Written questions by Gibson.

How many pensioners in Wiltshire will receive the Winter Fuel Payment under the new income threshold.

Winter Fuel Payments are £200 for a household with someone of State Pension age and £300 for a household with someone aged 80 or over. They will be paid automatically to anyone who has not opted out. Individuals with a taxable income above £35,000 a year Winter Fuel Payments will be recouped via HMRC. This means that the majority of pensioners in England and Wales – over three quarters, or around 9 million individuals – will now benefit from Winter Fuel Payments, making it better targeted than the previous near-universal payment.

What steps her Department plans to take to help ensure prompt payment of the Winter Fuel Payment for pensioners in Wiltshire.

The vast majority of pensioners in England and Wales – around 9 million individuals - will now benefit from Winter Fuel Payments. No pensioner will need to take any action now as they will automatically receive the payment this winter, and for those with incomes above the threshold it will be automatically recovered via HMRC. Pensioners who want to opt out and not receive the payment at all, will be able to do so. Announcing the increase in eligibility before the Summer recess and by paying all pensioners—except those who opt out—we are able to rely on established processes that can ensure prompt payments of Winter Fuel Payments for the coming winter.

What recent assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of Bereavement Support Payments in covering the (a) immediate and (b) ongoing costs faced by bereaved families.

There has been no recent assessment of the adequacy of Bereavement Support Payment covering (a) immediate and (b) on going costs to bereaved families. The Bereavement Support Payment qualitative research published in 2021 explored how the lump sum and the monthly payments were used. Bereavement Support Payment is intended to help people through the immediate period following a bereavement. Where longer-term financial support is needed, benefits such as Universal Credit have been specifically designed to provide assistance with ongoing living costs. The rate of Bereavement Support Payment is reviewed on a discretionary basis as part of the annual uprating process, but there is no legal requirement to uprate it.

How many calls to the Pension Service helpline (a) were not answered, (b) involved the caller being on hold for more than 10 minutes and (c) were terminated by the Pension Service following the caller being on hold for more than 10 minutes in (i) February, (ii) March, and (iii) April 2025.

DWP does not have a specific enquiry line called the Pension Service Helpline, so I have provided the data from the State Pensions enquiries line. Over the period 1 February to 30 April 2025 a total of 28,775 calls were not answered due to caller abandonment. A monthly breakdown shows February 6,696; March 16,960 and April 5,119. The percentage of calls answered over these 3 months on average shows Feb 92%, March 84% and April 94%, against an expectation of 90%. A total of 67,736 callers were on hold for more than 10 minutes with the monthly breakdown showing February 9,082, March 51,746, April 6,908. No calls were terminated by DWP. We do not hold the data before June 2023 and therefore have based our answer on the period from 1st June 2023 to 31st January 2025. In this data, calls not answered were due to caller abandonment. No calls were terminated by DWP. Date Abandoned Hold for 10 mins or more Jun-2333631Jul-2322815Aug-23922259Sep-2345634054Oct-23763411403Nov-23582810297Dec-231208366 Date Abandoned Hold for 10 mins or more Jan-24167612Feb-2465694124Mar-243407163Apr-241582929090May-2447523296Jun-24952363Jul-2419471798Aug-2428542544Sep-2431311678Oct-2434783830Nov-2436713884Dec-2423211557 The information provided here is based on internal management information which is not intended for publication and has not been quality assured to official statistics standards.

How many calls to the Pension Service helpline (a) were not answered, (b) involved the caller being on hold for more than 10 minutes and (c) were terminated by the Pension Service following the caller being on hold for more than 10 minutes in each month between January 2015 and January 2024.

DWP does not have a specific enquiry line called the Pension Service Helpline, so I have provided the data from the State Pensions enquiries line. Over the period 1 February to 30 April 2025 a total of 28,775 calls were not answered due to caller abandonment. A monthly breakdown shows February 6,696; March 16,960 and April 5,119. The percentage of calls answered over these 3 months on average shows Feb 92%, March 84% and April 94%, against an expectation of 90%. A total of 67,736 callers were on hold for more than 10 minutes with the monthly breakdown showing February 9,082, March 51,746, April 6,908. No calls were terminated by DWP. We do not hold the data before June 2023 and therefore have based our answer on the period from 1st June 2023 to 31st January 2025. In this data, calls not answered were due to caller abandonment. No calls were terminated by DWP. Date Abandoned Hold for 10 mins or more Jun-2333631Jul-2322815Aug-23922259Sep-2345634054Oct-23763411403Nov-23582810297Dec-231208366 Date Abandoned Hold for 10 mins or more Jan-24167612Feb-2465694124Mar-243407163Apr-241582929090May-2447523296Jun-24952363Jul-2419471798Aug-2428542544Sep-2431311678Oct-2434783830Nov-2436713884Dec-2423211557 The information provided here is based on internal management information which is not intended for publication and has not been quality assured to official statistics standards.

