Written questions by Hanna.

Whether he conducted an assessment of the decision to award Capita the Synergy contract prior to that contract being awarded.

The Synergy programme awarded its Business Processing Services contract after a robust process, conducted in line with Government procurement regulations. Its priority is to ensure continuity of service and value for public money.

What discussions he has had with Capita on ensuring that no redundancies result from the awarding of the Synergy contract to that company.

Synergy is replacing out of date technology systems and processes that cost us time to use and maintain – time that could be better spent serving people who rely on our services. It will free up employee time for higher value work delivering outcomes for the taxpayer. The work Capita will carry out under the Synergy Business Process Services (BPS) contract is activity not currently delivered by Civil Servants, because BPS is already outsourced to another supplier.

Whether she plans to increase the benefit cap.

There is a statutory obligation to review the levels of the benefit cap at least once every five years. They were last reviewed in November 2022 and, as such, a further review is required by November 2027. This will happen at the appropriate time as determined by the Secretary of State.

Whether the Timms Review plans to (a) hold discussions with (i) carers and (ii) disabled people from and (b) considers the potential impact of proposed changes in Northern Ireland.

The Timms Review will be co-produced with disabled people, the organisations that represent them, and other experts, including carers. This means the Government will share ownership and responsibility for how the Review runs and what it recommends.We recognise that unpaid carers play a vital role in supporting disabled people, which is why, in keeping with the commitments made in Parliament, we have explicitly included carers in the list of groups who will be involved in the co-production of the Review.PIP is a transferred matter in Northern Ireland, but there is a long-standing principle of parity between the social security systems of the Northern Ireland Executive and the UK Government. It is therefore important that the Review hears from disabled people in Northern Ireland and the organisations that represent them.As the Review progresses, we will continue to engage closely with officials and disability stakeholders from across the devolved governments, to ensure that its work is informed by the diverse approaches to disability support from across the United Kingdom.

If she will make it her policy to uprate (a) inflation-linked benefits and (b) tax credits for the 2026–27 financial year in line with the consumer prices index rate of inflation for September.

The Social Security Administration Act 1992 requires the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions to review State pension and benefit rates each year to see if they have retained their value in relation to the general level of prices or earnings. Where the relevant rates have not retained their value, legislation provides that the Secretary of State is required to, or in some instances may, up-rate their value. Following this review, some rates are increased in line with statutory minima, and others are increased subject to the Secretary of State’s discretion. The new and basic State Pensions, and the Standard Minimum Guarantee in Pension Credit (which replaced tax credits for most people above State Pension age on 5 April 2025). must be increased at least in line with the growth in earnings. In practice, the new and basic State Pensions are subject to our commitment for this Parliament to the triple lock of the highest of earnings growth, the increase in prices, or 2.5% Additional-needs disability benefits such as Personal Independence Payment, Carer’s Allowance, and Additional Pension must be increased at least in line with the increase in prices. By convention, the measure used for this is the increase in the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) in the year to September. For the rates of most other benefits, including Universal Credit (which replaced tax credits for people below State Pension age on 5 April 2025), once the Secretary of State has concluded her review of the increase in the general level of prices, she may decide to increase them. The Office for Budgetary Responsibility currently assumes that she will do so in line with the increase in CPI in the year to September. However, the Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill has been introduced into Parliament and subject to parliamentary approval, this will alter the standard parameters of Secretary of State's annual review.

With reference to the report by Maternity Action, entitled Pushed into Poverty, published in May 2025, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the recommendation on £7.99 million model costing for maternity allowance to be treated as earned income by Universal Credit on women in low income jobs.

No assessment is planned. Universal Credit treats Maternity Allowance in the same way as legacy means-tested benefits, such as Income Support or Income Based Jobseeker’s Allowance, in that it is taken fully into account. Whilst we keep all policies under review, we have no plans to review how Maternity Allowance is taken into account in UC. Maternity pay is primarily designed as a health and safety provision for pregnant working women. We want new mothers to be able to take time away from work in the later stages of their pregnancy and following childbirth, if they wish, for their own health and wellbeing.

Whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of treating Maternity Allowance as earned income for the purposes of calculating Universal Credit.

No assessment is planned. Universal Credit treats Maternity Allowance in the same way as legacy means-tested benefits, such as Income Support or Income Based Jobseeker’s Allowance, in that it is taken fully into account. Whilst we keep all policies under review, we have no plans to review how Maternity Allowance is taken into account in UC. Maternity pay is primarily designed as a health and safety provision for pregnant working women. We want new mothers to be able to take time away from work in the later stages of their pregnancy and following childbirth, if they wish, for their own health and wellbeing.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of increasing (a) Statutory Maternity Pay, (b) Maternity Allowance and (c) Shared Parental Pay to 62.5 per cent of the weekly National Living Wage by 2028.

