Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department has taken to expand the eligibility criteria for the Bereavement Support Payment to include unmarried couples; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Guy Opperman
We intend to take forward a Remedial Order to remove the incompatibilities from the legislation governing Widowed Parent’s Allowance and Bereavement Support Payment by extending these benefits to cohabitees with children. The Order will be laid before the House in due course.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
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 merits of allowing registered healthcare professionals other than GPs to sign statements of Fitness for Work.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson
We recognise that the changing nature of primary care services and the associated workforce means that there are professionals other than GPs who are well placed to have work and health conversations and issue statements of Fitness for Work.
We have assessed the benefits of extending certification to other healthcare professionals by carrying out research and consultation with key stakeholders including professional bodies.
We have also worked closely with our stakeholders to ensure that we have considered a range of options and that any changes to the operation of the fit note will meet the needs of healthcare services, their workforce and their patients.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she has taken to ensure that universal credit claimants know (a) during which months they should note Self-Employment Income Support Scheme income as income in their universal credit diaries and (b) how to record other SEISS information in those diaries.
Answered by Mims Davies - Shadow Minister (Women)
We have provided guidance for claimants, including useful step-by-step process maps, on the Understanding Universal Credit website at https://www.understandinguniversalcredit.gov.uk/employment-and-benefits-support/self-employment/. It is also made very clear in a claimant’s journal that they should report SEISS payments as self-employed income when they are received, as normal, and an additional field in their journal has been provided for claimants to do this easily.
Additionally, internal guidance has been drafted and circulated to ensure our work coaches are aware of how to treat SEISS payments, along with other Coronavirus grants and schemes.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
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 adequacy of the current definition of statutory sick pay for people with endometriosis.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson
Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) provides a minimum level of income for employees when they are sick or incapable of work. For SSP purposes, any periods of sickness which last for four or more days in a row, and are less than 8 weeks apart, are treated as linked and therefore count as one period of sickness. Once waiting days have been served, SSP is paid for all days of work missed because of sickness in any linked periods. The current definition supports employees who have fluctuating conditions who may take frequent, shorter absences from work as part of managing their health condition, such as endometriosis.
The government recently published a consultation in which we sought views on a range of proposals to reform SSP. Reform to SSP forms part of a wider package of proposals which seek to reduce ill-health related job loss and support disabled people and people with health conditions to stay in and thrive in work.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
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 effect of eligibility for statutory sick pay from the fourth day of sickness on people with endometriosis; and if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of paying statutory sick pay from the first day of sickness for people with that condition.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson
Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) provides a minimum level of income for employees when they are sick or incapable of work. It is paid by employers at £95.85 per week for up to 28 weeks in any one period of entitlement.
SSP is designed to balance support for an individual when they are unable to work because of sickness with the costs to employers of providing such support. SSP is paid from the fourth day of sickness for absences not related to COVID-19 to avoid an employer facing the burden of paying for all minor absences. The rules apply to all employees where they meet the eligibility criteria, regardless of the nature of their health condition.
For SSP purposes, periods of sickness for four or more days in a row are known as a Period of Incapacity for Work. Periods of Incapacity for Work are linked and treated as one period of sickness, if the gap between them is not more than eight weeks. Where an employee has two or more linked periods, SSP is paid from the first day in the linked period. This is because waiting days will have been served in the earlier period. The linking rules add protections to both employers, by imposing limits on their liability to make payments, and to employees by not penalising those who suffer from reoccurring health problems, such as endometriosis.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will bring forward proposals to amend the definition of statutory sick pay to ensure that people with endometriosis which can result in intermittent rather than continual symptoms are eligible for that support.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson
Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) provides a minimum level of income for employees when they are sick or incapable of work. For SSP purposes, any periods of sickness which last for four or more days in a row, and are less than 8 weeks apart, are treated as linked and therefore count as one period of sickness. Once waiting days have been served, SSP is paid for all days of work missed because of sickness in any linked periods. The current definition supports employees who have fluctuating conditions who may take frequent, shorter absences from work as part of managing their health condition, such as endometriosis.
The government recently published a consultation in which we sought views on a range of proposals to reform SSP. Reform to SSP forms part of a wider package of proposals which seek to reduce ill-health related job loss and support disabled people and people with health conditions to stay in and thrive in work.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
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 effect of the three year limit in respect of continuous periods of sickness for statutory sick pay on people with endometriosis.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson
Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) is payable for up to 28 weeks per sickness absence. Sickness absences which are less than 8 weeks apart count as the same period of sickness. This supports employees who have fluctuating conditions, such as endometriosis, who may take frequent, shorter absences from work as part of managing their health condition. Individuals will no longer be eligible for SSP after a continuous series of linked periods which lasts more than 3 years. In a new period of sickness, employees are eligible for 28 weeks of SSP.
Where an individual’s SSP entitlement has ended, they may be able to claim Universal Credit and new style Employment and Support Allowance when their SSP ends, depending on individual circumstances.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 3 March 2020 to Question 19986 on social security benefits: endometriosis, what proportion of healthcare professionals employed by the Centre for Health and Disability Assessment have undertaken the learning module on endometriosis as part of their Continuous Professional Development.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson
Currently, while preparing to undertake an assessment, Healthcare Professionals can access a wide range of clinical resources to research any conditions presented. This includes a learning module on chronic pain that contains a section on endometriosis. Current guidance enables Healthcare Professionals to have a satisfactory understanding of endometriosis and how it can affect an individual’s ability to work. Experienced clinicians can also support them in assessing individuals with conditions that they may not be familiar with.
As previously advised, Centre for Health and Disability Assessments (CHDA) plans to develop and deliver a learning module on endometriosis as part of their upcoming Continuous Professional Development schedule. As agreed with the department, this training module is scheduled for delivery in July 2021. Once delivered all Healthcare Professionals will be expected to complete the module as part of their Continuing Medical Education (CME) programme
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will review the guidance provided for disability benefits assessors on how endometriosis can affect an individual’s ability to work.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson
Currently, while preparing to undertake an assessment, Healthcare Professionals can access a wide range of clinical resources to research any conditions presented. This includes a learning module on chronic pain that contains a section on endometriosis. Current guidance enables Healthcare Professionals to have a satisfactory understanding of endometriosis and how it can affect an individual’s ability to work. Experienced clinicians can also support them in assessing individuals with conditions that they may not be familiar with.
As previously advised, Centre for Health and Disability Assessments (CHDA) plans to develop and deliver a learning module on endometriosis as part of their upcoming Continuous Professional Development schedule. As agreed with the department, this training module is scheduled for delivery in July 2021. Once delivered all Healthcare Professionals will be expected to complete the module as part of their Continuing Medical Education (CME) programme
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
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 barriers people with endometriosis face when trying to access (a) personal independence payments and (b) universal credit.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson
Personal Independence Payment (PIP), and the level at which it can be paid, is based on the daily living and mobility needs arising from a long-term health condition or disability, rather than being based on the condition or disability itself. People with endometriosis are able to access PIP in the same way as other people with long-term health conditions or disabilities.
Universal Credit (UC) claimants with endometriosis are able to access UC in the same way as other people with long-term health conditions or disabilities.
A Work Capability Assessment is used to determine someone’s capacity to work or engage in work-related activity, rather than their specific health condition