Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether a new assessment will be introduced for Personal Independence Payment to take account of the end of the work capability assessment.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
Transforming Support: The Health and Disability White Paper announced that we will legislate to remove the Work Capability Assessment (WCA) so that in future there will only be one health and disability assessment, the PIP assessment.
This will remove the need to be found to have limited capability for work and limited capability to prepare for work to receive additional income-related support for a disability or health condition, giving people confidence that they will receive support, for as long as it is needed, regardless of whether they are working.
In today’s benefits system some people that receive the Universal Credit health element as a result of being determined to have Limited Capability for Work and Work-Related Activity do not receive Personal Independence Payment. This is also the case for some people that are in the Employment and Support Allowance Support Group.
For this group, we will carefully consider whether they meet the PIP assessment and eligibility criteria. As we develop our reform proposals, we will consider how disabled people and people with health conditions who need additional financial support may receive it.
Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate his Department has made of the cost of running the series of regular disability surveys as set out in National Disability Strategy published in July 2021.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The 2021 National Disability Strategy set out an ambition to improve the lives of millions of disabled people in the UK. In January 2022, the High Court declared the strategy to be unlawful because the UK Disability Survey, which informed it, was held to be a voluntary consultation that failed to comply with the legal requirements on public consultations. The DWP Secretary of State has been granted permission to appeal from the Court of Appeal.
In order to ensure compliance with the Court’s declaration, we are obliged to pause a limited number of policies which are referred to in the strategy, or are directly connected with it. This policy is not one of the policies we have been obliged to pause.
ONS started work on developing a survey into disabled people’s experiences and barriers in 2022. The cost is estimated at £2.1 million as a start-up figure, followed by an estimated yearly cost of £1.5 million, for which we are seeking funding with a range of partners.
Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent estimate his Department has made of the (a) employment rate (b) unemployment rate and (c) rate of economic inactivity among people of working age who use British Sign Language as their primary language.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
We hold no estimate of the employment rate, unemployment rate, or rate of economic inactivity among working age people who use British Sign Language (BSL) as their primary language.
The Government has a range of initiatives to support disabled people and people with health conditions, including those who use BSL as their primary language, to start, stay and succeed in work. These include:
To tackle rising economic inactivity due to long-term sickness, we announced a wide-reaching package at the Spring Budget to support disabled people and people with health conditions to work. New investment will provide faster access to joined-up work and health support, including for mental health and musculoskeletal conditions, the two leading causes of economic inactivity due to long-term sickness.
Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when his Departments will commence the series of regular disability surveys as set out in the National Disability Strategy published in July 2021.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The 2021 National Disability Strategy set out an ambition to improve the lives of millions of disabled people in the UK. In January 2022, the High Court declared the strategy to be unlawful because the UK Disability Survey, which informed it, was held to be a voluntary consultation that failed to comply with the legal requirements on public consultations. The DWP Secretary of State has been granted permission to appeal from the Court of Appeal.
In order to ensure compliance with the Court’s declaration, we are obliged to pause a limited number of policies which are referred to in the strategy, or are directly connected with it. This policy is not one of the policies we have been obliged to pause.
ONS started work on developing a survey into disabled people’s experiences and barriers in 2022 and to date the following have been completed:
ONS
The Disability Unit:
Further work is being undertaken by ONS on question development and testing, which will then lead to a pilot survey to develop future analytical products.
Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what progress his Department has made on publishing a cross-government harmonised disability data as set out in the National Disability Strategy published in July 2021.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
The 2021 National Disability Strategy set out an ambition to improve the lives of millions of disabled people in the UK. In January 2022, the High Court declared the strategy to be unlawful because the UK Disability Survey, which informed it, was held to be a voluntary consultation that failed to comply with the legal requirements on public consultations. The DWP Secretary of State has been granted permission to appeal from the Court of Appeal.
In order to ensure compliance with the Court’s declaration, we are obliged to pause a limited number of policies which are referred to in the strategy, or are directly connected with it. This policy is not one of the policies we have been obliged to pause.
The Disability Unit continues to work with ONS and statistical teams across Government to encourage wider use of harmonised disability concepts and definitions across departmental data and is working with ONS on the review of disability data harmonised standards to meet user needs and explore potential improvements.
Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department has taken to work with the Equality and Human Rights Commission to ensure that the Equality Act 2010 is enforced in the benefits system.
Answered by Chloe Smith
Since March 2021, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has been corresponding with the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) about the Department’s duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled people pursuant to the Equality Act 2010.
The Department is committed to continuously improving services and delivering in a way that is compassionate and responsive to claimant needs. However, DWP considers it complies with the requirements of the Equality Act 2010 and has not identified any systemic unlawful action.
For that reason, DWP has not reached or entered into a legal agreement with the EHRC and therefore there is no timetable planned for publishing a legally binding commitment.
The Department will continue to work collaboratively with the Commission towards fulfilling shared goals and addressing any of their concerns.
Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what her planned timetable is for publishing a legally binding commitment with the Equality and Human Rights Commission that commits her Department to an action plan to meet the needs of benefit recipients with mental health impairments and learning disabilities.
Answered by Chloe Smith
Since March 2021, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has been corresponding with the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) about the Department’s duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled people pursuant to the Equality Act 2010.
The Department is committed to continuously improving services and delivering in a way that is compassionate and responsive to claimant needs. However, DWP considers it complies with the requirements of the Equality Act 2010 and has not identified any systemic unlawful action.
For that reason, DWP has not reached or entered into a legal agreement with the EHRC and therefore there is no timetable planned for publishing a legally binding commitment.
The Department will continue to work collaboratively with the Commission towards fulfilling shared goals and addressing any of their concerns.
Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking with the Equality and Human Rights Commission to draw up a legally binding agreement to commit to an action plan that meets the needs of benefit recipients with mental health impairments and learning disabilities.
Answered by Chloe Smith
Since March 2021, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has been corresponding with the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) about the Department’s duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled people pursuant to the Equality Act 2010.
The Department is committed to continuously improving services and delivering in a way that is compassionate and responsive to claimant needs. However, DWP considers it complies with the requirements of the Equality Act 2010 and has not identified any systemic unlawful action.
For that reason, DWP has not reached or entered into a legal agreement with the EHRC and therefore there is no timetable planned for publishing a legally binding commitment.
The Department will continue to work collaboratively with the Commission towards fulfilling shared goals and addressing any of their concerns.
Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the access to work scheme, what is the total number of applications that have been (a) awarded the maximum payment cap grant and (b) rejected due to exceeding the payment cap.
Answered by Chloe Smith
The information requested on the total number of applications that were a) awarded the maximum payment cap grant and b) rejected due to exceeding the payment cap, is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate costs.
The latest Access to Work statistics can be found here:
Access to Work statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Asked by: Marion Fellows (Scottish National Party - Motherwell and Wishaw)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the access to work scheme, how many applications have had their processing been delayed (a) in total and (b) for a duration of (i) 0 to 6 months, (ii) 6 to 12 months and (iii) over 12 months.
Answered by Chloe Smith
I am not able to provide information regarding how many applications have had their processing delayed (a) in total and (b) for a duration of (i) 0 to 6 months, (ii) 6 to 12 months and (iii) over 12 months, as we do not hold this data. The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.
Access to Work are currently receiving an increased level of applications for support and are working through all applications to ensure that they are progressed as soon as possible.
For applications where a customer is due to begin a job with a start date within 4 weeks, their case will be prioritised, and contact made as soon as possible.
For renewal applications for on-going support, these are also being prioritised and in the majority of cases, support approved using a new streamlined process.
Access to Work are also recruiting additional staff to meet the increased customer demand.