Government spends approximately £3 billion a year on parental payments. When considering calls to increase the level of maternity benefits generally, those must be balanced against limited resources as well as being mindful of the burden on employers, the needs of parents and could not be made without consultation with businesses and other stakeholders. Further, any changes would need to take account of economic circumstances and affordability for taxpayers. The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions is required by law to undertake an annual review of benefits and State Pensions, including Statutory Maternity Pay and Maternity Allowance. This is based on a review of trends in prices and earnings growth in the preceding year. From April 2025, the rate for Statutory Maternity Pay and Maternity Allowance increased by September 2024's CPI figure of 1.7%, from £184.03 to £187.18 per week. Maternity and other types of Parental Pay are intended to provide a measure of financial security to support parents whilst they are away from the workplace; they are not a replacement of earnings. We know that the parental leave system needs improvement. In the Plan to Make Work Pay the government committed to a Review of the parental leave system to ensure that it best supports working families. Planning work is already underway across Government. The review provides us with an opportunity to consider the current framework of parental leave entitlements and how they should operate as a holistic system to improve the support available for working families. We will also take the opportunity to establish a set of objectives for the parental leave system, which reflect the needs of GB’s modern economy. This has been lacking in recent years as the framework of entitlements has evolved over time.

What long-term plans her Department has to increase levels of (a) maternity, (b) paternity and (c) parental pay in line with the National Living Wage.

Government spends approximately £3 billion a year on parental payments. When considering calls to increase the level of maternity benefits generally, those must be balanced against limited resources as well as being mindful of the burden on employers, the needs of parents and could not be made without consultation with businesses and other stakeholders. Further, any changes would need to take account of economic circumstances and affordability for taxpayers. The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions is required by law to undertake an annual review of benefits and State Pensions, including Statutory Maternity Pay and Maternity Allowance. This is based on a review of trends in prices and earnings growth in the preceding year. From April 2025, the rate for Statutory Maternity Pay and Maternity Allowance increased by September 2024's CPI figure of 1.7%, from £184.03 to £187.18 per week. Maternity and other types of Parental Pay are intended to provide a measure of financial security to support parents whilst they are away from the workplace; they are not a replacement of earnings. We know that the parental leave system needs improvement. In the Plan to Make Work Pay the government committed to a Review of the parental leave system to ensure that it best supports working families. Planning work is already underway across Government. The review provides us with an opportunity to consider the current framework of parental leave entitlements and how they should operate as a holistic system to improve the support available for working families. We will also take the opportunity to establish a set of objectives for the parental leave system, which reflect the needs of GB’s modern economy. This has been lacking in recent years as the framework of entitlements has evolved over time.

With reference to her Department's Green Paper entitled Pathways to Work, published on 18 May 2025, what estimate she has made of the number of claimants currently in receipt of contributory Employment and Support Allowance who would transfer to the proposed unemployment insurance.

The Department is currently consulting on a proposed Unemployment Insurance. The consultation closes on 30 June 2025. No decisions have yet been made about transitioning existing claimants of NS ESA and NS JSA to the proposed Unemployment Insurance and therefore an estimate cannot be provided at this stage. However, a further programme of analysis to support development of the proposals in the Green Paper will be developed and undertaken in the coming months. Information on the impacts of the Pathways to Work Green Paper has been published here ‘Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working Green Paper’(opens in a new tab). Latest data as of November 2025 shows that there are 750,000 claimants for contributory ESA.

With reference to her Department's Green Paper entitled Pathways to Work, published on 18 May 2025, what estimate has she made of the potential impact of her Department's Green Paper entitled Pathways to Work, published on 18 May 2025, on the number of claimants who will have their housing benefit cut because they have at least one spare room in Northern Ireland in each of the next five years.

PIP is administered in Northern Ireland by the Department for Communities (DfC). DfC is responsible for producing analysis on how the planned reforms will impact claimants in Northern Ireland.

What estimate her Department has made of the number of (a) deaf and (b) disabled people who will be affected by proposed Personal Independence Payment changes in Northern Ireland.

PIP is administered in Northern Ireland by the Department for Communities (DfC). DfC is responsible for producing analysis on how the planned reforms will impact claimants in Northern Ireland.

What steps she is taking to ensure the consultation events on the Pathway to Work are accessible to people with disabilities.

