The 2023-24 figures for UC are not available until May as per the Statistics Release schedule.

Planned timescales for all benefits are listed in table 2 below.

Table 2: Planned Timescales for new claims (current methodology)

Jobseekers Allowance	Within 10 working days
Employment and Support Allowance	Within 10 working days
State Pension	Within 20 working days of State Pension entitlement date or 20 working days of Initial date of claim if claiming after entitlement has started.
Pension Credit	Within 50 working days
Disability Living Allowance (Child)	Within 40 working days
Personal Independence Payment	Within 75 working days
Child Maintenance Service	Payment within 12 weeks
Universal Credit	% Full Payment 1st Assessment Period

Written Question

Children: Maintenance

Wednesday 1st May 2024

Asked by: Angela Eagle (Labour - Wallasey)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of new Child Maintenance claims have been completed within the planned processing timescales by (a) nation and (b) region in each year since 2012.

Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

Table 1 - Percentage of new claims that have been completed within the planned processing timescales by benefit.

	2016-17	2017-18	2018-19	2019-20	2020-21	2021-22	2022-23	2023-24
Jobseekers Allowance	88.6%	86.8%	80.6%	53.1%	82.5%	87.1%	67.8%	58.7%
Employment and Support Allowance	84.6%	85.3%	73.3%	96.1%	70.9%	42.5%	47.4%	39.5%
State Pension	87.9%	73.7%	86.8%	86.7%	76.2%	45.6%	72.0%	96.2%
Pension Credit	71.0%	55.2%	53.4%	44.8%	88.2%	74.3%	45.7%	77.7%
Disability Living Allowance (child)	96.8%	96.5%	96.2%	91.3%	92.1%	35.6%	4.6%	3.5%
Personal Independence Payment	85.1%	77.2%	72.3%	40.4%	23.0%	6.8%	38.4%	51.7%
Child Maintenance Service	82.8%	87.4%	88.3%	91.6%	84.3%	84.3%	79.4%	79.6%
Universal Credit			80.4%	85.2%	90.9%	85.7%	84.4%	TBC

Comments to note:

Data has been provided for the years 2016-17 to 2023-24 (UC 2018-19 to 2023-24). Previous years requested are not retained centrally and the breakdown by nation and region for services except UC would only be available at a disproportionate cost.

In the spirit of answering the question we have provided table 1 above.

Service Performance Context:

Jobseekers Allowance

From the start of the pandemic until April 2021, JSA claims were subject to easements that meant face-to-face appointment was removed. In April 2021, Claimant Commitments and regular face to face engagement requirements were reintroduced.

Employment and Support Allowance

ESA 2019-20 to 2023-24, the new claim process for New Style Employment and Support Allowance (NSESA) changed. In April 2020 a digital claim was introduced during Covid. Prior to this, as part of the new claim process, a period up to 10 days at beginning was never measured. With the re-designed process all time is included, so it is not possible to make a like-for-like comparison with the new claim process before April 2020.

State Pension

Performance was severely impacted due to the need to repivot resource to other areas, such as Universal Credit, during the global pandemic. In 2021/22, resource was re-deployed to work through the backlogs. Investment in digital services in this area has also aided recovery leading to significant performance improvements in 2023/24.

Pension Credit

2019/20 was impacted by substantial spikes in claims following the BBC decision to remove free TV licences. Uptake in Pension Credit has been encouraged through campaigns and again led to unprecedented claims being received when entitlement was linked to additional Cost of Living payments. This created backlogs and impacted payment timeliness as these were recovered.

Disability Living Allowance (Child)

Disability Living Allowance ceased in 2013 and is no longer an active benefit, it was replaced by Personal Independence Payment. Disability Living Allowance for Children continues to accept new claims and as such we have responded in respect of this benefit.
Demand for Child DLA has increased in recent years and is significantly higher than pre-pandemic volumes.
During 2020-21 we deferred case renewal activity to focus on processing new claims. Since then the service has had to service both high new claims volumes and the deferred renewal work which has led to longer processing times.
We have increased the numbers of staff working on Child DLA to respond to increase new claims volumes, and clear cases in date order to ensure fair customer service.

