Every parliamentary written question tabled by Charlotte Nichols this session, with the full answer and department. See how every department answers, or back to the MP page.
Showing 1–14 of 14 · Department for Work and Pensions
What steps the Department is taking to help improve employer-led training and workplace experience within further and higher education, particularly in construction; and what assessment he has made of h
On 23 March 2025, the Chancellor announced a £625 million Construction Skills Package (CSP) to address critical skills shortages across the construction sector. The investment is expected to support up to 60,000 skilled workers over this Parliament by inc...
What the annual cost has been for the Bereavement Support Payment over the last five years, including regional breakdown, and the percentage of those eligible who claim this.
Official statistics for Bereavement Support Payment (BSP) can be found at:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/benefit-expenditure-and-caseload-tables-2025 Table 1: Annual cost for Bereavement Support Payment for the last five financial years rounded to the nearest million pounds 2020/212021/222022/232023/242024/25Annual cost (£m)257188253194208 Further annual expenditure figures can be found in the outturn and forecast tables, in the ‘Bereavement_benefits’ sheet:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/694931a672075a1d4a5089d9/outturn-and-forecast-tables-autumn-budget-2025.ods A regional breakdown of BSP alone is not available, but a regional breakdown for bereavement benefits as a whole can be found in the benefit expenditure by country and region, in the ‘BBWB’ sheet:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6940017ac72b0f8ccf33d78f/benefit-expenditure-by-country-and-region-2024-25.ods It is not possible to accurately measure take-up of BSP, out of those who are eligible, as this would require monthly data on deaths by age, marital status, cohabitee status, dependent children and National Insurance contributions.
What assessment he has made of the potential impact of welfare reforms on demand for independent advice services; and if he will make a statement.
The public consultation on the “Pathways to Work” Green Paper received over 47,500 responses before closing on the 30 June. We are now carefully reviewing responses as we develop further proposals, involving disabled people, including through the Timms review of PIP, collaboration committees and the department’s new Disability Advisory Panel. We will continue to consider the potential impacts of reforms as part of our consideration of responses to the consultation, including any impacts on services.
What assessment she has made with Cabinet colleagues of the potential merits of the creation of a national advice workforce development fund.
Skills England will identify and address skills gaps across all sectors. It works with employers, training providers, and local authorities to ensure the skills system reflects real-world workforce needs, both nationally and locally.Through 16-19 funding, the Adult Skills Fund and apprenticeships, the department provides funding for education, training and qualifications across a range of sectors. This will support people on pathways that will be relevant to roles in the advice sector.
Pursuant to the Answer of 27 June 2025 to Question 61211 on Asbestos: Ovarian Cancer, if she will direct the Health and Safety Executive to collect data on asbestos-related ovarian cancer cases.
Collecting data on individual cases of asbestos-related ovarian cancer is not feasible due to difficulties attributing them to historic exposure with confidence. Significant resource would be needed to produce estimates based on epidemiological evidence. These are likely to be small in comparison to other asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma (which is more clearly linked to past exposure) and would have considerable associated uncertainty.
If she will require the Health and Safety Executive to collect data on asbestos-related ovarian cancer cases.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is responsible for collection of data of workplace injury and illness. Under Regulation 9 of the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR), it requires the responsible person to report a diagnosis of any cancer attributed to an occupational exposure to a known human carcinogen in their current job. When reporting, the responsible person must provide details on the affected person's occupation or job title and a description of the work that led to the disease. Estimated numbers of cases of certain kinds of cancer other than mesothelioma and lung cancer that are attributable to past exposure to asbestos are available from previous HSE sponsored research into the burden of occupational cancer in Great Britain. However, ovarian cancer in relation to asbestos was not considered at the time this research was carried out, and so estimates are not currently available and HSE has no plans to collect this data.
What data her Department holds on the number of people eligible for child maintenance who are not claiming it.
It is estimated that at the financial year ending 2023, there are 2.4 million separated families in Great Britain and 3.8 million children in those families. 41% of these did not have either a statutory arrangement with the Child Maintenance Service or a ...
What progress her Department has made on reviewing the fairness of PIP assessments.
The Department is not currently undertaking a review of the fairness of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) assessments. PIP is designed to treat all claimants fairly, focusing on the needs arising from a long-term health condition or disability, rather t...
What steps she is taking to ensure that employers are supporting women managing menopause.
The Government believes in the vital importance of equality of opportunity and of treatment in the workplace. The plan to Make Work Pay includes clear action to place equality, diversity and inclusion issues on a statutory footing. This includes requiring...
Whether she plans to implement the recommendations of the Fourth Report of the Work and Pensions Committee of Session 2023-24 on Statutory Sick Pay, HC148, published on 28 March 2024, in the Employment
The Government will be providing a response to the Fourth Report of the Work and Pensions Committee of Session 2023-24 on Statutory Sick Pay in due course and once the Chair of the Work and Pensions Select Committee has been appointed.
What steps she is taking to ensure that reforms to Statutory Sick Pay take account of (a) multiple sclerosis and (b) other fluctuating conditions.
No one should be forced to choose between their health and financial hardship, which is why we plan to strengthen Statutory Sick Pay (SSP), so it provides a safety net for those who need it most. The Plan to Make Work Pay commits to remove the Lower Earni...
If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of paying Statutory Sick Pay at an hourly rate.
No one should be forced to choose between their health and financial hardship, which is why we plan to strengthen Statutory Sick Pay (SSP), so it provides a safety net for those who need it most. The Plan to Make Work Pay commits to remove the Lower Earni...
If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing the rate of Statutory Sick Pay to that of the National Living Wage.
No one should be forced to choose between their health and financial hardship, which is why we plan to strengthen Statutory Sick Pay (SSP), so it provides a safety net for those who need it most. The Plan to Make Work Pay commits to remove the Lower Earni...
What steps she plans to take to encourage take up of Pension Credit.
The Government is determined to ensure that the poorest pensioners get the support they need. As part of the current Pension Credit Week of Action, we have joined forces with national charities, broadcasters and local authorities to encourage pensioners to check their eligibility and make a claim. From 16 September, we will be running a national marketing campaign on a range of channels. The campaign will target potential pension-age customers, as well as friends and family who can encourage and support them to apply. Our future campaign messaging will also focus on encouraging pensioners to apply for Pension Credit before the 21 December 2024, which is the last date for making a successful backdated claim for Pension Credit in order to receive a Winter Fuel Payment. We will work with external partners, local authorities and the Devolved Governments to boost the take-up of Pension Credit.