Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if they will make it their policy to not provide (a) translation and (b) interpretation for speakers of non-UK languages for services provided by their Department.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
DWP has a statutory duty to provide language services to its customers in line with the Equality Act. The aim of the service is to provide spoken and written translation services for staff and customers who are deaf, hard of hearing or do not speak English as a first language in order to access DWP services. Language service needs and spend are assessed to ensure these services offer good value for money for taxpayers while maintaining high standards of service delivery. DWP has no plans to move away from this statutory duty.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
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 increase (a) employment and (b) apprenticeships for young people in Great Yarmouth constituency
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department understands the negative effects of unemployment can be particularly pronounced for young people and can have longstanding implications on their future earnings potential and life chances.
That is why as part of our plan to Get Britain Working, we will launch a new Youth Guarantee for all young people aged 18-21 in England to ensure that they can access quality training opportunities, an apprenticeship or help to find work. The Youth Guarantee will build upon and enhance existing entitlements and provisions with the aim of tackling the rising number of young people who are not participating in education, employment or training.
DWP currently provides young people aged 16-24 with labour market support through an extensive range of interventions at a national and local level. This includes flexible provision driven by local need, nationwide employment programmes and support delivered by work coaches based in our Jobcentres and in local communities working alongside partners.
For example, In Great Yarmouth, Jobcentre Work Coaches refer 16- to 24-year-olds to the Mason Trust's 'Step Forward' programme for employability support, including CV drafting, confidence building, and interview preparation. They also refer 16- to 19-year-olds in Nelson Ward to the Matthew Project's 'On Track' programme, offering 1:1 coaching and community engagement for those NEET or at risk. Jobcentres host regular Job Fairs and Provider Events, showcasing employment and training opportunities, including local apprenticeships, with around 30 employers participating.
Apprenticeships are a core part of the government’s skills agenda and a route to employment, open to everyone aged 16+, from career starters to those looking to upskill or retrain them. Work coaches nationwide, including Great Yarmouth, promote apprenticeships as a career path, and DWP employer-facing teams encourage businesses to develop suitable apprenticeship opportunities for customers.
The Government is reforming the apprenticeships to be more flexible and aligned to the industrial strategy. The Department for Education is working to introduce new foundation and shorter apprenticeships for young people in targeted sectors. These will help more people gain high-quality skills, fuel innovation in businesses across the country, and provide high-quality entry pathways for young people.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate her Department has made of the number of non-UK nationals who are in receipt of (a) Universal Credit and (b) other welfare payments on 22 April 2025, broken down by nationality.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Non-UK / Irish citizens can only access benefits like Universal Credit if they have an immigration status that provides recourse to public funds. Those without immigration status or with a no recourse to public funds condition on their status are not entitled. An individual’s specific nationality is not relevant to their claim.
The Department is exploring the feasibility of developing suitable statistics related to the immigration status of non-UK / Irish Universal Credit customers.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether their Department plans to amend its policies on access to (a) toilets, (b) changing facilities and (c) other single-sex spaces in (i) Departmental buildings and (ii) other buildings within their Department’s remit following the Supreme Court judgement in the case of For Women Scotland v The Scottish Ministers of 16 April 2025.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Supreme Court ruling made it clear that the provision of single-sex spaces is on the basis of biological sex. Providers should note and follow the ruling.
It is important that we ensure dignity and respect for all. Trans people should have access to services they need but in keeping with the ruling.
The Equality & Human Rights Commission (EHRC), as Britain’s Equalities watchdog, is developing updated guidance to support service providers. Ministers will consider the EHRC’s updated draft once they have submitted it following further work in light of this ruling.
The Government is considering the implications of the Court’s judgment, including what this means for Government buildings.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether benefit fraud statistics are disaggregated by (a) nationality and (b) immigration status.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Monetary Value of Fraud and Error Statistics are not disaggregated by nationality and immigration status.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what (a) religious and (b) cultural holidays are observed by their Department.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The UK Civil Service formally observes only the government-set bank holidays.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people claiming Universal Credit received fit notes in 2024.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The number of people on Universal Credit in Great Britain who submitted an accepted fit note to the Department from January 2024 to September 2024 is 805,890.
Notes:
Numbers are rounded to 10.
Statistics have been provided to September 2024 in line with latest published statistics on fit notes.
Although most will have submitted Statements of Fitness for Work (fit notes), other forms of medical evidence that the Department accepts (e.g. hospital discharge letters) will be included in the totals.
Data was taken from Universal Credit analytical systems but results have not been quality assured to Official Statistics publication standard.
The Department regularly publishes Universal Credit Health Journey caseload statistics on Stat-Xplore including the monthly number of people on UC Health with a current fit-note.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of interviews for the access to work scheme took place (a) remotely and (b) in person in 2024.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Customers applying for support from Access to Work can submit an online or written application. Interviews are only conducted for those customers requiring an assessment of their needs through one of our Holistic Assessment Providers. Customers are offered the choice of a virtual or face-to-face interview. In 2024, around 16,180 workplace assessments were held remotely and around 2,380 were held in person.
Please note:
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of conducting a cost-benefit analysis of the Access to Work scheme.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department has not assessed the potential merits of conducting a cost-benefit analysis of the Access to Work scheme and currently does not have plans to do so.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the cost to the public purse was of Universal Credit payments made to foreign nationals in 2024.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost. The Department is exploring the feasibility of developing suitable official statistics related to the immigration status of non-UK / Irish Universal Credit customers.