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Written Question
Asylum: Epilepsy
Friday 21st April 2023

Asked by: Kirsten Oswald (Scottish National Party - East Renfrewshire)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum applications from people with epilepsy were (a) granted, (b) refused, (c) withdrawn and (d) pending a decision in each year since 2010.

Answered by Robert Jenrick

This data is not held in a reportable format, not routinely published, and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost as it requires a manual search of individual records.

Written Question
Epilepsy: Cannabis
Monday 17th April 2023

Asked by: Rosie Duffield (Labour - Canterbury)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to introduce cannabis treatment on the NHS for people with Dravet Syndrome.

Answered by Will Quince

The licensed cannabis-based medicine Epidyolex is prescribed and routinely funded by the National Health Service for people with Dravet syndrome, Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and tuberous sclerosis complex. This follows approval by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and assessment by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence.

Written Question
Epilepsy: Asylum
Tuesday 28th March 2023

Asked by: Kirsten Oswald (Scottish National Party - East Renfrewshire)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an estimate of the proportion of asylum applicants who have epilepsy.

Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We do not have estimates of the number of asylum applicants with epilepsy in the United Kingdom.

Written Question
Employment: Epilepsy
Tuesday 14th March 2023

Asked by: Kirsten Oswald (Scottish National Party - East Renfrewshire)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he has taken to support people with epilepsy in the workplace.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

A range of Government initiatives are supporting disabled people and people with health conditions, including epilepsy, to start, stay, and succeed in work. These include:

  • Increasing Work Coach support in Jobcentres for people with health conditions receiving Universal Credit or Employment and Support Allowance;
  • Disability Employment Advisers in Jobcentres offering advice and expertise on how to help disabled people and people with health conditions into work;
  • The Work and Health Programme and Intensive Personalised Employment Support, providing tailored and personalised support for participants;
  • Access to Work grants towards extra costs of working beyond standard reasonable adjustments;
  • Disability Confident encouraging employers to think differently about disability and health, and to take positive action to address the issues employees face in the workplace;
  • The Information and Advice Service providing better integrated and tailored guidance on supporting and managing health and disability in the workplace; and
  • Support in partnership between the DWP and the health system, including Employment Advice in NHS Talking Therapies, which combines psychological treatment and employment support for people with mental health conditions.
Written Question
Asylum: Epilepsy
Monday 13th March 2023

Asked by: Kirsten Oswald (Scottish National Party - East Renfrewshire)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of asylum seekers with epilepsy in the UK.

Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We do not have estimates of the number of asylum seekers with epilepsy in the United Kingdom. People seeking asylum can access National Health Service healthcare services.

Written Question
Asylum: Epilepsy
Monday 13th March 2023

Asked by: Kirsten Oswald (Scottish National Party - East Renfrewshire)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the number of asylum seekers with epilepsy in each of the four UK nations.

Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We do not have estimates of the number of asylum seekers with epilepsy in the United Kingdom. People seeking asylum can access National Health Service healthcare services.

Written Question
Asylum: Epilepsy
Monday 13th March 2023

Asked by: Kirsten Oswald (Scottish National Party - East Renfrewshire)

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to support asylum seekers who have epilepsy.

Answered by Helen Whately - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)

We do not have estimates of the number of asylum seekers with epilepsy in the United Kingdom. People seeking asylum can access National Health Service healthcare services.

Written Question
Employment: Epilepsy
Monday 13th March 2023

Asked by: Kirsten Oswald (Scottish National Party - East Renfrewshire)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he has made of the number of people with epilepsy in long-term employment.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

Estimates from the Annual Population Survey (APS) show that there were 177,000 individuals of working-age (16 to 64) in the UK who reported epilepsy as their main long-term health condition in 2021/22 (Employment of disabled people 2022 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) - Table POP003. Of these, approximately 96,000 (55%) were in employment, with 83% (80,000) of those employed for 12 months or more. There is no recognised definition of long-term employment. 12 months or more has been used because this is the length of time used to define long-term unemployment.

Written Question
Personal Independence Payment: Epilepsy
Thursday 9th March 2023

Asked by: Munira Wilson (Liberal Democrat - Twickenham)

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 accuracy of the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) assessment process for people with epilepsy; and how many and what proportion of people with epilepsy successfully appealed an initial assessment for PIP in the latest period for which data is available.

Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)

No such assessment has been made.

Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is intended to act as a contribution towards the extra costs that arise from needs related to a long-term health condition or disability. Entitlement is assessed on the basis of the needs arising from the health condition or disability, rather than the health condition or disability itself.

Decisions are made following consideration of all of the information provided by the claimant, including supporting evidence from their GP or medical specialist, together with an assessment report from a healthcare professional.

For decisions made up to 30th June 2022, where claimants had one of the conditions within the 'Epilepsy' subgroup recorded as their primary condition, there were 9,500 successful appeals, 11% of initial decisions relating to epilepsy.

Please note:

  • Figures are rounded to the nearest 100 and percentages to the nearest percent;
  • Data is based on primary disabling condition as recorded on the PIP computer system. Claimants may often have multiple conditions upon which the decision is based, but only the primary condition is shown in these statistics;
  • The ‘epilepsy’ subgroup contains conditions such as cataplexy, generalised seizures and narcolepsy;”
  • We have provided data for England and Wales (excluding Scotland) in line with the latest published figures on PIP;
  • These figures include initial decisions following assessment for PIP (New Claims and Reassessments) from April 2013 up to 30th June 2022, the latest date for which published data is available;
  • These figures include appeal outcomes up to 30th September 2022, the latest date for which published data is available. Note that more appeals could be made and completed after September 2022, so numbers may change as it can take some time for an appeal to be lodged and then cleared after the initial decision;
  • Successful appeals have been defined as those overturned at tribunal and those lapsed by the DWP;
  • A lapsed appeal is where the DWP changed the decision in the customer’s favour after an appeal was lodged but before it was heard at a tribunal hearing; and
  • The appeal figures will include some decisions which are changed at a mandatory reconsideration, where the claimant continues to appeal for a higher PIP award, which are then changed again at appeal.

Written Question
Railways: Tickets
Wednesday 8th March 2023

Asked by: Steve McCabe (Labour - Birmingham, Selly Oak)

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of discontinuing paper rail tickets on people with epilepsy and who have difficulty using online services.

Answered by Huw Merriman - Minister of State (Department for Transport)

The Plan for Rail set out our ambitions to roll out digital ticketing and we will consider the needs of all users when considering how to move forward with rail ticketing. Passengers should have access to a ticketing system which is user-friendly, where help and advice from a trained representative is available and is accessible to all.