Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will review the decision to continue the freeze on pensions of overseas pensioners, in particular in nations where there is no reciprocal agreement in place; and what steps he is taking to establish reciprocal agreements where none exist.
Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The policy on up-rating UK State Pensions overseas is longstanding and has been supported by successive Governments for over 70 years.
The UK State Pension is payable worldwide to those who meet the qualifying conditions and is up-rated overseas where there is a legal requirement to do so – for example where there is a reciprocal agreement that provides for up-rating. There are no plans to change this policy.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what data his Department holds on whether the recovery of Employment Support Allowance overpayments from claimants has been waived for mental health reasons in the last two years.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
During the period 1st April 2021 to date, 10 Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) debts were waived on mental health grounds.
The figures relate to legacy ESA and not New Style ESA, eligibility for which is primarily based on a claimant’s National Insurance record.
Overpayment recovery is subject to various legislative limitations and safeguards. Whilst the DWP has an obligation to protect public funds, our policy is to seek recovery without causing undue financial hardship to debtors.
Any claimants struggling with the proposed rate of deductions are encouraged to contact DWP Debt Management to discuss a temporary reduction in their rate of repayment.
In exceptional circumstances, where there are specific and compelling grounds to do so, a waiver can be considered. Full details on this can be found at Chapter 8 of the department’s Benefit Overpayment Recovery Guide:
Benefit overpayment recovery guide - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has provided recent guidance to medical clinicians on the use of SR1 forms for patients following changes to benefit applications under the new special rules for people with terminal illnesses.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The DWP provides guidance to clinicians to support them to provide the SR1 medical evidence form to support their patient at the end of life to make a claim for benefits under the Special Rules for End of Life (SREL). On 3rd April 2023, the DWP updated its clinical guidance on GOV.UK regarding the new SREL eligibility criteria and how to obtain and return an SR1 form. This guidance and a video explaining how to complete the SR1 form can be found at www.gov.uk/dwp/special-rules.
The DWP has worked closely with clinical stakeholders like the Ambitions Partnership for Palliative and End of Life Care and the Royal Colleges; this engagement will continue to raise awareness of the changes to the SREL.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if his Department will made of an assessment of the potential merits of working with the Office for National Statistics to use their experimental analysis articles on the different levels and impacts of inflation between the highest and lowest disposable income households to help decide (a) working age and (b) non-working age benefit payments.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Successive Governments since 1987 have used the relevant price index for the year to September in the conduct of the statutory annual review of State Pension and benefit rates. The Secretary of State currently uses the Consumer Prices Index for this purpose. At the present time there are no plans to change this approach.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will hold discussions with the Health and Safety Executive on the potential merits of including in the reporting process the ability to log when (a) drugs or (b) alcohol were a contributing factor to an accident at work.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR) are made under the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and apply to all sectors and workplaces in Great Britain.
RIDDOR requires responsible persons (usually employers in relation to employees) to report
work-related fatalities and certain injuries, dangerous occurrences, and cases of disease. Reporting requirements are based on the outcome of incidents.
RIDDOR does not require the reporting of immediate or underlying causes, such as whether the use of drugs or alcohol were a contributing factor in a particular incident. Causation of an incident will not necessarily be apparent during the statutory timeframe in which a dutyholder is required to report; that information generally only becomes evident during an investigation, either by the dutyholder or the regulator.
If such information were required as part of the reporting process, it would be difficult to reliably establish direct causation on a case-by-case basis. Having this information reported would be of limited value to the regulator and disproportionate for the responsible person to ascertain.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 11 October 2022 to Question 54580, on Universal Credit, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of facilitating temporary Universal Credit capital allowance extensions in cases where they would prevent the suspension of an individual's Universal Credit award in the period between the sale of one Wheelchair Accessible Vehicle and the purchase of another one, and where the purchase of that new vehicle absorbs all the additional income generated by the sale.
Answered by Guy Opperman - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
Universal Credit is assessed in monthly assessment periods. Ordinarily capital is considered at the end of an assessment period. Therefore, the effect of capital on entitlement would depend on whether or not it was available to the claimant at the relevant time. Using the example given, if a wheelchair accessible vehicle was sold near the beginning of the assessment period and a replacement vehicle purchased before the end of that assessment period, then it is unlikely the proceeds would have any impact on the Universal Credit award, unless it increased the value of capital above the limits described above at the end of the assessment period.
The level at which capital starts to be claimed is above £6000. Entitlement to UC ends where capital is above £16000.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing (a) the number of hours individuals can work whilst receiving carers allowance and (b) increasing flexibility within carers allowance to allow for partial payment alongside paid work.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The weekly Carer’s Allowance earnings limit will increase to £139 a week from April 2023. This means the earnings limit will have increased by more than a third since 2010.
Carer’s Allowance is not payable once net earnings exceed this figure. Carer’s Allowance “work rules” operate on the basis of an earnings limit, rather than hours worked. There are no plans to change this broad approach.
Many carers who are receiving Carer’s Allowance and doing some work will also be receiving Universal Credit. For those receiving Universal Credit, the 55% taper rate and any applicable work allowance will help to ensure that people are better off in work.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of excluding the sale of Wheelchair Accessible Vehicles from Universal Credit income assessments.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
The treatment of capital in any benefit that assists with living expenses is not a straightforward matter.
The current system allows people to continue to receive benefit even though they may have an amount of capital from £6,000 by gradually reducing the level of their entitlement.
The level beyond which capital starts to be considered is £6,000. This is because it is right that there is a point at which people with more substantial capital use these resources to help maintain themselves.
The capital limit above which Universal Credit entitlement ends is £16,000. This strikes a balance between protecting less well-off people and the taxpayer, whilst at the same time recognising the conscientious efforts of people who have built up capital.
This limit also ensures that the help which comes from taxpayers, many of whom are themselves on low incomes and have limited capital, is directed to people who need it most.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that the (a) evidence and (b) definition of in-work support required for a supported employee is clearly outlined to employers who employ people under Access to Work Plus.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
Access to Work Plus is testing whether providing additional support for employers who are willing to do more and flex job roles for employees who need more than standard Access to Work, can help unlock more employment opportunities for disabled people. Access to Work will use its contracted supplier who have suitably qualified assessors to identify the employees in-work support needs and the adaptations the employer has made to the workplace and the job role to accommodate the employee.
Access to Work already provides general advice on workplace adjustments for employers who employ disabled people, however, is unable to provide personalised advice as it is dependent on individual need. The Access to Work holistic assessment builds on this advice and considers the employee’s working environment, including any adjustments the employer has made. The assessment is carried out in the workplace with the employee and the employer present, the assessment will make tailored recommendations for the disabled employee and offer advice for employers on the support they can provide for their employee.
The Access to Work case manager will use the assessments recommendations to determine if the employer satisfies the Access to Work Plus criteria.
To help build employer understanding of Access to Work Plus and the process used to determine eligibility, a series of communications have been developed and shared with a range of stakeholders, including Disability Confident employers and Jobcentre Plus. The reaction to these communications will be monitored to help inform further communication products and amended as necessary.