If she will make an estimate of the number of people with (a) musculoskeletal disorders and (b) learning disabilities who will be affected by changes to PIP eligibility in Wiltshire.

Estimates of the volumes of PIP claimants affected by the reform in the future are forecast for England and Wales only and are not broken down by Local Authority or any other geographic area, nor by specific primary health condition.After taking account of behavioural changes, the OBR predicts that 370,000 people who will be receiving PIP at the point of implementation of the four point requirement in November 2026, will have lost their PIP Daily Living entitlement by 2029/30. Of all PIP recipients at the point of implementation, 9 in 10 will not lose PIP during the subsequent 3 years from this change.The proportion of people in receipt of Personal Independence Payment daily living component who were awarded fewer than four points in all daily living activities, by local authority area, is available as part of the Pathways to Work Evidence Pack in Chapter 2, table 2.25, while data by primary health condition is in table 2.22.Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working Green Paper - GOV.UKNotes:There will be no immediate changes. Changes to PIP eligibility and rebalancing of UC aren’t coming into effect immediately. Our intention is these changes will start to come into effect from April 2026 for UC and November 2026 for PIP, subject to parliamentary approval.PIP changes will only apply at the next award review after November 2026. The average award review period is about three years. At the award review, claimants will be seen by a trained assessor or healthcare professional and assessed on individual needs and circumstances.We are consulting on how best to support those who are affected by the new eligibility changes, including how to make sure health and eligible care needs are met. PIP is not based on condition diagnosis but on functional disability as the result of one or more conditions, and is awarded as a contribution to the additional costs which result.We also intend to launch a wider review of the PIP assessment which I will lead, and we will bring together a range of experts, stakeholders and people with lived experience to consider how best to do this and to start the process as part of preparing for a review. We will provide further details as plans progress.

If she will make an assessment of the potential impact of the eligibility criteria for Universal Credit on (a) young adults under 25 and (b) young adults under 25 who are (i) living independently and (ii) without family support in Wiltshire.

There are currently no plans to make such an assessment. To be eligible for Universal Credit a person is usually required to be at least 18 years old but there are circumstances where those aged 16 and 17 may be eligible to claim Universal Credit in their own right, including if they have no parent or cannot live with their parent(s). Young people under 25 who live independently may also be able to get help with their housing costs. DWP currently provides young people aged 16-24 with labour market support through an extensive range of interventions at a national and local level. This includes flexible provision driven by local need, nationwide employment programmes and support delivered by work coaches based in our Jobcentres and in local communities working alongside partners. All jobcentres deliver the Youth Offer and have Youth Employability Coaches in post to support young people aged 18-24 years old. Youth Hubs are currently being explored and are in the planning phase by both Swindon Borough Council and Wiltshire Council.

If she will make an assessment of the potential merits of allowing compensation relating to pre-1997 pensionable service for Pension Protection Fund members to be indexed.

We are committed to consider and reflect on what we have heard on the issue of Pension Protection Fund and Financial Assistance Scheme rules on the indexation of pre-1997 pension accruals. Any change in this area has significant implications on public finances for both the taxpayer funded Financial Assistance Scheme and for the Pension Protection Fund which is levy-funded. These are complex matters requiring a balanced approach for those receiving compensation, levy payers and taxpayers. This is an important issue and one where we will continue to work with the Pension Protection Fund.

If she will make an estimate of the potential impact of her Department's proposed changes to the eligibility for PIP on the number of people who qualify for (a) a Blue Badge, (b) Housing Benefit and (c) Carer’s Allowance in Wiltshire.

