Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussion he has had with (a) the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, (b) trade unions and (c) employers on the Health and Safety Executive's news report entitled Offshore process isolation failures present major accident hazard risk, published on 17 December 2025.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Energy Division within the Health and Safey Executive (HSE) leads on regulatory activity in the offshore oil and gas sector. As part of their regulatory activity they regularly engage with employers, their representatives, and other government departments. One such forum is the Offshore Major Accident Hazards Advisory Committee (OMAHAC). OMAHAC is a tripartite committee that includes HSE, members who represent regulators, operators and owners and worker representatives. The matters identified in the news report have been discussed in that forum as well as with other relevant stakeholders.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment he has made of trends in the level of compliance with the safety regime amongst duty holders in the offshore oil and gas industry.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) publishes annual statistics in relation to its regulatory activity, which includes data on the offshore oil and gas sector. HSE will use this data alongside its findings from regulatory work and industry engagement to continuously assess its regulatory priorities.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
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 armed forces veterans with service-related health conditions are appropriately identified for additional support under the proposed changes to the Universal Credit health element.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is carefully considering the implications for veterans and their families in the welfare Green Paper consultation, and is actively engaging with Armed Forces groups to ensure that veterans with service-related health conditions are appropriately identified and supported under the proposed changes to the Universal Credit (UC) health element.
As part of welfare reform, the DWP has committed to a dedicated consultation process with Armed Forces stakeholders. This includes direct meetings with service charities and veterans' organizations to assess the potential impact of the changes, particularly on Early Service Leavers and those medically discharged from service
Additionally, the DWP continues to support veterans through the Armed Forces Champions network within Jobcentre Plus. These champions are trained to understand the unique challenges faced by the Armed Forces community and help ensure that veterans receive tailored support, including assistance with benefit claims and employment services
The department also utilises service medical board evidence to streamline the assessment process for veterans applying for Universal Credit, reducing the need for face-to-face assessments where appropriate.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Personal Independence Payment claimants are veterans with service-related health conditions in the latest period for which data is available.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department does not centrally hold data on Personal Independence Payment (PIP) claimants’ previous occupation, so we are not able to determine which claimants are veterans.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will clarify whether people in receipt of legacy benefits who are migrated to Universal Credit through the managed migration process will be treated as new claimants for the purposes of the health-related element changes proposed in the Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department plans to complete migration of ESA claimants to UC by March 2026. As part of this ESA claimants will be migrated to the UC Health Element. To protect any claimants who have not migrated by April 2026 we intend to mirror as closely as possible the changes made in UC in the ESA rates. Changes to the “support component” and the two disability premia (severe and enhanced disability premium rates) will reflect changes to UC LCWRA rates for existing claimants. Including these commensurate measures aims to give fair treatment for all customers moving onto UC from income related ESA, regardless of their point of migration.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many staff in her Department have been (a) affected by, (b) had their employment terminated and (c) had to leave the Department due to workplace visa rules in the last 12 months.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
(a) DWP does not hold this information as people will be affected differently depending on their personal circumstances.
(b) DWP has not terminated employment. Contract end dates are aligned with Home Office right to work dates.
(c) In the last 12 months 15 people have left the DWP at the contract end date in line with their visa expiry date. DWP are unable to confirm how many of these left the department specifically due to workplace visa rules.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many staff in her Department are employed on Skilled Worker Visas.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
DWP currently employs 204 people on a skilled worker visa.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
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 impact of workplace visa rules on staffing levels within her Department.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Whilst the impact of changes to the Skilled Worker Salary threshold, introduced in April 2024, are affecting a very small proportion of staff within the Department, visa expiry and potential options for obtaining a future work visa are specific to individuals’ circumstances and the Home Office legislation which applies at the time that their current visa expires.
As current employees’ Visa expiry dates span several years and not all will be impacted by the changes to the skilled worker salary thresholds, the department does not expect changes to the Skilled Worker salary threshold to negatively impact on service levels.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when she expects the Health and Safety Executive to publish its report into the loss of a crew member on the Liberian flagged drill rig jack up vessel Valaris 121 on 22 January 2023.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Health and Safety Executive Energy Division, having completed their investigation, on 20 November 2024 submitted a report to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service. Once the Procurator Fiscal has reviewed the report and due process has been followed, the factual findings around the incident will be available.
Asked by: Grahame Morris (Labour - Easington)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what information her Department holds on the level of compliance with the Immediate Prohibition Notices issued to (a) SSE Renewables and (b) Petrofac Facilities Management on 6 September 2024 by the Health and Safety Executive for breach of provisions in the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 in relation to the Seagreen offshore wind farm.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Seagreen Wind Energy Limited and Petrofac Facilities Management Limited have both taken appropriate action to comply with the Immediate Prohibition Notices on the provision of trained first aiders and adequate equipment.
Both companies have assured the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) that they are also working to remedy the underlying safety management system failings that led to this situation.