Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to her Department's Green Paper entitled Pathways to Work, published on 18 May 2025, what estimate has she made of the potential impact of her Department's Green Paper entitled Pathways to Work, published on 18 May 2025, on the number of claimants who will have their housing benefit cut because they have at least one spare room in Northern Ireland in each of the next five years.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
PIP is administered in Northern Ireland by the Department for Communities (DfC). DfC is responsible for producing analysis on how the planned reforms will impact claimants in Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate her Department has made of the number of (a) deaf and (b) disabled people who will be affected by proposed Personal Independence Payment changes in Northern Ireland.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
PIP is administered in Northern Ireland by the Department for Communities (DfC). DfC is responsible for producing analysis on how the planned reforms will impact claimants in Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to her Department's Green Paper entitled Pathways to Work, published on 18 May 2025, what estimate she has made of the number of claimants currently in receipt of contributory Employment and Support Allowance who would transfer to the proposed unemployment insurance.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department is currently consulting on a proposed Unemployment Insurance. The consultation closes on 30 June 2025. No decisions have yet been made about transitioning existing claimants of NS ESA and NS JSA to the proposed Unemployment Insurance and therefore an estimate cannot be provided at this stage. However, a further programme of analysis to support development of the proposals in the Green Paper will be developed and undertaken in the coming months.
Information on the impacts of the Pathways to Work Green Paper has been published here ‘Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working Green Paper’(opens in a new tab). Latest data as of November 2025 shows that there are 750,000 claimants for contributory ESA.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
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 (a) directly invite the views of disabled people and (b) directly engage with stakeholder groups on the Pathway to Work proposals.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
This government strongly values the input of disabled people and representative organisations, and that is why we have brought forward this Green Paper and opened a public consultation. The consultation welcomes all views, and we hope that a wide range of voices will respond before it closes on the 30 June 2025.
We have published a full suite of accessible versions of the Green Paper to ensure that everyone can engage. Our schedule of virtual and in-person public consultation events across the country will further facilitate input and help us to hear from disabled people and stakeholders directly. The events accommodate any reasonable adjustments for individuals who wish to attend, including re-imbursing travel costs and arranging accessible venues and accessibility requirements such as BSL interpreters or stenographers for attendees.
We are continuing to facilitate other ways to involve stakeholders and disabled people in our reforms. In addition to the consultation itself, we will establish ‘collaboration committees’ that bring groups, including disabled people and other experts, together for specific work areas. Our wider review of the PIP assessment, led by myself, will also bring together a range of experts, stakeholders and people with lived experience.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to ensure the consultation events on the Pathway to Work are accessible to people with disabilities.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
This government strongly values the input of disabled people and representative organisations, and that is why we have brought forward this Green Paper and opened a public consultation. The consultation welcomes all views, and we hope that a wide range of voices will respond before it closes on the 30 June 2025.
We have published a full suite of accessible versions of the Green Paper to ensure that everyone can engage. Our schedule of virtual and in-person public consultation events across the country will further facilitate input and help us to hear from disabled people and stakeholders directly. The events accommodate any reasonable adjustments for individuals who wish to attend, including re-imbursing travel costs and arranging accessible venues and accessibility requirements such as BSL interpreters or stenographers for attendees.
We are continuing to facilitate other ways to involve stakeholders and disabled people in our reforms. In addition to the consultation itself, we will establish ‘collaboration committees’ that bring groups, including disabled people and other experts, together for specific work areas. Our wider review of the PIP assessment, led by myself, will also bring together a range of experts, stakeholders and people with lived experience.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department plans to apply for permission to appeal to the Court of Appeal from the Upper Tribunal judgement Secretary of State for Work and Pensions v MJ [2025] UKUT 035 (AAC).
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
In relation to the recent judgment in Secretary of State for Work and Pensions v MJ [2025] UKUT 035 (AAC), the Secretary of State will not be seeking permission to appeal the outcome.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she plans to hold consultation events in Northern Ireland on the Pathways to work Green Paper.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We are committed to putting the views and voices of disabled people and people with health conditions at the heart of everything we do.
In the Green Paper, we have announced that we will set up collaboration committees to develop parts of our reforms further. This will involve bringing together disabled people and other experts with civil servants around specific issues to collaborate, provide ideas, challenge, and input into recommendations.
We intend to run a number of accessible virtual and face-to-face events on the Green Paper to hear from stakeholders, including disabled people and their representative organisations, directly. The Department will be holding a consultation event in Northen Ireland and is working with officials there on the planning stages.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in Northern Ireland will be impacted by changes proposed to the Work Capacity Assessment.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Social security is transferred (devolved) to the Northern Ireland Executive where it is administered by the Department for Communities.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will review the Government's policy on uprating the State Pension for people living overseas.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
There are no plans to review the policy on up-rating the UK State Pensions Overseas.
UK State Pensions are payable worldwide, without regard to nationality, and are only uprated abroad where there is a legal requirement to do so, for example in countries with which we have a reciprocal agreement that provides for up-rating.
The policy on the uprating of UK State Pensions paid overseas is a longstanding one.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the oral evidence provided by the Minister for Pensions to the Work and Pensions Committee on defined benefit pension schemes on 10 January 2024, Session 2023-24, HC 144, what plans she has to review the (a) indexation, (b) 90% compensation cap and (c) potential merits of other changes to the Pension Protection Fund; and whether she plans to consult on potential changes to that Fund during this Parliament.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
I have heard about the problems experienced by Defined Benefit pension scheme members adjusting to an income in retirement which may be less than they were expecting following the insolvency of their employer. I recognise the importance of these issues for members and will consider this further in the coming months.
Pension Protection Fund compensation payments based on benefits accrued on or after 6 April 1997 are increased in line with the Consumer Price Index, capped at 2.5 per cent. Before 6 April 1997, there was no general statutory requirement for defined benefit pensions to be increased when in payment, apart from any Guaranteed Minimum Pension element earned on or after 6 April 1988.
There is no cap to Pension Protection Fund compensation. Compensation is calculated at the date of employer insolvency and, at that date, is initially either 100 per cent of their accrued pension benefits for members over their scheme's normal pension age or 90 per cent of their accrued pension benefits for members below their scheme’s normal pension age.