Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how her Department plans to (a) work and (b) share data with the BBC to determine who will qualify for free TV licences.
Answered by Guy Opperman
DCMS and DWP officials are in regular contact regarding the BBC’s decision on the future of the over 75’s licence fee concession. My officials have also had several meetings with the BBC to discuss their decision and further meetings are planned.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she has been taken to improve the process for (a) personal independence payment and (b) disability living allowance assessments for people with long-term genetic conditions.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson
The Personal Independence Payment (PIP) assessment is designed to treat all health conditions and impairments fairly. PIP and Disability Living Allowance (DLA) awards (with the exception of claims made under special rules for the terminally ill) are determined on the basis of the needs arising from a long-term health condition or disability and not the health condition or disability itself. 31% of those on PIP receive the highest level of support, compared to 15% of DLA’s working-age claimants and 39% of reassessment claimants are getting a higher award on PIP compared to when they were on DLA.
I can assure you however that we have considered the needs of people with long-term genetic conditions in developing the assessment. We consulted with a group of independent specialists in health, social care and disability, including representatives from Radar (who subsequently merged to become Disability Rights UK) and Equality 2025.
Both Assessment Providers have an ongoing programme of regular engagement with organisations representing disabled people discussing many aspects of Personal Independence Payment. These organisations have also developed reports and briefings on specific conditions to inform both providers' training. There will be a continuing programme of professional development for assessors, monitored by the Department, and we expect this level of engagement to continue.
We remain committed to providing support to disabled people, to better enable them to lead full, active, and independent lives.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she has taken to improve the process for (a) personal independence payment and (b) disability living allowance assessments for people with fluctuating conditions.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson
We have designed Personal Independence Payment (PIP) to replace Disability Living Allowance (DLA) for working age claimants to reflect a modern understanding of disability and treat all conditions fairly. PIP is more dynamic in responding to changes in a person’s needs compared to DLA for working age recipients, where over 70% had an indefinite award with little prospect of a review. DLA focus however has shifted to provide better support for disabled children under the age of 16, with continuous improvements being introduced.
The PIP assessment is designed to accurately reflect the impact of variations in an individual's level of impairment. The criteria consider an individual’s ability over a 12-month period, ensuring that fluctuations are taken into account. Key to the benefit is a more objective assessment, which allows us to accurately and consistently assess individuals’ needs.
It remains a fundamental principle that the assessment should not just consider whether an individual can complete an activity, but the manner in which they can do it. In March 2013, the Government made changes in the Regulations to make clear that consideration must be given to whether individuals can complete the assessment activities “safely, to an acceptable standard, repeatedly and in a reasonable time period”.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment the Government has made of trends in the level of employment since June 2016.
Answered by Lord Sharma
The latest available data, released by the Office for National Statistics on 19 March 2019, shows:
To note: the statistics above are the headline statistics used by ONS: the level of employment covers the 16+ age group; the rate of employment covers the 16-64 age group.
The trends for the same period are shown in the table below:
Month | Employment level | Employment rate |
Mar-May 2016 | 31,712 | 74.4 |
Apr-Jun 2016 | 31,747 | 74.4 |
May-Jul 2016 | 31,779 | 74.5 |
Jun-Aug 2016 | 31,811 | 74.5 |
Jul-Sep 2016 | 31,810 | 74.4 |
Aug-Oct 2016 | 31,794 | 74.4 |
Sep-Nov 2016 | 31,808 | 74.4 |
Oct-Dec 2016 | 31,845 | 74.6 |
Nov-Jan 2017 | 31,847 | 74.5 |
Dec-Feb 2017 | 31,860 | 74.6 |
Jan-Mar 2017 | 31,946 | 74.8 |
Feb-Apr 2017 | 31,956 | 74.8 |
Mar-May 2017 | 32,010 | 74.9 |
Apr-Jun 2017 | 32,065 | 75.1 |
May-Jul 2017 | 32,133 | 75.3 |
Jun-Aug 2017 | 32,104 | 75.1 |
Jul-Sep 2017 | 32,063 | 75.0 |
Aug-Oct 2017 | 32,094 | 75.1 |
Sep-Nov 2017 | 32,213 | 75.3 |
Oct-Dec 2017 | 32,154 | 75.2 |
Nov-Jan 2018 | 32,241 | 75.3 |
Dec-Feb 2018 | 32,264 | 75.4 |
Jan-Mar 2018 | 32,343 | 75.6 |
Feb-Apr 2018 | 32,389 | 75.6 |
Mar-May 2018 | 32,395 | 75.6 |
Apr-Jun 2018 | 32,386 | 75.5 |
May-Jul 2018 | 32,408 | 75.5 |
Jun-Aug 2018 | 32,410 | 75.6 |
Jul-Sep 2018 | 32,431 | 75.6 |
Aug-Oct 2018 | 32,492 | 75.7 |
Sep-Nov 2018 | 32,542 | 75.8 |
Oct-Dec 2018 | 32,597 | 75.8 |
Nov-Jan 2019 (Latest available) | 32,714 | 76.1 |
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the methodology and data sources set out in his Department's paper, Benefit claims by EEA nationals, published in November 2015, how many individuals recorded in government computer systems who were nationals of another EEA member country at time of registration for a national insurance number and are recorded as having arrived in 2004-05 using the earlier of arrival date and NINO registration date have paid PAYE income tax in each year from 2005 to 2015.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson
The information requested is not available in a collated format and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the methodology and data sources set out in his Department's paper, Benefit claims by EEA nationals, published in November 2015, how many individuals recorded in government computer systems who were nationals of another EEA member country at time of registration for a national insurance number and are recorded as having arrived in 2004-05 using the earlier of arrival date and NINO registration date have registered any form of activity in the relevant systems, including payments of other tax or tax in respect of self-employment, in each year from 2005 to 2015.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson
The information requested is not available.
Asked by: David Davis (Conservative - Goole and Pocklington)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the methodology and data sources set out in his Department's paper, Benefit claims by EEA nationals, published in November 2015, how many individuals recorded in government computer systems who were nationals of another EEA member country at time of registration for a national insurance number and are recorded as having arrived in 2004-05 using the earlier of arrival date and NINO registration date have paid national insurance contributions in each year from 2005 to 2015.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson
The information requested is not available.