This government strongly values the input of disabled people and representative organisations, and that is why we have brought forward this Green Paper and opened a public consultation. The consultation welcomes all views, and we hope that a wide range of voices will respond before it closes on the 30 June 2025.We have published a full suite of accessible versions of the Green Paper to ensure that everyone can engage. Our schedule of virtual and in-person public consultation events across the country will further facilitate input and help us to hear from disabled people and stakeholders directly. The events accommodate any reasonable adjustments for individuals who wish to attend, including re-imbursing travel costs and arranging accessible venues and accessibility requirements such as BSL interpreters or stenographers for attendees.We are continuing to facilitate other ways to involve stakeholders and disabled people in our reforms. In addition to the consultation itself, we will establish ‘collaboration committees’ that bring groups, including disabled people and other experts, together for specific work areas. Our wider review of the PIP assessment, led by myself, will also bring together a range of experts, stakeholders and people with lived experience.

What steps her Department is taking to (a) directly invite the views of disabled people and (b) directly engage with stakeholder groups on the Pathway to Work proposals.

This government strongly values the input of disabled people and representative organisations, and that is why we have brought forward this Green Paper and opened a public consultation. The consultation welcomes all views, and we hope that a wide range of voices will respond before it closes on the 30 June 2025.We have published a full suite of accessible versions of the Green Paper to ensure that everyone can engage. Our schedule of virtual and in-person public consultation events across the country will further facilitate input and help us to hear from disabled people and stakeholders directly. The events accommodate any reasonable adjustments for individuals who wish to attend, including re-imbursing travel costs and arranging accessible venues and accessibility requirements such as BSL interpreters or stenographers for attendees.We are continuing to facilitate other ways to involve stakeholders and disabled people in our reforms. In addition to the consultation itself, we will establish ‘collaboration committees’ that bring groups, including disabled people and other experts, together for specific work areas. Our wider review of the PIP assessment, led by myself, will also bring together a range of experts, stakeholders and people with lived experience.

Whether her Department plans to apply for permission to appeal to the Court of Appeal from the Upper Tribunal judgement Secretary of State for Work and Pensions v MJ [2025] UKUT 035 (AAC).

In relation to the recent judgment in Secretary of State for Work and Pensions v MJ [2025] UKUT 035 (AAC), the Secretary of State will not be seeking permission to appeal the outcome.

Whether she plans to hold consultation events in Northern Ireland on the Pathways to work Green Paper.

We are committed to putting the views and voices of disabled people and people with health conditions at the heart of everything we do. In the Green Paper, we have announced that we will set up collaboration committees to develop parts of our reforms further. This will involve bringing together disabled people and other experts with civil servants around specific issues to collaborate, provide ideas, challenge, and input into recommendations. We intend to run a number of accessible virtual and face-to-face events on the Green Paper to hear from stakeholders, including disabled people and their representative organisations, directly. The Department will be holding a consultation event in Northen Ireland and is working with officials there on the planning stages.

How many people in Northern Ireland will be impacted by changes proposed to the Work Capacity Assessment.

Social security is transferred (devolved) to the Northern Ireland Executive where it is administered by the Department for Communities.

If she will review the Government's policy on uprating the State Pension for people living overseas.

There are no plans to review the policy on up-rating the UK State Pensions Overseas. UK State Pensions are payable worldwide, without regard to nationality, and are only uprated abroad where there is a legal requirement to do so, for example in countries with which we have a reciprocal agreement that provides for up-rating. The policy on the uprating of UK State Pensions paid overseas is a longstanding one.

With reference to the oral evidence provided by the Minister for Pensions to the Work and Pensions Committee on defined benefit pension schemes on 10 January 2024, Session 2023-24, HC 144, what plans she has to review the (a) indexation, (b) 90% compensation cap and (c) potential merits of other changes to the Pension Protection Fund; and whether she plans to consult on potential changes to that Fund during this Parliament.

I have heard about the problems experienced by Defined Benefit pension scheme members adjusting to an income in retirement which may be less than they were expecting following the insolvency of their employer. I recognise the importance of these issues for members and will consider this further in the coming months. Pension Protection Fund compensation payments based on benefits accrued on or after 6 April 1997 are increased in line with the Consumer Price Index, capped at 2.5 per cent. Before 6 April 1997, there was no general statutory requirement for defined benefit pensions to be increased when in payment, apart from any Guaranteed Minimum Pension element earned on or after 6 April 1988. There is no cap to Pension Protection Fund compensation. Compensation is calculated at the date of employer insolvency and, at that date, is initially either 100 per cent of their accrued pension benefits for members over their scheme's normal pension age or 90 per cent of their accrued pension benefits for members below their scheme’s normal pension age.