Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Universal Credit claimants were overpaid cost of living payments in 2025; and what is the total amount of the overpayments identified in 2025.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department publishes fraud and error statistics annually and the data for FYE 2025 can be found here: Fraud and error in the benefit system, Financial Year Ending (FYE) 2025 - GOV.UK.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
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 adequacy of graduate schemes in supporting graduate-level employment.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Graduate schemes are designed and operated by individual employers and are not overseen or monitored by DWP. As such, DWP does not hold a central assessment of the adequacy of these employer‑run schemes.
Although we do not capture data on the adequacy of graduate schemes, the latest published DfE data shoes the unemployment rate for graduates is lower than non-graduates. A link to this data can be found here.
DWP’s role is to support all jobseekers, including graduates, into work through Jobcentre Plus and wider programmes; departments and employers are responsible for the design and evaluation of their own graduate schemes.
Asked by: Danny Beales (Labour - Uxbridge and South Ruislip)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to streamline the process for parents on Universal Credit to claim upfront childcare costs through the Flexible Support Fund.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
DWP is committed to improving its services continuously. The Department is strengthening delivery of Upfront Childcare Costs (UFCCC), so that eligible parents receive timely support when moving into work. As part of this, guidance has been streamlined to ensure agents provide consistent UFCCC support to all eligible claimants.
The application process is being streamlined to make it simpler for work coaches and customers. The service will continue to be reviewed to identify further opportunities for improvement.
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, what steps his Department is taking to help increase the number of young people entering the building and construction sector in the West Midlands.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Government has also been working closely with the Mayor of the West Midlands and local authority leaders on a new £75 million construction skills package over the next three years to help meet rising sector demand. Alongside this, the Secretary of State is supporting the continuation of the successful Construction Gateway programme, new activity linked to the Construction Technical Excellence College led by Dudley College and wider skills initiatives delivered through the West Midlands Combined Authority and regional leaders as part of the West Midlands Works programme.
In the West Midlands, the DWP is undertaking a wide range of activity to help young people move into the building and construction sector. This includes Crown Rail’s Sector-based Work Academy Programmes (SWAPs) which upskill young people for track‑rail roles that link into construction and infrastructure as well as ongoing collaboration with West Midlands-based construction employers on mentoring circles, work experience, apprenticeships and large‑scale initiatives such as the HS2 Hub and the Sports Quarter development.
More generally, this Government is investing in young people’s futures. At the Budget, we announced more than £1.5 billion of investment over the next three years, funding £820 million for the Youth Guarantee to support young people to earn or learn, and an additional £725 million for the Growth and Skills Levy. Further details of the announcement can be found here: https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2025-12-08/hcws1137
Asked by: Baroness Shawcross-Wolfson (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the reasons why the number of child recipients of the Disability Living Allowance is increasing.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
There have been steady increases over the last two decades in the number of children in receipt of Disability Living Allowance (DLAc), from 230,000 in May 2002 to 840,000 in May 2025, excluding Scotland claims. These increases are driven primarily by increases in the number of claimants with learning difficulties (including Autism Spectrum Disorder), hyperkinetic syndrome (including Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) and behavioural disorders which have increased from 48% of the caseload in May 2002 to 83% in May 2025.
Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government, in light of recent evidence of occupational exposure to formaldehyde in NHS workplaces, whether they plan to take any action beyond existing Control of Substances Hazardous to Health requirements and stakeholder engagement, such as updated sector-specific guidance, infrastructure upgrades, and targeted enforcement.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has no current plans to produce sector specific guidance on formaldehyde in NHS workplaces. The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations (2002) (COSHH) (as amended) is a robust and well-established regulatory framework in place to protect workers from the health risks associated with exposure to hazardous substances in the workplace, including formaldehyde. The accompanying Approved Code of Practice (ACOP) and guidance to these regulations gives practical advice on how to comply with the law.
Under COSHH, it is the responsibility of each NHS employer to assess the risk from their work activities involving formaldehyde and to ensure that the exposure of their employees to this hazardous substance is either prevented, or where this is not reasonably practicable, adequately controlled. Where it is not reasonably practicable, it is for the NHS employer to put in place and maintain the protection measures that adequately control the risk from exposure in accordance with the requirements of COSHH. Where controls are in place employers have a duty to ensure they are maintained so that they remain effective and protect workers.
Where HSE receives intelligence suggesting employers are not controlling risks, HSE responds in a proportionate way, which may include inspections or enforcement action if employers are not complying with legal requirements.
Asked by: Sarah Hall (Labour (Co-op) - Warrington South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of State Pension age changes on 1950s-born women in Warrington South constituency.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
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.
Asked by: Josh Babarinde (Liberal Democrat - Eastbourne)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether the Government has produced an impact assessment of the effects of the reforms to Level 7 apprenticeship funding.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government completed an equality impact assessment ahead of making its decision on the changes to level 7 apprenticeship funding.
As set out in the Written Ministerial Statement on 2 June 2025, this decision was informed by a wide range of evidence, including Skills England’s analysis of official apprenticeship statistics and engagement with a wide range of stakeholders.
Skills England’s analysis found that level 7 apprenticeships have a higher proportion of older learners than other apprenticeships, a higher proportion of learners who already hold higher level qualifications, and a significant proportion are less likely to be deprived than those in apprenticeships at lower levels. It also suggested there was unlikely to be a significant or unavoidable fall in the supply of these skills in the long term, post-defunding.
The government's decision on defunding Level 7 apprenticeships for those aged 22 and over, including the full summary of the evidence that informed that decision, is published here: Written Statements - Hansard - UK Parliament
Asked by: Jas Athwal (Labour - Ilford South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the consultation, Government Statistical Service Harmonisation: Assessing user needs for additional response options for the new ethnicity harmonisation standard, published on 28 October 2025, whether his Department plans to make a submission.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department notes the plan by the Office for National Statistics for an updated harmonised standard, which will be applied to our departmental statistics where applicable in due course.
This is an open consultation due to close on 4 February 2026, and the Department provided a response on 28 January 2026.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what specific reasonable adjustments are embedded in the digital benefit application interface to accommodate claimants with learning disabilities; and what percentage of those who failed (1) the identity verification, and (2) the work capability, online application stages in the past 12 months were identified as having a learning disability.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department is committed to ensuring that its digital benefit services, including the Universal Credit online claim, are accessible to all, in line with our duties under the Equality Act 2010. This includes making reasonable adjustments for people with learning disabilities so that they are not placed at a substantial disadvantage when applying for support.
Universal Credit is designed as a modern digital service, with the online application structured in clear steps and using plain English, informed by user research and feedback. The questions presented are built dynamically based on the information the customer provides, so people only see the screens that are relevant to their circumstances, reducing complexity for those who may find long forms or highly technical language difficult to manage.
An Accessibility Statement link is also available at the bottom of each Universal Credit page. This explains how to access the service if extra support is needed, including how to ask for information in alternative formats or for additional help with managing the digital journey.
Customers who are unable to use the digital service can make a claim by telephone, and where they are unable to attend the jobcentre, a home visit can be arranged to undertake verification. Customers may also give explicit consent for a trusted third party to help manage their claim, or an appointee can be formally appointed to act on their behalf, with these arrangements recorded within the digital service.
The Department keeps the Universal Credit service under regular review and continues to work with stakeholders, disability organisations and people with lived experience to identify further improvements, including for customers with learning disabilities, to ensure that our services remain accessible and responsive to all.
With reference to the statistics requested, these are not readily available based on the requested parameters.