Changes to the daily living component of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) will not have an impact on Blue Badge holders as no changes are being made to the mobility component of PIP. The assessment by the Office for Budget Responsibility of the impact of the proposed changes on carers was made for England and Wales as a whole. The impacts can be found in table A4 here: Spring Statement 2025 health and disability benefit reforms – Impacts. Notes:There will be no immediate changes. Changes to PIP eligibility and rebalancing of UC aren’t coming into effect immediately. Our intention is these changes will start to come into effect from April 2026 for UC and November 2026 for PIP, subject to parliamentary approval.PIP changes will only apply at the next award review after November 2026. The average award review period is about three years. At the award review, claimants will be seen by a trained assessor or healthcare professional and assessed on individual needs and circumstances.We are consulting on how best to support those who are affected by the new eligibility changes, including how to make sure health and eligible care needs are met. PIP is not based on condition diagnosis but on functional disability as the result of one or more conditions, and is awarded as a contribution to the additional costs which result.We also intend to launch a wider review of the PIP assessment which I will lead, and we will bring together a range of experts, stakeholders and people with lived experience to consider how best to do this and to start the process as part of preparing for a review. We will provide further details as plans progress.

For what reason accessible versions of the Pathways to Work Green Paper were not published at the same time as the original version; and if she will take steps to ensure that accessible versions of documents are published simultaneously in the future.

A full suite of accessible versions were published on 7 April, including web-accessible HTML versions, Large Print, Audio, British Sign Language, Braille and Easy Read. The consultation period closes on the 30 June 2025, allowing for a full twelve weeks after all the accessible versions were released to en-sure all stakeholders have sufficient time to engage. We published the Green Paper ahead of some accessible versions to put detailed information about the matters subject to consultation in the public domain at the earliest opportunity. The production of accessible versions to a high standard requires additional time.

If she will make an estimate of the number of people who (a) are currently eligible for PIP and (b) will not be eligible for PIP following her Department's proposed changes to the assessment criteria for that benefit in Wiltshire.

Estimates of the volumes of PIP claimants affected by the reform in the future are forecast for England and Wales only and therefore have not been broken down by Local Authority or any other geographic area. After taking account of behavioural changes, OBR predicts that 370,000 people who will be receiving PIP at the point of implementation of the four point requirement in November 2026, will have lost their PIP Daily Living entitlement by 2029/30. Of all PIP recipients at the point of implementation, 9 in 10 will not lose PIP during the subsequent 3 years from this change. The proportion of people in receipt of Personal Independence Payment daily living component who were awarded fewer than four points in all daily living activities, by local authority area, is available as part of the Pathways to Work Evidence Pack in Chapter 2, table 2.25. Notes:There will be no immediate changes. Changes to PIP eligibility and rebalancing of UC aren’t coming into effect immediately. Our intention is these changes will start to come into effect from April 2026 for UC and November 2026 for PIP, subject to parliamentary approval.PIP changes will only apply at the next award review after November 2026. The average award review period is about three years. At the award review, claimants will be seen by a trained assessor or healthcare professional and assessed on individual needs and circumstances.We are consulting on how best to support those who are affected by the new eligibility changes, including how to make sure health and eligible care needs are met. PIP is not based on condition diagnosis but on functional disability as the result of one or more conditions, and is awarded as a contribution to the additional costs which result.We also intend to launch a wider review of the PIP assessment which I will lead, and we will bring together a range of experts, stakeholders and people with lived experience to consider how best to do this and to start the process as part of preparing for a review. We will provide further details as plans progress.

Whether her Department made local-level equality impact assessments on the changes in Winter Fuel Payment eligibility.

In line with the requirements of the Public Sector Equality Duty, an Equality Analysis was produced and considered as part of the ministerial decision-making process. This was published on 13 September and is available online: Equality Impact Assessments produced for targeting Winter Fuel Payment - GOV.UK

What recent assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of earnings threshold rules for Carer’s Allowance on unpaid carers engaged in part-time employment.

The weekly earnings limit in Carer’s Allowance (CA) was increased to £196 net earnings in April 2025. This is the largest cash increase ever since CA was introduced in 1976 and the highest percentage increase since 2001. Over 60,000 additional people will be able to receive CA between 2025/26 and 2029/30 as a result. Going forward the earnings limit will be pegged to 16 hours work at National Living Wage (NLW) levels, and in future it will increase when the NLW increases. This will provide more certainty on the hours they can work for those unpaid carers with a job on the NLW. As my Rt hon friend the member for Leeds West (the Chancellor of the Exchequer) said at the Autumn Budget, we also need to look at the current “cliff edge” earnings rules. A taper, for example, could further incentivise unpaid carers to do some work. It could also reduce the risk of significant overpayments. However, introducing a taper in CA is not without challenges and could significantly complicate the benefit as it currently stands and would mean a major rebuild of the CA computer system. DWP is undertaking some scoping work to see whether an earnings taper in CA might be a feasible option in the longer term. But any taper will be several years away.

Whether her Department plans to review the structure of the earnings limit for Carer’s Allowance to reduce the risk of significant overpayments resulting from minor threshold breaches.