Personal Independence Payment

PIP performance represents a significant recovery compared to prior periods and the lowest average journey time recorded since 2018 (see published statistics)
PIP New Claims demand is significantly higher than pre-Covid levels, despite the devolution of Scottish claims during this period.

Child Maintenance Service

Child Maintenance Service application volumes have been sharply increasing with CMS receiving more than 50% more in 2023/24 than in 2021/22. This dip in performance over this time can largely be explained by this. More recently, the removal of the Application fee has also resulted in higher volumes.

Universal Credit

Data has been provided for the years 2018-19 to 2023-24. Detailed data by local areas is available via Stat Xplore within the Universal Credit Published Statistics (Universal Credit statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)). Previous years requested are not retained centrally or published and the breakdown by nation and region would only be available at a disproportionate cost.

The 2023-24 figures for UC are not available until May as per the Statistics Release schedule.

Planned timescales for all benefits are listed in table 2 below.

Table 2: Planned Timescales for new claims (current methodology)

Jobseekers Allowance	Within 10 working days
Employment and Support Allowance	Within 10 working days
State Pension	Within 20 working days of State Pension entitlement date or 20 working days of Initial date of claim if claiming after entitlement has started.
Pension Credit	Within 50 working days
Disability Living Allowance (Child)	Within 40 working days
Personal Independence Payment	Within 75 working days
Child Maintenance Service	Payment within 12 weeks
Universal Credit	% Full Payment 1st Assessment Period

Written Question

Universal Credit

Wednesday 1st May 2024

Asked by: Angela Eagle (Labour - Wallasey)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what percentage of new Universal Credit claims have been completed within the planned processing timescales by (a) nation and (b) region in each year since 2012.

Answered by Paul Maynard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)

Table 1 - Percentage of new claims that have been completed within the planned processing timescales by benefit.

	2016-17	2017-18	2018-19	2019-20	2020-21	2021-22	2022-23	2023-24
Jobseekers Allowance	88.6%	86.8%	80.6%	53.1%	82.5%	87.1%	67.8%	58.7%
Employment and Support Allowance	84.6%	85.3%	73.3%	96.1%	70.9%	42.5%	47.4%	39.5%
State Pension	87.9%	73.7%	86.8%	86.7%	76.2%	45.6%	72.0%	96.2%
Pension Credit	71.0%	55.2%	53.4%	44.8%	88.2%	74.3%	45.7%	77.7%
Disability Living Allowance (child)	96.8%	96.5%	96.2%	91.3%	92.1%	35.6%	4.6%	3.5%
Personal Independence Payment	85.1%	77.2%	72.3%	40.4%	23.0%	6.8%	38.4%	51.7%
Child Maintenance Service	82.8%	87.4%	88.3%	91.6%	84.3%	84.3%	79.4%	79.6%
Universal Credit			80.4%	85.2%	90.9%	85.7%	84.4%	TBC

Comments to note:

Data has been provided for the years 2016-17 to 2023-24 (UC 2018-19 to 2023-24). Previous years requested are not retained centrally and the breakdown by nation and region for services except UC would only be available at a disproportionate cost.

In the spirit of answering the question we have provided table 1 above.

Service Performance Context:

Jobseekers Allowance

From the start of the pandemic until April 2021, JSA claims were subject to easements that meant face-to-face appointment was removed. In April 2021, Claimant Commitments and regular face to face engagement requirements were reintroduced.

Employment and Support Allowance

ESA 2019-20 to 2023-24, the new claim process for New Style Employment and Support Allowance (NSESA) changed. In April 2020 a digital claim was introduced during Covid. Prior to this, as part of the new claim process, a period up to 10 days at beginning was never measured. With the re-designed process all time is included, so it is not possible to make a like-for-like comparison with the new claim process before April 2020.

