Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of her Department’s estimate that the lost output due to working age carers caring for working age sick is £37 billion.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
This Government recognises and values the vital contribution made by carers every day in providing significant care and continuity of support to sick and disabled family and friends. Without the support they provide there would be more pressure on formal social care services, whether provided by local authorities or through other routes.
The Casey Commission, announced recently by this government, will start a national conversation about what care and support working age adults, older people, and their families should expect from adult social care, including exploring the needs of unpaid carers. Furthermore, the Government’s plans to reform and modernise the NHS will see reduced waiting times and improved care, helping people to remain in work and economically active. And the Government is reviewing the implementation of the Carer’s Leave Act, which gave employed carers a right to time off work for the first time. We will also explore the benefits of paid leave, while being mindful of the impact of any changes on small employers. Through the Employment Rights Bill, we will make sure that flexible working – which can play such an important role in helping carers balance their work and caring responsibilities - is available to all workers except where it is genuinely not feasible.
With respect to support from DWP, unpaid carers on low incomes can receive support through Universal Credit. This can respond flexibly to variations in earnings and caring responsibilities and includes a carer element worth £2,400 a year for those providing unpaid care of 35 hours a week or more. Full-time carers are also exempt from requirements to seek or prepare for paid work, although they can request employment support if they wish to do so. For those providing unpaid care of less than 35 hours a week, Universal Credit seeks to balance paid work and unpaid care by tailoring the number of hours people are expected to work or search for work to take account of their caring responsibilities. Part-time unpaid carers receive personalised employment support through their Jobcentre Plus work coach. This can include access to skills provision, referral to an employment support programme such as Restart, careers advice, job search support, volunteering opportunities, and access to the Flexible Support Fund to aid job entry.
For those in England and Wales who are providing care of 35 hours or more a week to a disabled or elderly person with care needs, Carer’s Allowance is available. This is subject to a weekly earnings limit, which since 7 April 2025 has been linked to 16 hours work at National Living Wage (NLW) levels. This government has increased the threshold by the biggest amount ever, meaning it is currently £196 a week of net earnings (after allowable costs, including costs related to care), compared to £151 in 2024/25. The increase means that over 60,000 additional people will be able to receive Carer’s Allowance between 2025/26 and 2029/30. This is the largest ever increase in the earnings limit since Carer’s Allowance was introduced in 1976 and is the highest percentage increase since 2001.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
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 the proposals outlined in the (a) Green Paper entitled Pathways to Work and (b) Spring Budget on (i) unpaid carers and (ii) people with caring responsibilities whose disability benefit entitlements may have changed.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Information on the impacts of the Pathways to Work Green Paper will be published in due course, and some information was published alongside the Spring Statement. These publications can be found in ‘Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working Green Paper’.
A further programme of analysis to support development of the proposals in the Green Paper will be developed and undertaken in the coming months.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many unpaid carers concurrently on Personal Independence Payments and Carers Allowance are expected to lose (a) PIP and (b) PIP and Carers Allowance.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department does not hold the data requested.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she has plans to change the classification of military compensation to bring it in line with civil compensation, in the context of what is categorised as a source of income for benefits means testing.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The receipt of War Pensions and Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS) awards is already fully ignored when calculating eligibility for Universal Credit.
This is in line with the treatment of civil compensation payments for personal injury, which are usually in the form of lump sum payments and are disregarded as capital.
Periodic payments of civil compensation (i.e. income) in consequence of a personal injury either ordered by the court or under an agreement are fully disregarded.
The first £10 per week of a War Pension or AFCS award is disregarded in: income-related Employment and Support allowance; income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance; and Income Support. Armed Forces Independence Payments are fully disregarded in these benefits and can also allow the recipient to qualify for an additional disability amount. This contrasts with a benefit like Industrial Injuries Disablement benefit where there is no weekly disregard. Furthermore, these are legacy benefits, in the process of being replaced by Universal Credit, in which War Pensions and AFCS are ignored.
