Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many long-term unemployed 18–21-year-olds have been enrolled on the new national Jobs Guarantee scheme in Birmingham.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Phase One of the Jobs Guarantee commenced in May and will be followed by national rollout from November 2026. The information requested is planned for future publication and will be made available in due course.
Birmingham and Solihull is one of six Phase One areas where support is being offered first. In Birmingham and Solihull, DWP has partnered with Catch-22 to deliver the Jobs Guarantee and referrals started in May. Long-term unemployed young people who are enrolled on the scheme will be provided six months of paid employment alongside wraparound support and training.
Asked by: Richard Fuller (Conservative - North Bedfordshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for each Arm's Length Body (ALB) their Department sponsors, (a) how many people are employed in the following bands of total earnings, or nearest equivalent, (i) under £25,000, (ii) £ 25,001 to £ 35,000, (iii) £35,001 to £50,270, (iv) £50,271 to £100,00, (v) £100,001 to £ 125,140 and (vi) over £125,140, and (b) what estimate they have made of the total unfunded public sector pension liability.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
This table outlines the total people employed for each Arm’s Length Body (ALB) for each salary band of total earnings or nearest equivalent, and the total unfunded public sector pensions liability for each ALB.
Arm’s Length Body | Under £25,000 | £25,001 to £35,000 | £35,001 to £50,270 | £50,271 to £100,000 | £100,001 to £125,140 | Over £125,140 | Total unfunded public sector pensions liability |
Health and Safety Executive (HSE) | 0 | 716 | 1044 | 988 | 15 | 2 | HSE does not hold this information. |
Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) | 129 | 128 | 221 | 361 | 13 | 18 | MaPS does not hold this information. |
The Pensions Ombudsman (TPO) | 0 | 7.6 | 111.87 | 52.83 | 1.35 | 2 | TPO does not hold this information. |
The Pensions Regulator (TPR) | 0 | 149 | 269 | 482 | 71 | 26 | TPR does not hold this information. |
Skills England (SE) (based on workforce data of June 2026 and based on estimates) | 0 | 7 | 92 | 151 | 0 | 3 | Skills England does not hold this information. |
Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the estimation in Economic and Fiscal Outlook - March 2026 that health and disability benefits will increase to almost £110 billion by 2030.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions has slowed the increase in health and disability benefit caseloads, and in welfare spending as a proportion of GDP compared to the last Government.
The Timms Review, the first ever full review of PIP, was launched to ensure we have a system that supports disabled people to achieve better health, higher living standards and greater in-dependence, including through employment.
The steering group is now moving towards designing and testing its recommendations for change, which will be published in a final report in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Spielman (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of Personal Independence Payment claimants citing mental health conditions in their claims.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Baroness Coffey (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what was the success rate for applications for Personal Independence Payment following (1) initial application, (2) mandatory reconsideration, and (3) tribunal appeal, for individuals with (a) mixed anxiety and depressive disorders, (b) mood disorders, (c) anxiety disorder, (d) substance use disorder, and (e) conduct disorder, between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2026.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The requested information for new claims under normal rules in areas under DWP policy ownership are included below. This data is for initial decisions between 1 April 2024 and 31 December 2025, the most recent date for mandatory reconsiderations and appeals data.
Table 1: award rates (%) for initial decision, mandatory reconsideration (MR), and appeal by condition subgroup.
| Anxiety | Conduct | Mixed anxiety | Mood | Substance |
Initial clearance award rate | 46 | 55 | 53 | 52 | 72 |
MR change rate | 10 | 4 | 12 | 12 | 16 |
Appeal overturn rate | 41 | x | 45 | 42 | 55 |
Notes:
Asked by: Baroness Maclean of Redditch (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers by Baroness Sherlock on 30 June (HL116 and HL117), whether the training programmes for case managers and healthcare professionals include the identification of false letters sent to PIP assessors.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
"Relevant partners" refers to charities and organisations with expertise in disability benefits, welfare rights and claimant support, such as Citizens Advice.
As part of keeping this area under review, the Department will continue to consider evidence about the activity of commercial providers and any poor practice, including where this may affect the quality or reliability of evidence submitted in support of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) claims.
Healthcare Professionals (HPs) and Case Managers are required to undertake a detailed review of all available evidence as part of the assessment and decision-making process and to assess the consistency, relevance and sufficiency of the information provided in support of a claim.
The PIP Assessment Guide requires HPs to consider any inconsistencies in the evidence available, determine whether further supporting evidence is required, and record the rationale for the conclusions reached. Where appropriate, HPs may seek additional evidence from professionals involved in the claimant’s care, including GPs, hospital clinicians and other relevant practitioners, to help inform their advice to DWP.
DWP is focussed on preventing fraud and error from entering the system and has robust detect and correct capabilities in place to address inaccurate payments at the earliest opportunity.
Asked by: Baroness Maclean of Redditch (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Smith of Malvern on 9 July (HL820), what are the "relevant partners" referred to; and what steps will be taken as part of this review.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
"Relevant partners" refers to charities and organisations with expertise in disability benefits, welfare rights and claimant support, such as Citizens Advice.
As part of keeping this area under review, the Department will continue to consider evidence about the activity of commercial providers and any poor practice, including where this may affect the quality or reliability of evidence submitted in support of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) claims.
Healthcare Professionals (HPs) and Case Managers are required to undertake a detailed review of all available evidence as part of the assessment and decision-making process and to assess the consistency, relevance and sufficiency of the information provided in support of a claim.
The PIP Assessment Guide requires HPs to consider any inconsistencies in the evidence available, determine whether further supporting evidence is required, and record the rationale for the conclusions reached. Where appropriate, HPs may seek additional evidence from professionals involved in the claimant’s care, including GPs, hospital clinicians and other relevant practitioners, to help inform their advice to DWP.
DWP is focussed on preventing fraud and error from entering the system and has robust detect and correct capabilities in place to address inaccurate payments at the earliest opportunity.
Asked by: Baroness Spielman (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to review the Personal Independence Payment eligibility criteria.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Timms Review, the first ever full review of PIP, was launched to ensure we have a system that supports disabled people to achieve better health, higher living standards and greater in-dependence, including through employment.
As part of this work, the Review is gathering evidence from a wide range of sources, including lived experience, expert insight, existing research and new data, to inform its analysis and recommendations.
The steering group published its interim report on 9 July, providing an update on its work to date, including an evidence pack and a summary of the Call for Evidence, which received over 38,000 responses.
The steering group is now moving towards designing and testing its recommendations for change, which will be published in a final report in the autumn.
Asked by: Baroness Spielman (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to reform the Personal Independence Payment.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Timms Review, the first ever full review of PIP, was launched to ensure we have a system that supports disabled people to achieve better health, higher living standards and greater in-dependence, including through employment.
As part of this work, the Review is gathering evidence from a wide range of sources, including lived experience, expert insight, existing research and new data, to inform its analysis and recommendations.
The steering group published its interim report on 9 July, providing an update on its work to date, including an evidence pack and a summary of the Call for Evidence, which received over 38,000 responses.
The steering group is now moving towards designing and testing its recommendations for change, which will be published in a final report in the autumn.
Asked by: Baroness Coffey (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the (1) remuneration per day, and (2) total remuneration since appointment, of the (a) non-ministerial co-chairs, and (b) members, of the steering group of the Timms Review of Personal Independence Payment.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Information on the day rate is already available. Members of the Timms Review steering group will be paid at a rate of £300 a day, with an expected time commitment of up to 5 days a month. The Review’s two external co-chairs, who were appointed in October 2025, are paid at a rate of £400 a day, with the same expected time commitment.
The rates per month may vary.