Written questions by Sewards.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that information on Pension Credit claims, mandatory reconsiderations and backdated payments is accessible to people who are classed as being digitally excl

Awaiting answer.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that people receiving Carer’s Allowance are aware that taxable benefits in kind, including employer contributions to private health schemes, may be treated

Information on the treatment of earnings in Carer’s Allowance is available on GOV.UK and is also provided in the letter sent when entitlement is awarded, as well as in annual uprating letters. Where unpaid carers have further questions, they can contact t...

What guidance his Department provides on whether a payroll benefit in kind, including employer-provided private medical insurance, is treated as earnings for the purposes of Carer’s Allowance.

A payment in kind is a payment made by something other than money, such as goods, vouchers or free accommodation. An employer may also pay contributions to a private health scheme on behalf of its employees. For Carer’s Allowance purposes, such payments a...

Whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of taxable benefits in kind appearing in payroll data on Carer’s Allowance earnings limit.

A payment in kind is a payment made by something other than money, such as goods, vouchers or free accommodation. An employer may also pay contributions to a private health scheme on behalf of its employees. For Carer’s Allowance purposes, such payments a...

What steps his Department is taking to ensure Jobseeker’s Allowance claimants receive (a) clear and (b) timely information on how earnings from (i) casual, (ii) agency and (iii) zero-hours work affect w

Claimants are informed at the outset of their claim, including through the Claimant Commitment, about their responsibility to report earnings and how these are taken into account. Guidance explains that where earnings exceed the applicable weekly amount (...

What steps his Department is taking to improve customer service standards for claimants who contact Jobcentre Plus and DWP about Jobseeker’s Allowance payments, including call handling and access to wri

The Department is committed to providing a high standard of customer service for claimants contacting Jobcentre Plus and DWP about all of its services, including Jobseeker’s Allowance. We have recently relaunched our ‘Customer Support Standards’, which se...

Whether his Department has carried out an assessment of the potential impact of rules preventing Universal Credit claimants from receiving the (a) Carer and (b) Limited Capability for Work and Work-Rela

The Universal Credit impact assessment published in December 2012 assessed the impacts of introducing Universal Credit. It did not specifically reference carers, but it set out how households’ awards would be affected by the overall combination of changes...

Whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of recommending the inclusion of Attendance Allowance recipients to the Motability scheme.

Attendance Allowance is intended to help those with a severe disability who have long term care or supervision needs which arise after reaching State Pension age. It has never included a mobility component, and so cannot be used in payment for a leased Motability Scheme vehicle. Government mobility support is focused on people who are disabled earlier in life; developing mobility needs in older life is a normal consequence of ageing, which non-disabled younger people have had opportunity to plan and save for. There is no constraint on what an award of Attendance Allowance can be spent on, and a recipient may choose to use this benefit to fund mobility aids. There are no plans to review the Scheme’s qualifying benefits.

What steps her Department is taking to ensure that people with (a) fibromyalgia, (b) ADHD and (c) other invisible disabilities are supported back into work.

Backed by £240m investment, the Get Britain Working White Paper launched on 26 November will drive forward approaches to tackling economic inactivity and work toward the long-term ambition of an 80% employment rate. As a Government, we want to support all forms of neurodiversity in the workplace, and we are looking to build on the findings of the Buckland Review of Autism Employment by gathering expert evidence in line with this expanded focus. Appropriate work is generally good for health and wellbeing, so we want everyone to get work and get on in work, whoever they are and wherever they live. Disabled people and people with health conditions, including those with fibromyalgia, ADHD and other invisible conditions, are a diverse group so access to the right work and health support, in the right place, at the right time, is key. We therefore have a range of specialist initiatives to support individuals to stay in work and get back into work, including those that join up employment and health systems. Measures include support from Work Coaches and Disability Employment Advisers in Jobcentres and Access to Work grants, as well as joining up health and employment support around the individual through Employment Advisors in NHS Talking Therapies and Individual Placement and Support in Primary Care. Employers play a key role in increasing employment opportunities and supporting disabled people and people with health conditions, to thrive as part of the workforce. Our support to employers includes increasing access to Occupational Health, a digital information service for employers and the Disability Confident scheme.

What recent discussions she has had with (a) mayors and (b) local councils on supporting people back into work.

I’ve been pleased to meet many of our local leaders to discuss how we meet the shared challenge of our 80% employment rate, recognising that local people know best what their communities need.