By default, the first £10 per week of a War Pension or Armed Forces Compensation Scheme is disregarded in Housing Benefit. Furthermore, a discretionary scheme allows local authorities to fully disregard them.
In relation to Pension Credit, the first £10 of any War Pension payments or AFCS award made due to injury or disablement is disregarded. Four additions to the War Disablement Pension are completely disregarded: Constant Attendance Allowance; Mobility Supplement; Severe Disablement Occupational Allowance; and dependency increases for anyone other than the applicant or her/his partner.
War Pensions and AFCS awards are a qualifying income for the Savings Credit element of Pension Credit, which is available to those who reached State Pension age before April 2016. Armed Forces Independence Payments are fully disregarded in Pension Credit and can also allow the recipient to qualify for an additional disability amount.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she plans to review the indexation of pensions paid by the Pension Protection Fund.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Pension Protection Fund rules on indexation have been the subject of much discussion. I will continue to consider this issue, and the valuable report of the Work and Pensions Select Committee report from March 2024. The Government will respond fully to its recommendations in the coming months.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she plans to reform the benefit system for young people living in supported accommodation to ensure that the taper rate for Housing Benefit does not disincentivise them from working.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The income taper in Housing Benefit ensures people in work are better off than someone wholly reliant on benefits. The Department acknowledges, however, there is a challenge presented by the interaction between Universal Credit and Housing Benefit for those living in Supported Housing or Temporary Accommodation and receiving their housing support through Housing Benefit. The department will consider the issue carefully in partnership with stakeholders.
Notwithstanding these positive outcomes from work, the Department acknowledges there is a challenge presented by the interaction between Universal Credit and Housing Benefit for those residing in Supported Housing or Temporary Accommodation and receiving their housing support through Housing Benefit. The department will consider the issue carefully in partnership with stakeholders.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she plans to review the rates paid by employers of (a) Statutory Maternity Pay, (b) Statutory Paternity Pay and (c) Statutory Shared Parental Pay for parents of (i) twins and (ii) higher order multiple births.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
We want new mothers to be able to take time away from work in the later stages of their pregnancy and in the months following childbirth, in the interests of their own and their baby’s health and wellbeing. Maternity pay is paid for each pregnancy, not in respect of each child. For paternity pay, it is also paid at the statutory rate, even if you have more than one child, for example twins.
Parental pay is reviewed annually at the discretion of the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions. From April 2025, the rate will increase by September 2024's CPI figure of 1.7%, subject to parliamentary approval, from £184.03 to £187.18 per week.
Parental pay is only one element of the support available for parents. Depending on individual circumstances, additional financial support, for example, Universal Credit, Child Benefit and the Sure Start Maternity Grant (a lump sum payment of £500) may also be available.
The Sure Start Maternity Grant is a grant of £500 to provide help with the costs associated with the expenses of a baby (or babies in the event of a multiple birth) expected, born, adopted, or the subject of a parental or residence order or other similar arrangements if there are no other children under the age of 16 in the claimant’s family. You might be entitled to more than one payment in the event of a multiple birth.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
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 enable people with autism spectrum disorder conditions into employment in Mid Sussex constituency.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We recognise that autistic people face particular barriers to employment, which is reflected in a poor overall employment rate. In our plan to make work pay, we committed to raising awareness of neurodiversity in the workplace.
Our forthcoming employment White Paper considers how to improve employment outcomes and experiences for disabled people and people with health conditions. We are exploring how we can build on the earlier, independent, Buckland Review which was focused more narrowly on autism and employment, to improve understanding and support for all neurodivergent people at work.
We also have a range of specialist initiatives which can provide support to neurodivergent people to get back into work and stay in work, including support from Work Coaches and Disability Employment Advisers in Jobcentres and Access to Work grants.
Employers will also be a large part of our success in this work. Our current support to employers includes a digital information service for employers, and the Disability Confident scheme. We will be considering how to enhance our work with employers in the months ahead.