Written questions by Berry.

What steps he is taking to ensure that staff who process Universal Credit advances take into consideration arrears owed to claimants by his Department.

Awaiting answer.

What steps he is taking to increase the capacity of the Health Assessment Advisory Service to carry out Work Capability reassessments; and what service level agreements are in place to ensure that Serco meets the requirements of its contract for this work.

Awaiting answer.

Pursuant to the answer of 27 January 2026 to Written Question UIN 106823, if he will (a) collect and analyse data on the extent of refusal, increase and reduction of Access to Work awards at renewal and (b) make an assessment of the potential impact of that data on Disabled people’s ability to maintain work and careers.

The Department has a broad analytical programme of work on Access to Work which includes quantitative analysis of data, qualitative research, and production of official statistics. This programme is reviewed regularly to ensure it remains relevant and helps to build understanding of the functioning of the scheme.

What estimate he has made of the number of people in poverty as a result of the rule preventing mixed-age couples from claiming pension-age benefits until the youngest partner reaches State Pension age.

Ensuring that individuals can get into, progress and stay in work is important in helping them to continue saving for their own retirement and contribute to the wider economy. The requirement for mixed age couples to seek financial support from the working-age social security system until both members of the couple reach State Pension Age ensures that, once in receipt of Universal Credit, the younger partner can access the same employment support that is available for customers below State Pension Age including dedicated employment support for customers over the age of 50. The pension-age partner is placed in the no-work related requirements group.

Pursuant to the answer of 22 October 2025 to Written Question UIN 80759, how many Access to Work claims have been processed since 10 October 2025; what the extent is of the backlog of outstanding claims; and what steps he is taking to reduce that backlog.

We are committed to reducing waiting times in Access to Work so that people can access the support they need. We prioritise applications from customers who are due to start work within the next four weeks, as well as renewals for existing grants, to minimise disruption to employment. In March 2025, the Department published the Pathways to Work Green Paper, launching a consultation on the future of Access to Work and how the scheme can better support disabled people in employment. We are reviewing all aspects of the programme as we develop plans for reform following the conclusion of the consultation. From the period 10/10/2025 to 23/02/2026 51,924 Access to Work claims have been processed. As of the 23/02/2026 there were 66,749 applications awaiting a decision.Please note that the data supplied is derived from unpublished management information, which was collected for internal Departmental use only, and have not been quality assured to National Statistics or Official Statistics publication standard.

With reference to Written Statement HCWS1044 on 11 November 2025, which findings contained in the 2007 DWP evaluation of the effectiveness of automatic pension forecast letters were not provided to his predecessor.

The Secretary of State announced in his oral statement of 11 November 2025 that we will retake the decision made in December 2024 as it relates to the communications on State Pension age. This was because findings from a 2007 report had not been drawn to the attention of the previous Secretary of State as its potential relevance to the making of her decision was not evident at the time. The process to retake the decision is underway and it is important that we give this full and proper consideration. We will update Parliament on the decision as soon as a conclusion is reached.

Whether he plans to make an assessment of the potential impact of State Pension age changes on 1950s-born women living in Brighton Pavilion constituency.

All women born since 6 April 1950 have been affected by changes to State Pension age. Estimates can be made with ONS 2022 Census Data of how many women born in the 1950s were resident in each constituency in that year.

Pursuant to the Answer of 21 November 2025 to Question 92325 on Access to Work Programme, how many Access to Work awards have been (a) decided, (b) reduced at renewal, (c) increased at renewal and (d) removed at renewal.

A total of 20,852 Access to Work renewal awards have been decided since July 2024.The Department does not hold information on the number of awards that have been (a) reduced, (b) increased, or (c) removed at the point of renewal. Determining these figures would require a manual review of individual cases, which would result in a disproportionate cost to the Department. Please note that the data supplied is derived from unpublished management information, which was collected for internal Departmental use only, and have not been quality assured to National Statistics or Official Statistics publication standard.

What has been the financial cost to his Department of litigation related to the WASPI campaign since December 2024.

Based on the information held, since December 2024, the recorded legal costs on litigations with WASPI including disbursements and VAT are £135,999.61.

When he expects the Health and Safety Executive to launch a public consultation as part of the statutory process for the potential renewal of the approval of glyphosate for use in Great Britain.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) expects to launch the statutory public consultation on the assessment of the renewal of the approval of glyphosate in Summer 2026. Further information can be found here Active substance renewal: glyphosate - HSE The consultation will be hosted on the HSE consultation website, and they will announce the start of the consultation via their e-bulletin service. In line with the regulations, the consultation will last for 60 days.

Whether as part of the Timms review ministers will consult Social Security Scotland and look at how assessments and reassessments are carried out.