The weekly earnings limit in Carer’s Allowance (CA) was increased to £196 net earnings in April 2025. This is the largest cash increase ever since CA was introduced in 1976 and the highest percentage increase since 2001. Over 60,000 additional people will be able to receive CA between 2025/26 and 2029/30 as a result. Going forward the earnings limit will be pegged to 16 hours work at National Living Wage (NLW) levels, and in future it will increase when the NLW increases. This will provide more certainty on the hours they can work for those unpaid carers with a job on the NLW. As my Rt hon friend the member for Leeds West (the Chancellor of the Exchequer) said at the Autumn Budget, we also need to look at the current “cliff edge” earnings rules. A taper, for example, could further incentivise unpaid carers to do some work. It could also reduce the risk of significant overpayments. However, introducing a taper in CA is not without challenges and could significantly complicate the benefit as it currently stands and would mean a major rebuild of the CA computer system. DWP is undertaking some scoping work to see whether an earnings taper in CA might be a feasible option in the longer term. But any taper will be several years away.

What proportion of Carer’s Allowance overpayment cases identified by her Department in each of the last six years were subject to investigation prior to the commencement of debt recovery procedures.

The Department looks into every case where an overpayment is calculated before the overpayment is finalised and debt recovery commences. Where overpayments do occur, the Department has a duty to the taxpayer to protect public funds and to ask for money to be paid back. We remain committed to working with anyone who is struggling with their repayment terms and will always look to negotiate sustainable and affordable repayment plans

Whether her Department has made an assessment of the the potential merits of writing off historical Carer’s Allowance overpayments in cases involving small or inadvertent breaches of the earnings limit.

The Government inherited a system where busy carers, already struggling under a huge weight of responsibility, have been left having to repay large sums of overpaid Carer’s Allowance (CA) – sometimes worth thousands of pounds. We needed to understand exactly what had gone wrong so we could set out our plan to put things right. That is why we launched an Independent Review of earnings-related overpayments of CA. The review is investigating how overpayments of CA have occurred; what can best be done to support those who have accrued them; and how to reduce the risk of these problems occurring in future. It is anticipated that the Independent Review will arrive at its conclusions this summer. We will, of course, carefully consider the findings of the review and its recommendations. Both the report from the Independent Review and the Government’s response will be published. We have been clear (including in the Terms of Reference) that the review is not a substitute for legal proceedings (Mandatory Reconsiderations/Appeals) and the existence of the review does not prejudice any business-as-usual activity by DWP. It would not be appropriate to speculate on the findings of the review or any potential outcomes. Where overpayments do occur, the Department has a duty to the taxpayer to protect public funds and to ask for money to be paid back. We remain committed to working with anyone who is struggling with their repayment terms and will always look to negotiate sustainable and affordable repayment plans.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of four-weekly State Pension payments on the ability of pensioners to plan financially.

The current State Pension payment regime has been in place since 6 April 2010 for those people who reached pensionable age on or after that date.However, to make the opportunity of being paid calendar monthly available, there would need to be significant and very costly system changes and not just to systems used by this Department – HMRC would also be affected. It is not something the Department is considering at this time, but it remains an option should there be a review of the method of payments in the future.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of paying the State Pension on a monthly basis.

The current State Pension payment regime has been in place since 6 April 2010 for those people who reached pensionable age on or after that date.However, to make the opportunity of being paid calendar monthly available, there would need to be significant and very costly system changes and not just to systems used by this Department – HMRC would also be affected. It is not something the Department is considering at this time, but it remains an option should there be a review of the method of payments in the future.

Whether her Department will commit to a review of the frequency of State Pension payments to better support pensioners in managing their budgets.

The current State Pension payment regime has been in place since 6 April 2010 for those people who reached pensionable age on or after that date.However, to make the opportunity of being paid calendar monthly available, there would need to be significant and very costly system changes and not just to systems used by this Department – HMRC would also be affected. It is not something the Department is considering at this time, but it remains an option should there be a review of the method of payments in the future.

If she will make an assessment of the adequacy of Universal Credit provisions for single parent families.

The Child Poverty 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, including considering social security reforms, reducing essential costs, increasing financial resilience; and better local support especially in the early years. Benefit rates are reviewed each year, increasing by 6.7% in April 2024 and by a further 1.7% from April 2025, in line with inflation. We have recently announced a Fair Repayment Rate on Universal Credit deductions will be introduced from April 2025, helping approximately 1.2 million households benefit by an average of £420 a year.