Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many new applications have been lodged with the Child Maintenance Service in each of the last five years.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
Information on the number of new 2012 applications that have been lodged with the Child Maintenance Service are published on Table 1 of the Child Maintenance Service Experimental Statistics, which contains data up until November 2016.The Publication can be accessed online at:
Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether it is his Department's policy to assign one caseworker to each individual case at the (a) Child Maintenance Service and (b) Child Support Agency.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
Both CMS and CSA cases are assigned to an individual caseworker in the relevant case owning department within the business as and when action is required on the case. Over time cases move throughout the department depending on what action is required. When a case moves it is then allocated to a caseworker in the relevant part of the business to action accordingly.
Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many complaints have been referred to a senior resolution manager for cases at the Child Maintenance Service as a result of an hon. Member acting on behalf of a constituent in each of the last five years.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
Statistics on the number of complaints received under the Child Maintenance Service are published in the Child Maintenance Service 2012 Scheme - Experimental Statistics.
The data is collected clerically and breakdowns based on personal circumstances of the complainant, such as whether the case was referred to a senior resolution manager for cases at the Child Maintenance Service as a result of an hon. Member acting on behalf of a constituent, is not routinely recorded and could only be provided at a disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 11 January 2017 to Question 58932, on what date his Department will (a) conclude and (b) publish its equality analysis for the proposed jobcentre closures.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
Throughout the development of these proposals, the Department has been mindful of its duties under section 149 of the Equality Act 2010. Consideration of the potential impact on staff and customers has been informed by statistical analysis of population data, local knowledge and consultation.
As we obtain further local, site-specific information we will ensure any issues identified are also taken fully into consideration when the final decisions are made. We intend to complete this work within the next 12 weeks; equality analysis is not generally published separately but it will be used to inform final decisions.
Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment has been made of the effect on the local economy of the proposal to relocate jobs from Cambuslang Jobcentre to Rutherglen Jobcentre.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
We have carefully considered the wider impacts on local communities when developing our proposals for Cambuslang and Rutherglen jobcentres. The economic impact of employment is dispersed beyond the specific location of a workplace and the staff currently based at Cambuslang jobcentre already live in the broader area around the site. While we expect all these staff to move to Rutherglen jobcentre, it is unlikely that a significant proportion of them will also move their place of residence.
Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, by what criteria Cambuslang Jobcentre has been selected for closure.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The Department has sought to merge together multiple sites in close proximity. Merging the staff and services from Cambuslang into Rutherglen Jobcentre maximises use of space and offers good value for money.
Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether any compulsory redundancies will result from the closure of Cambuslang Jobcentre.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The Department for Work and Pensions is now consulting with colleagues at Cambuslang Jobcentre. We are seeking to relocate, or offer alternative roles, to all employees affected by the proposed closure and we anticipate that we will be able to redeploy everyone to Rutherglen Jobcentre.
It is important to stress that this is a proposed closure: we will make a final decision informed by the consultation process with our colleagues. We are not therefore in a position to comment on the potential for redundancy.
Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many claimants are currently served by (a) Cambuslang and (b) Rutherglen Jobcentres; and how many such claimants are (i) disabled and (ii) women.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
The claimant count for Cambuslang is 410 of which 130 are female. The claimant count for Rutherglen is 465 of which 135 are female. This information is available from the following link: https://www.nomisweb.co.uk. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 5.
Guidance for users is available at:
https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/home/newuser.asp
These are UC and JSA claimants served by Cambuslang and Rutherglen Jobcentres. We are unable to identify disabled claimants, or provide exact figures of ESA and IS claimants, however the purpose of the equality analysis is to help establish how many people are likely to be affected by the proposal.
Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the expected costs are of the proposal to relocate staff and resources from Cambuslang Jobcentre.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
We are not yet in a position to share an estimated figure due to commercial confidentiality pending completion of legal processes and staff consultations. We expect to make savings for the tax payer from merging offices by reducing running costs and making best use of office space available.
Asked by: Margaret Ferrier (Independent - Rutherglen and Hamilton West)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people using Cambuslang Jobcentre have been informed in writing of the closure of that jobcentre.
Answered by Damian Hinds - Minister of State (Education)
It is important to remember that the announcements made in relation to the Written Statement of 26 January 2017 are proposals at this stage and not final decisions. Once a final decision is made, claimants will be informed at an appropriate time prior to any office move.