We engage closely with officials and disability stakeholders from across the devolved governments, including the Scottish Government, to ensure the Timms Review is informed by diverse approaches to disability support from across the United Kingdom. The Review’s Terms of Reference, which set out its scope, include an explicit reference to re-assessments to recognise that PIP must be fair and fit for new and existing claimants. You can view the Terms of Reference on GOV.UK.

How many (a) households, and (b) children, will not receive an overall increase in benefit support from the abolition of the two-child benefit cap from April 2026 due to being subject to the overall benefit cap (i) across England, (ii) in Sussex, and (iii) in Brighton Pavilion constituency.

The requested information is not available.

How many (a) households, and (b) children, will not receive the full potential increase in benefit support they would be entitled to from the abolition of the two-child benefit cap from April 2026 due to being subject to the overall benefit cap after any increase provided through the abolition of the cap (i) across England, (ii) in Sussex, and (iii) in Brighton Pavilion constituency.

The requested information is not available.

What assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the Motability Scheme in addressing transport accessibility gaps.

The Motability Scheme supports many disabled people and families, by enabling them to lease a car, wheelchair accessible vehicle, scooter or powered wheelchair in exchange for an eligible disability benefit allowance. The scheme helps people with significant mobility issues participate in society, including by breaking down barriers to work. The Motability Foundation have published its strategy to support and empower disabled people by improving their access to transport. The plan sets out how they will act directly and work with others to drive change.

Whether ideas for reforming the Personal Independent Payment assessment criteria and processes requiring additional expenditure will be permitted under the terms of reference of the Timms Review of Personal Independence Payment.

The Timms Review will be co-produced with disabled people, the organisations that represent them, and other experts.The Review is focussed on ensuring we have a system that supports disabled people to achieve better health, higher living standards and greater independence. We are committed to spending public money as effectively as possible to support disabled people in living independent and fulfilling lives.It will be for the Steering Group to determine the Review’s recommendations, subject to the Terms of Reference which specify that the Review will operate within the OBR’s projections for future Personal Independence Payment expenditure.

What assessment he has made of trends in the level of job vacancies in key professions within his Department’s responsibilities, including contractor organisations.

The independent Office for National Statistics publish monthly estimates of online job adverts by occupation Labour demand volumes by Standard Occupation Classification (SOC 2020), UK - Office for National Statistics and vacancies across each industrial sector VACS02: Vacancies by industry - Office for National Statistics.

Whether he plans to remove the work capability assessment.

We announced in the Pathways to Work Green Paper that we are abolishing the Work Capability Assessment (WCA) and that following this, eligibility to the new Universal Credit Health Element would require the claimant to be in receipt of a Daily Living award on Personal Independence Payment (PIP). Work is continuing to determine the detail of how this reformed system would work and discussions are also under way with the Scottish Government about the interactions between the devolved and reserved systems. We will set out further details of the reformed system, and the timing of WCA abolition, once we are in a position to do so.

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Motability Scheme on supporting disabled people into employment and training.

The Motability Foundation report that 27% of Scheme users have improved access to education and 21% have improved access to employment opportunities. Scheme customers in employment report working an extra 14 hours a week, on average.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the Motability Scheme on transport barriers experienced by disabled people.

The Motability Scheme supports many disabled people and families, by enabling them to lease a car, wheelchair accessible vehicle, scooter or powered wheelchair in exchange for an eligible disability benefit allowance. The scheme helps people with significant mobility issues participate in society, including by breaking down barriers to work. The Motability Foundation have published its strategy to support and empower disabled people by improving their access to transport. The plan sets out how they will act directly and work with others to drive change.

What action he is taking to ensure that the voices of people with learning disabilities are heard directly during the Timms Review of Personal Independence Payment, including (a) digitally excluded people with learning disabilities, (b) people with learning disabilities who are non-verbal, and (c) people with learning disabilities who need written information provided in an accessible format.

For the Review to be a success, lived experience must be at the heart of its work. The Timms Review will be co-produced with disabled people, the organisations that represent them, clinicians, experts, MPs and other stakeholders, to ensure that expertise from a wide range of perspectives is drawn upon. On 30 October, I published the revised Terms of Reference on GOV.UK which set out further details about its scope. I also announced that the Review will be co-chaired by myself alongside Sharon Brennan and Dr Clenton Farquharson CBE. We will oversee a steering group responsible for leading the co-production process, setting the Review's strategic direction, priorities and workplan. The group will be made up of a majority of disabled people or representatives of disabled people's organisations and will be recruited through an open and transparent Expression of Interest (EOI) process, which is now live. We have worked closely with experts to ensure the EOI is accessible, inclusive and has a broad reach. The steering group will not work alone, it will oversee a programme of participation that brings together the full range of views and voices.