Every parliamentary written question tabled by Richard Burgon this session, with the full answer and department. Back to the MP page.
Showing 21–40 of 43 · Department for Work and Pensions
Whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of welfare reform on people with multiple sclerosis.
Information on the impacts of the Pathways to Work Green Paper will be published in due course with some information published this week alongside the Spring Statement. A further programme of analysis to support development of the proposals in the Green Paper will be developed and undertaken in the coming months.
What the average Personal Independence Payment was in the 2023-24 financial year, broken down by (a) total, (b) daily living part and (c) mobility part.
The average weekly Personal Independence Payment (PIP) award for the 2023-24 financial year can be found in the table below. Average Weekly PIP Award(a) Total(b) Daily Living Component(c) Mobility Component£126£83£44 Source: PIP Administrative DataNotes: Figures provided are for England and Wales only.The averages provided are calculated using the daily living and mobility awards during the last month that each claimant was on the caseload in the 2023-24 financial year.These figures include claims made under normal rules and special rules for terminal illness and include new claims and Disability Living Allowance (DLA) to PIP reassessment claims.Figures are rounded to the nearest pound.
If she will make an estimate of the number and proportion of disabled households that will be in poverty by financial year (a) 2025-26, (b) 2026-27, (c) 2027-28 and (d) 2028-29.
Making an estimate of future disability poverty rates is difficult to do robustly. It would involve both projecting forward the impact of economic conditions on every household’s income and individual circumstance, and future trends in disability prevalence and distribution. Statistics on the number of people in families with a disabled person are published annually in the Households Below Average Income (HBAI) statistics publication, available here: Households below average income (HBAI) statistics - GOV.UK. The latest statistics show that in 2022/23 there were 6.2m (24%) people in families where someone is disabled in relative poverty after housing costs (AHC). Data for 2023/24 will be published on 27th March 2025.
If her Department will make an assessment of the potential impact of proposals for reform of health and disability benefits on child poverty.
Delivering our manifesto commitment to tackle child poverty is an urgent priority for this Government, and the Ministerial Taskforce is working to publish a Child Poverty Strategy which will deliver lasting change. The Strategy will look at levers across four key themes of increasing incomes, reducing essential costs, increasing financial resilience; and better local support especially in the early years. This will build on the reform plans underway across government and work underway in Devolved Governments. As part of the Strategy's development, the Taskforce is considering the potential impact of policies across government on child poverty.
Whether the child poverty strategy will consider the potential impact of reforms to health and disability benefit on child poverty.
Delivering our manifesto commitment to tackle child poverty is an urgent priority for this Government, and the Ministerial Taskforce is working to publish a Child Poverty Strategy which will deliver lasting change. The Strategy will look at levers across four key themes of increasing incomes, reducing essential costs, increasing financial resilience; and better local support especially in the early years. This will build on the reform plans underway across government and work underway in Devolved Governments. As part of the Strategy's development, the Taskforce is considering the potential impact of policies across government on child poverty.
What estimate her Department has made of fraud in the social security system in financial year 2023-24 by benefit.
Estimates of the levels of fraud and error in the benefit system for the financial year 2023-24 can be found at: Fraud and error in the benefit system, Financial Year Ending (FYE) 2024 - GOV.UK
Pursuant to the Answer of 16 December 2024 to Question 19366 on Social Security Benefits: Appeals, what role Mandatory Reconsideration Decision Makers have in reducing clearance times for mandatory reconsiderations of Personal Independence Payment decisions.
Mandatory Reconsideration clearances can fluctuate for many reasons, but we expect to recover the current backlog of cases by March 2025. The role of a Mandatory Reconsideration (MR) decision maker is to make a robust decision, supported by the law and available evidence. In law there is no time limit within which a MR decision must be made. This reflects the overarching policy that the focus should be on making the right decision and not the speed of clearance. Decisions should always be made without delay, but if the decision maker considers that more time is needed to gather or consider evidence, then they will give themselves that time to ensure they are confident that the decision made is correct.
