Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent evaluation he has undertaken of the performance of the firms undertaking personal independence payment evaluations on behalf of his Department.

The Department's contracts with Capita and Atos Healthcare for the delivery of assessments for Personal Independence Payment include 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 and Atos Healthcare. To ensure they deliver we are working closely with our suppliers to speed up the process for claimants.