Asked by: Tania Mathias (Conservative - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reason his Department's guidance on accessible communication formats published on 14 August 2014 does not include email as an accessible format; and what consultation his Department had with disability groups before producing that guidance.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson
The guidance referred to was published before 2010 and moved from the Office for Disability Issues (ODI) website to GOV.UK last August. It was written for government communicators on how to make effective use of accessible communications formats. It was not about specific means of communication, e.g. email, letters etc. This document is due to be reviewed and updated.
Stakeholders groups were involved when the document was originally produced, and will be invited to be part of the review process.
Asked by: Tania Mathias (Conservative - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he is taking to help older unemployed people to retrain.
Answered by Priti Patel - Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs
Jobcentre Plus uses a range of innovative approaches to help older claimants back to work. Training to help unemployed people find work is available to benefit claimants of all ages.
In addition, we have introduced a number of initiatives to support older people including the introduction of Jobcentre Plus Older Claimant Champions and the launch of the work experience and sector based work academy pilots that will support 3,000 claimants. We are trialling career reviews and digital support in two Jobcentre Plus districts.
Asked by: Tania Mathias (Conservative - Twickenham)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether means-testing for the purpose of calculating benefits is calculated using income before or after deductions for pension contributions are made.
Answered by Priti Patel - Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs
For claimants of Jobseeker’s Allowance, Income Support, income-related Employment and Support allowance or Pension Credit, half of any contributions towards an occupational or personal pension scheme are deducted from any income from employed earners’ employment taken into account when calculating entitlement. In the case of self-employed earners, half of all premiums paid into a personal pension scheme are deducted from the claimant’s income taken into account.
For Universal Credit, earned income is only taken into account after allowing for 100% of pension contributions to appropriate schemes. Universal Credit is therefore intended to incentivise more people on a low income to put money aside to save for their later lives.