Asked by: Laurence Turner (Labour - Birmingham Northfield)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 19 December 2024 to Question 19420 on Unemployment: Young People, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the ongoing data quality problems with the ONS Labour Force Survey on her Department's ability to monitor progress towards the 80 per cent employment target.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
The independent Office for National Statistics (ONS) are responsible for the LFS, which is an important source of labour market information for the Department. In order to monitor the department's progress towards an 80% employment rate we need a robust Labour Force Survey (LFS). As such, we are engaging regularly with the ONS on these data issues and supporting ONS to improve the quality of the LFS.
The Department for Work and Pensions also continues to make more use of statistics based on administrative data (for example, benefit caseloads or HMRC PAYE data) alongside LFS statistics to form the best labour market view.
The ONS are also working on the Transformed Labour Force Survey to replace the LFS. The Department are working closely with the ONS and other government to ensure it is fit for purpose and provides reliable estimates of labour market trends.
We remain focussed on getting more people into work to grow our economy and improve living standards across all parts of the country.
Asked by: Laurence Turner (Labour - Birmingham Northfield)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in Birmingham Northfield constituency have (a) applied for and (b) been awarded Pension Credit since 29 July 2024.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Data on how many Pension Credit applications we received by the Department between 1 April 2024 and 22 September 2024 was recently published on gov.uk. This data is published at National level. It is not currently possible to provide application data at a sub-national or constituency level. Weekly Pension Credit claims received from 1 April 2024 to 1 September 2024
On 28 October 2024, the Department announced updated Pension Credit applications and award statistics will be published on 28 November 2024. This publication will provide Pension Credit applications and also awards statistics since 1 April 2024, again at national level.
Published Statistics Announcement - Pension Credit Applications and awards November 2024
Asked by: Laurence Turner (Labour - Birmingham Northfield)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 4 September 2024 to Question 3558 on Access to Work Programme, whether applicants who have been assigned a Case Manager can correspond with that Case Manager in writing.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Applicants can correspond with their allocated Access to Work case manager in writing via email once it has been established that communication by email is required as a reasonable adjustment due to the applicant’s disability or health condition.
Asked by: Laurence Turner (Labour - Birmingham Northfield)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether Access to Work applicants can contact that service in writing
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Individuals can apply for Access to Work assistance either online via Gov.UK or by telephone on 0800 121 7479. Once the application is assigned to a Case Manager, the customer is provided with the direct contact details of their personal case manager for the duration of the decision-making process.