Pursuant to the Answer of 16 December 2024 to Question 19366 on Social Security Benefits: Appeals, when she plans that waiting times for mandatory reconsideration processes will be back to December 2023 levels.
Mandatory Reconsideration clearances can fluctuate for many reasons, but we expect to recover the current backlog of cases by March 2025. The role of a Mandatory Reconsideration (MR) decision maker is to make a robust decision, supported by the law and available evidence. In law there is no time limit within which a MR decision must be made. This reflects the overarching policy that the focus should be on making the right decision and not the speed of clearance. Decisions should always be made without delay, but if the decision maker considers that more time is needed to gather or consider evidence, then they will give themselves that time to ensure they are confident that the decision made is correct.
Pursuant to the Answer of 21 November 2024 to Question 14654 on Personal Independence Payment, what estimate her Department has made of the total amount lost to PIP fraud in financial year (a) 2020-21, (b) 2021-22 and (c) 2022-23.
Estimates of the levels of fraud and error in the benefit system for the financial years requested can be found at: Fraud and error in the benefit system - GOV.UK Please see the requested information in the attached document.
What estimate she has made of the number of pensioners that will receive the full increase to the State Pension.
From April 2025, around 12.5 million people receiving either the basic or new State Pension will see it increased by 4.1%, in line with our commitment to the Triple Lock. Some people will receive an increase of 1.7% (in line with price inflation) on other elements of their State Pension, including Protected Payments and additional State Pension. Under both the basic and new State Pensions, the amount people are entitled to, and the annual increases, vary according to the individual’s National Insurance record, but both reflect the National Insurance contributions they have made.
Whether her Department plans to take steps to reduce the clearance time for mandatory reconsiderations of Personal Independence Payment decisions.
Whilst we aim to make the right decision as early as possible in the claim journey, Mandatory Reconsideration is a key element of the Department’s decision-making process. It offers customers an opportunity to challenge decisions and provide any additional information which may be relevant to their claim. We recognise that the most recent data shows an increase in Mandatory Reconsideration clearance times, from 37 calendar days in December 2023 to 71 calendar days in July 2024. To address this, we are recruiting Mandatory Reconsideration Decision Makers and have made overtime available to increase productivity.
What assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the mandatory reconsideration process.
Whilst we aim to make the right decision as early as possible in the claim journey, Mandatory Reconsideration is a key element of the Department’s decision-making process. It offers customers an opportunity to challenge decisions and provide any additional information which may be relevant to their claim. We recognise that the most recent data shows an increase in Mandatory Reconsideration clearance times, from 37 calendar days in December 2023 to 71 calendar days in July 2024. To address this, we are recruiting Mandatory Reconsideration Decision Makers and have made overtime available to increase productivity.
If she will ensure that every computer in a jobcentre is equipped with assistive technology.
Computers allocated to DWP staff in jobcentres are equipped with the suite of software that comes with the operating system, augmented by specialist software as determined through the reasonable adjustments process on an individual basis to meet the specific needs of the staff member in question. As part of its commitment to make services accessible to all customers, the Department provides computers for customer use in Jobcentres. All the computers have assistive technology built into those Operating Systems such as screen readers and screen magnification and are managed separately from the wider DWP IT estate. The Department also provides a range of other items in Jobcentres such as alternative keyboards. Computers for customer use with assistive technology are currently in 634 permanent jobcentres.
If she will take steps to ensure that disabled jobseekers can access the assistive technology they need to look for work.
As part of our reforms to jobcentres outlined in the Get Britain Working White Paper, we will explore how we can use assistive digital technology and modern premises design to support greater accessibility and inclusiveness. We will also ensure we offer a range of channels to meet people’s differing needs, whether online, on the phone or in person.
What steps her Department is taking to help tackle poverty for people on low incomes; and if she will bring forward legislative proposals to introduce a statutory duty to progressively reduce levels of poverty for those people.
