Asked by: Mark Garnier (Conservative - Wyre Forest)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what representations he has received in each of the last three years on sums charged above £20,000 under the Health and Safety Executive's Fee for Intervention scheme.
Answered by Lord Harper
Since the start of the Fee for Intervention scheme the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions has received representations on 2 occasions on sums charged above £20,000. These were dated 12 November and 10 December 2014.
Asked by: Mark Garnier (Conservative - Wyre Forest)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the effect on small and medium-sized enterprises of the Fee for Intervention scheme used by the Health and Safety Executive.
Answered by Lord Harper
In June 2014, an independent review panel was asked to examine the Fee for Intervention (FFI) scheme and its application. As part of that review, the panel were asked to consider the financial impact of the scheme on businesses. The panel took into consideration:
· the range of the values invoiced;
· the number of invoices issued;
· the profile of the sizes of businesses invoiced;
· whether or not invoices were being paid; and,
· how HSE is helping those businesses which may have difficulty in paying.
The panel concluded that FFI ‘had proven effective in achieving the overarching policy aim of shifting the cost of health and safety regulation from the public purse to those businesses that break health and safety laws’. They recognised that a financial burden was created for organisations found to be in material breach; however, the evidence suggested that the majority of invoices are being paid and that HSE is taking a proportionate and supportive approach to those who are in financial difficulty.
Asked by: Mark Garnier (Conservative - Wyre Forest)
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 the performance of Capita on processing medical assessment reports for personal independence payments.
Answered by Mike Penning
The Department's contract with Capita for the delivery of assessments for Personal Independence Payment includes a full set of service level agreements setting out the Department's expectations for service delivery. We are closely monitoring their progress against these and are taking action to drive up performance where this does not meet the required standards.
We are aware that, in many cases, it is taking longer than we would like for claimants to have their assessments with Capita. We are working closely with our supplier to speed up the process for claimants.