Asked by: Helen Whately (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what career coaching, career transition, and redeployment support services are available to staff in his Department through centrally provided civil service programmes.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The table below shows the career and redeployment support options available to DWP employees.
The information is based on DWP’s use of the centrally provided Civil Service Learning Frameworks service. The data covers the period from January 2023 to December 2025.
Intervention Title |
APM Chartered Project Professional Coaching (excluding Accreditation Fees) |
Coaching Skills |
Coaching skills for managers |
Coaching skills for managers (for programmes only) |
ILM Level 5 Certificate in Effective Coaching & Mentoring - Includes assessment |
Performance Coaching Skills for Managers in the Government Analytical Service |
Performance Development in Digital, Data and Technology Multi-Disciplinary Teams Using Coaching Models |
Crossing Thresholds - Module 1 - Career goal-setting and planning |
5 must-see TED talks for career professionals |
Analytical Community Career conversations |
Career Conversations |
How to build your career in the Civil Service |
How to build your career in the UK Civil Service |
Navigating Your Career |
The 3 questions every manager struggles with making career development plans |
The 4 questions every manager struggles with making career development plans |
Why you will fail to have a great career |
Coaching and Mentoring |
Coaching ethics reflection questions |
Coaching ethics reflection questions |
Coaching Skills (Blended) |
Coaching skills for managers (Blended) |
Coaching skills for Managers (for DEFRA only) |
Diploma in Coaching Supervision - Professional Accreditation (Including assessment) |
Executive Coach coaching - Bespoke |
Executive Coach coaching - Package 2 |
Executive Coach coaching - Package 3 |
Executive Coach coaching - Package 4 |
Executive Coach coaching - Package 5 |
ILM Level 5 Certificate in Effective Coaching and Mentoring |
ILM Level 5 Certificate in Effective Coaching and Mentoring (includes assignments) |
ILM Level 5 Certificate in Effective Coaching and Mentoring (includes exam) |
Premier Executive Coach coaching - Bespoke |
Premier Executive Coach coaching - Package 2 |
Premier Executive Coach coaching - Package 3 |
Premier Executive Coach coaching - Package 4 |
Senior Executive Coach coaching - Bespoke |
Senior Executive Coach coaching - Package 2 |
Senior Executive Coach coaching - Package 3 |
Senior Executive Coach coaching - Package 4 |
Senior Executive Coach coaching - Package 5 |
Asked by: Helen Whately (Conservative - Faversham and Mid Kent)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to verify the ongoing residency of non-UK national claimants who have been absent from the UK for more than a month.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department uses the Habitual Residence Test (HRT) for income-related benefits, such as Universal Credit, to assess whether someone has a legal right to be here and whether they are factually resident in the UK. For an individual to be factually habitually resident they must have been present in the UK for an appreciable period, usually between one and three months, and have a settled intention to remain.
Asked by: Mohammad Yasin (Labour - Bedford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average response time is for correspondence from members of the public and from Members of Parliament acting on behalf of their constituents; what targets are in place for responding to correspondence; and what steps the Department is taking to ensure that enquiries submitted via MPs’ offices are acknowledged and replied to promptly.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
MP enquiries continue to be treated as a matter of high priority. There is clear guidance avail-able to all staff regarding the expected timeframe for responding to enquiries from MPs, which is accessible via the Department’s intranet.
The Department for Work and Pensions aims to respond to MP enquiries within 15 working days. Where this is not feasible, such as in complex cases, the Department remains committed to providing a response at the earliest opportunity.
Higher volumes of MP enquiries combined with a rise in more complex complaints, which take longer to investigate, has caused some delays with our responses. We are in the process of recruiting more complaint handlers to reduce our response times.
Data on responses to correspondence from MPs is regularly published and can be found here:
Data on responses to correspondence from MPs and peers - GOV.UK
Asked by: Simon Opher (Labour - Stroud)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions he has had with The Pensions Regulator on what estimate it has made of how many and what proportion of UK pension scheme assets invested in (a) thermal coal-fired and (b) any other fossil fuel-fired power generation capacity; what assessment it has made of the potential impact of using UK pensions funds for expanding the use of fossil fuel on the markets of (i) the UK, (ii) Europe and (iii) any other country; and what estimate it has made of the value of UK pension funds invested in fossil fuels that are at risk of becoming stranded.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has not produced such estimates. As part of its supervision and to assist in understanding the link between performance and asset allocation, TPR now gets access to investment data from workplace pension schemes – including increased transparency on scheme decision-making, as well as probing investment governance standards.
Occupational pension schemes are required to set out how they consider financially material environmental, social and governance factors in their Statements of Investment Principles and to report annually on implementation. Larger schemes must also disclose their climate related risks and opportunities in line with the Task Force on Climate related Financial Disclosures framework. A 2024 TPR review found that more than 60% of sampled schemes had set a net zero goal for 2050 or earlier. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is currently undertaking a Post Implementation Review of the TCFD regime. We will report our findings this year.
In parallel, Government is working on the adoption of UK Sustainability Reporting Standards aligned with international standards and on mandating climate transition plans. TPR’s Transition Plan Working Group, which includes representatives from across the pensions industry, will report to the DWP in the spring. These initiatives will continue to strengthen transparency around scheme exposures to climate related risks and support the UK’s net-zero goals and broader green agenda.