State Pension

Performance was severely impacted due to the need to repivot resource to other areas, such as Universal Credit, during the global pandemic. In 2021/22, resource was re-deployed to work through the backlogs. Investment in digital services in this area has also aided recovery leading to significant performance improvements in 2023/24.

Pension Credit

2019/20 was impacted by substantial spikes in claims following the BBC decision to remove free TV licences. Uptake in Pension Credit has been encouraged through campaigns and again led to unprecedented claims being received when entitlement was linked to additional Cost of Living payments. This created backlogs and impacted payment timeliness as these were recovered.

Disability Living Allowance (Child)

Disability Living Allowance ceased in 2013 and is no longer an active benefit, it was replaced by Personal Independence Payment. Disability Living Allowance for Children continues to accept new claims and as such we have responded in respect of this benefit.
Demand for Child DLA has increased in recent years and is significantly higher than pre-pandemic volumes.
During 2020-21 we deferred case renewal activity to focus on processing new claims. Since then the service has had to service both high new claims volumes and the deferred renewal work which has led to longer processing times.
We have increased the numbers of staff working on Child DLA to respond to increase new claims volumes, and clear cases in date order to ensure fair customer service.

Personal Independence Payment

PIP performance represents a significant recovery compared to prior periods and the lowest average journey time recorded since 2018 (see published statistics)
PIP New Claims demand is significantly higher than pre-Covid levels, despite the devolution of Scottish claims during this period.

Child Maintenance Service

Child Maintenance Service application volumes have been sharply increasing with CMS receiving more than 50% more in 2023/24 than in 2021/22. This dip in performance over this time can largely be explained by this. More recently, the removal of the Application fee has also resulted in higher volumes.

Universal Credit

Data has been provided for the years 2018-19 to 2023-24. Detailed data by local areas is available via Stat Xplore within the Universal Credit Published Statistics (Universal Credit statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)). Previous years requested are not retained centrally or published and the breakdown by nation and region would only be available at a disproportionate cost.

The 2023-24 figures for UC are not available until May as per the Statistics Release schedule.

Planned timescales for all benefits are listed in table 2 below.

Table 2: Planned Timescales for new claims (current methodology)

Jobseekers Allowance	Within 10 working days
Employment and Support Allowance	Within 10 working days
State Pension	Within 20 working days of State Pension entitlement date or 20 working days of Initial date of claim if claiming after entitlement has started.
Pension Credit	Within 50 working days
Disability Living Allowance (Child)	Within 40 working days
Personal Independence Payment	Within 75 working days
Child Maintenance Service	Payment within 12 weeks
Universal Credit	% Full Payment 1st Assessment Period

Written Question

Social Security Benefits

Thursday 8th February 2024

Asked by: Alex Cunningham (Labour - Stockton North)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many claimants of (a) tax credits only, (b) income-based jobseekers allowance, (c) employment support allowance and tax credits, (d) income support, (e) housing benefit only, other than people in supported accommodation or temporary accommodation and (f) housing benefit and tax credits only his Department plans to send a migration notice to in the 2024-25 financial year.

Answered by Jo Churchill - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)

Move to UC Notifications (household) Aut-2023	24/25
JSA income based	20,000
ESA income based (and Child Tax Credits)	90,000
Income Support	110,000
Tax Credit & Housing Benefit	120,000
Tax Credit only	10,000
Housing Benefit only	100,000
Total	440,000

Notes:

This is the number of households DWP estimated it would notify to move to UC as of Autumn-23 (where households are couples only one member of the couple is counted).
The benefits are in a hierarchy so we do not double count households claiming multiple benefits. E.g. if a household claims JSA/ESA/IS and Tax Credits or Housing Benefit they only appear in the JSA/IS/ESA line. Households in the Tax Credit and Housing lines do not include households claiming ESA, JSA or IS.
Numbers are rounded to the nearest 10k.
Over 500,000 Tax Credit only households are scheduled to be notified in 2023/24

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