Bereavement

Wendy Chamberlain Excerpts

Wednesday 3rd February 2021 Commons Chamber

[Grahame Morris]

I am grateful for that intervention, and I absolutely agree. There are some specific things that we in this House can do and that the Government can do in relation to the bereavement standard.

[Wendy Chamberlain (North East Fife) (LD)]

rose—

[Grahame Morris]

I will give way to the hon. Lady, who also indicated earlier that she would like to intervene.

[Wendy Chamberlain]

I congratulate the hon. Member on securing this debate. Does he agree that although work is being done in the private sector around the bereavement standard and we have the Government’s Tell Us Once service, we are still getting too many clumsy mistakes when we are dealing with grief? I had a constituent who received a letter from the Department for Work and Pensions addressed to his wife to tell her that she was no longer eligible for employment and support allowance because she had died. Does the hon. Member agree that we need to do more?

[Grahame Morris]

I completely agree with that, and I want to develop those arguments.