Asked by: Rushanara Ali (Labour - Bethnal Green and Stepney)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Minister for Pensions' oral contribution during the Report Stage of the Pension Schemes Bill on 3 December 2025, Official Report, column 1043, whether the proposed statutory guidance on fiduciary duties and subsequent amendments to it will be subject to the negative or affirmative procedure for statutory instruments.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Government has set out its intention to develop statutory guidance for the trust-based private pensions sector. The proposed guidance intends to clarify how trustees can interpret and apply their existing duties, particularly when considering wider or longer-term factors in investment decision-making. Government is developing this guidance in partnership with the pensions sector and will consult on the draft guidance.
Further details including the legislation to underpin strategy guidance will be published in due course.
Asked by: Rushanara Ali (Labour - Bethnal Green and Stepney)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, in relation to the statutory guidance on fiduciary duties announced during Report stage of the Pension Schemes Bill on 3 December 2025, when he intends to table this amendment to the Bill; whether he will consult on the guidance; and when he plans for the guidance to take effect.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
Government has set out its intention to develop statutory guidance for the trust-based private pensions sector. The proposed guidance intends to clarify how trustees can interpret and apply their existing duties, particularly when considering wider or longer-term factors in investment decision-making. Government is developing this guidance in partnership with the pensions sector and will consult on the draft guidance.
Further details including the legislation to underpin strategy guidance will be published in due course.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of statutory maternity pay rates that do not allow parents to receive 30 hours of free childcare on the ability of those parents to access childcare; and what steps he is taking to ensure that parents on statutory maternity pay can access childcare support while on maternity leave.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The 30 hours free childcare entitlement aims to support parents to return to work or to take on more hours if they wish. To be eligible, each working parent in a household must expect to earn the equivalent of 16 hours a week at National Minimum/Living Wage (£195 per week/£10,158 per year for those over 21 in 2025-2026), and less than £100,000 adjusted net income per year. The minimum income threshold rises in line with National Minimum Wage increases at the beginning of the financial year.
Eligibility is based on expected income for the next 3 months following a parent’s declaration. To ensure parents continue to meet the income criteria for the entitlement, it is right that parents confirm they still meet the income threshold.
There is an exception for parents on parental leave or in receipt of statutory pay who are applying for an older child, not the subject of the parental leave. They can apply online at GOV.UK. For parents who are applying for the child that is the subject of their current parental leave, their return-to-work date will affect when they can apply and take up their free childcare place.
The Government is committed to making life better for families and has committed to review the parental leave and pay system. All current and upcoming parental leave and pay entitlements are in scope of the Parental Leave and Pay Review, including Statutory Maternity Pay.
Asked by: Lee Dillon (Liberal Democrat - Newbury)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions he has had with small businesses on the apprenticeship system.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
This Government is transforming the apprenticeships levy into a new growth and skills levy, which will deliver greater flexibility to employers and learners in England and support the industrial strategy. We recognise the importance of ensuring that small and medium sized (SME) employers can benefit from these reforms and continue to access apprenticeships.
The department engages regularly with employers and their representative organisations, including small businesses, to inform the ongoing development of the growth and skills levy. This includes regular sessions to explore how to simplify systems and processes as well as engagement with employers following the Budget on delivery of the next phase of the growth and skills levy.
Skills England also works closely with employers, training providers, unions and other key partners to identify priority skills gaps, helping ensure that the growth and skills levy delivers value for money, meets the needs of business and helps kick-start economic growth.
To ensure its work is shaped by real business experience, Skills England maintains regular dialogue with the B5 group of major employer organisations, including the Federation of Small Businesses. It also has a dedicated SME sponsor on its board and an executive team actively engaging SMEs across the country, ensuring smaller firms have a strong voice in shaping the skills system.
Asked by: Jo Platt (Labour (Co-op) - Leigh and Atherton)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of making injury-related pension enhancement and compensation elements protected within divorce settlements.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
People may be able to access a workplace or private pension earlier than the scheme’s normal minimum pension age due to ill health, subject to the rules of the individual scheme. These rules vary, and it is for schemes to determine the conditions under which benefits can be paid before the normal pension age and/or on enhanced terms.
Where an ill health pension is paid from an arrangement that meets the legal definition of an occupational pension scheme, it is generally a shareable asset in the event of a divorce. This applies even where the pension has been brought into payment early for ill health reasons.
There is a specific exception in legislation for benefits that arise solely due to disablement, or death resulting from an accident suffered by a person that occurs during their pensionable service. These rights are not shareable on divorce.
The division of assets in divorce proceedings is a matter for family courts, which make decisions based on the law of the country in which the divorce takes place. In England and Wales, this falls under the Matrimonial Causes Act 1973, for which responsibility rests with the Ministry of Justice.
Asked by: Susan Murray (Liberal Democrat - Mid Dunbartonshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what outcome measures will be used to assess the first phase of the Job Guarantee rollout, and when the Department plans to publish the results.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
As a part of our recent publication on the Jobs Guarantee, the department has published a draft Grant Funding Agreement (GFA) which outlines expected outcome measures that will be used to assess grants administered under phase one of the scheme.
Schedule 4, Part B of this draft GFA outlines the expected outputs and outcomes that may be assessed in Phase One of the scheme. Final outputs and outcomes will form part of final grant funding agreements made with successful grant applicants.
We will monitor performance throughout the first phase to inform the delivery of the national roll out later in 2026.