I refer the Rt. Hon. Member to the answer I gave on 6 December to PQ17569 in relation to poverty and living standards.
What level her Department will raise the living standards of those struggling to meet their basic needs by 2030; and if she will bring forward legislative proposals to ensure a statutory commitment to a level of progress.
We are committed to tackling poverty and raising living standards. We know that good work can significantly reduce the chances of people falling into poverty so this will be the foundation of our approach. Backed by £240 million investment, the Get Britain Working White Paper launched on 26 November will target and tackle economic inactivity and unemployment and join up employment, health and skills support to meet the needs of local communities. Alongside this, we are committed to reviewing Universal Credit to make sure it is doing the job we want it to do. We started this work with the announcement of the Fair Repayment Rate in the Budget and will continue to work with stakeholders as the review progresses. We are taking further steps to tackle poverty through our commitments to triple investment in breakfast clubs to over £30 million and increase the National Living Wage to £12.21 an hour from April 2025 to boost the pay of 3 million workers. The Child Poverty Taskforce also continues its urgent work to publish the Child Poverty Strategy and will explore all available levers to drive forward short and long-term actions across government to deliver an enduring reduction in child poverty in this parliament, as part of a 10-year Strategy for lasting change. The taskforce is exploring a range of metrics and will make decisions alongside the publication of the strategy in Spring 2025.
What estimate her Department has made of the total amount lost to personal independence payment (a) fraud and (b) over-payment in financial year (a) 2023-24 and (b) 2024-25.
Estimates of the levels of fraud and error in the benefit system for financial year 2023-24 can be found at: Fraud and error in the benefit system - GOV.UK Below is an extract: PERSONAL INDEPENDENCE PAYMENTS (PIP) Overpayments FYE 24FYE 23All0.4% (£90m)1.1% (£200m)Fraud0.0% (£0m)0.2% (£40m)Claimant Error0.3% (£60m)0.8% (£140m)Official Error0.1% (£30m)0.1% (£20m) The Department will publish the figures for 2024 – 25 in the upcoming year.
With reference to the Written Statement of 8 October 2024 on DWP Fraud, Error and Debt Bill, HCWS114, what estimate her Department has made of the proportion of the £1.6 billion saved over the next five year period will be due to tackling (a) fraud, (b) error and (c) debt in each of the next five years.
The savings from the Eligibility Verification Measure (EVM) come from both fraud and error, and it is not possible to separate the components. The measures referred to have now been scrutinised by the Office for Budget Responsibility and included in the Budget (table 2.1 https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/672b98bb40f7da695c921c61/Autumn_Budget_2024_Print.pdf) that sets out the year by year savings and estimates £1.5bn over five years from 25/26. The proportions coming from a) fraud and error which comes from EVM and b) debt which comes from the new debt recovery powers in each year is as follows: 2025-262026-272027-282028-292029-30F&EN/A33%55%64%65%DebtN/A67%45%36%35%
If she will hold discussions with disability organisations on the potential merits of visits by job coaches to mental health patients in hospital.
Ministers across Government value the insights that can be gained from meeting with people with experience and the organisations that represent them. The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions demonstrated this recently, sharing her experience of visiting a severe mental illness Individual Placement and Support programme. The Individual Placement and Support employment model is internationally recognised as one of the most effective ways to support people with mental health problems to gain and keep paid employment. IPS services offer intensive, individually tailored support to help people choose and find the right job, with ongoing support for the employer and employee to help ensure the person sustains their employment. Policy responsibility for the severe mental illness Individual Placement and Support programme rests with Ministerial colleagues at the Department for Health and Social Care.
How much her Department spends on publicity to increase the number of people registered for Pension Credit.
The Department’s current paid marketing activity to promote Pension Credit which includes radio, national and regional press, paid social media and GP and Post Office screens, has been live since 16th September and is ongoing. It is not possible to provide an accurate cost for this paid activity until it is concluded.