Written questions by Prinsley.

Whether his Department has considered introducing an online system for Personal Independence Payment claimants to report a change in circumstances, in line with other Government departments that offer digital self-service options; and if he will make an assessment of the potential benefits of such a system for accessibility, efficiency, and user experience.

The Health Transformation Programme is transforming the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) service to improve efficiency, accessibility, and user experience, build trust in our decisions, and support people to enter or remain in work. Customers can access an online service to submit their health information after calling us to start their claim and this is already available to over 90% of new PIP customers. This is benefiting customers by removing postage times and increasing accessibility.

If she will hold discussions with the Health and Safety Executive on the potential merits of taking steps encourage employers to (a) organise regular hearing tests, (b) distribute adequate personal hearing protectors and (c) implement other measures to help prevent occupational hearing loss.

Duties on employers are well established in the Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005, which require employers to: a) Carry out hearing tests regularly by a competent person (health surveillance) when there may be a risk to their employee’s hearing, and undertake protective measures based on the results, and b) Provide adequate personal hearing protection where noise exposure cannot be eliminated or controlled at source. Health and Safety Executive (HSE) provides guidance and tools to help employers understand their obligations through its website, and regularly engages stakeholders to promote noise controls and ensuring hearing protection is fit for purpose in terms of its condition and specific use. HSE enforces these regulations and is conducting a long-term programme of targeted inspections of higher risk workplaces, forming a key element of HSE’s Protecting People and Places strategy to reduce work-related ill-health in the workplace.