Asked by: Toby Perkins (Labour - Chesterfield)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average Funeral Expenses Payment was in each year since 2003.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department for Work and Pensions does not produce estimates for the average cost of a funeral.
The average Funeral Expenses Payment (FEP) made in each year is published in the Social Fund Annual Report. Table 1 below provides the average FEP made in each year since 2003/04. Figures are rounded to the nearest £1.
Table 1: Average FEP award, 2003/04 – 2017/18
Year | Average FEP award |
2003/04 | £1,019 |
2004/05 | £1,051 |
2005/06 | £1,081 |
2006/07 | £1,117 |
2007/08 | £1,162 |
2008/09 | £1,194 |
2009/10 | £1,208 |
2010/11 | £1,217 |
2011/12 | £1,241 |
2012/13 | £1,225 |
2013/14 | £1,347 |
2014/15 | £1,375 |
2015/16 | £1,410 |
2016/17 | £1,427 |
2017/18 | £1,461 |
Source: Social Fund Annual Reports 2003/04 – 2016/17, Social Fund Policy Budget and Management Information System
Notes
Asked by: Lord Ouseley (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of concerns expressed by the NSPCC regarding the 60 per cent rise in reports of child neglect over the past five years.
Answered by Lord Nash
The Department’s children in need annual census demonstrates an increase between 2011-12 and 2015-16 of 27% in the number of Child Protection Plans at 31 March with the initial category of neglect as the form of abuse (from 18,220 to 23,150). Over the same period there was an increase of
19 per cent in the number of children in need at 31 March with the primary need of ‘abuse or neglect’ (from 168,270 to 199,720), although this cannot be disaggregated to identify neglect needs only. These figures are in the context of general increases of 17 per cent with regard to Child Protection Plans at 31 March and 7 per cent with regard to children in need at 31 March.
We recognise the great importance of identifying hidden abuse, including in the form of neglect, and continue to fund the NSPCC to deliver the Childline service, with £8 million invested to 2020. We have also delivered a major communications campaign, Together, we can tackle child abuse, to raise awareness and encourage the members of the public to raise concerns. Through our wide-ranging reforms to children’s social care, we are working to ensure all forms of abuse, including neglect, are identified early, with timely and proportionate assessments of individual needs, and the right services provided at the right time to keep children safe.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether Pakistan is a signatory to the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights; whether they consider that the government of Pakistan is fulfilling its duties under Article 18 of that Declaration; what role British aid to Pakistan plays in promoting respect for diversity and difference; and whether they will reconsider their policy of making none of the British aid programme to Pakistan available for the promotion of Article 18 obligations.
Answered by Lord Bates
The UK Government remains firmly committed to promoting and protecting the right to freedom of religion or belief, as set out in Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. We are concerned about reports of abuses against religious minorities in Pakistan. The UK Government strongly condemns the persecution of all minorities, including the targeting of innocent people based on their beliefs. The UK’s concerns are reflected in the latest update to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s annual Human Rights Report, which is publicly available. The UK raises human rights issues and the rights of minorities on a regular basis at the highest levels in Pakistan and we ensure our development assistance targets poor women and men, regardless of race, religion, social background, or nationality. Although DFID does not fund programmes that directly promote Article 18, we do help to foster tolerance and social cohesion between different religious groups through our AAWAZ voice and accountability programme.
Asked by: Emma Lewell-Buck (Labour - South Shields)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of funeral payment decisions were made within his Department's target time in each of the last three years.
Answered by Steve Webb
The following table has been taken from the Social Fund Annual Report for 2012/13 which is the latest available published data and the Social Fund Annual Reports for 2011/12 and 2010/11.
The table shows that the average clearance time for Funeral Payment awards was 14.76 working days against a target of 16 working days in 2012/13, 13.8 working days in 2011/12 and 14.5 working days in 2010/11.
| Funeral Payments | |||||
| Average Actual Clearance Times (AACT) in working days | AACT Achieved | AACT Achieved | % Cleared within AACT Standard | % Cleared within AACT Standard plus 2 days | % Cleared within AACT Standard Plus 5 days |
| 2012/13 | 16 | 14.76 | 65.10% | 74.20% | 83.00% |
| 2011/12 | 16 | 13.8 | * | * | * |
| 2010/11 | 16 | 14.5 | * | * | * |
* denotes data unavailable