Asked by: Richard Foord (Liberal Democrat - Honiton and Sidmouth)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent estimate she has made of the cost to the public purse of fraud in relation to (a) Pension Credit and (b) the Winter Fuel Allowance.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department publishes yearly estimates of fraud and error in the benefit system. The latest estimates for Pension Credit are available in section 9: Fraud and error in the benefit system: financial year 2024 to 2025 estimates - GOV.UK.
Estimates of Winter Fuel Payment fraud is not routinely published; more information can be found at the following link: Background Information and Methodology: Fraud and error in the benefit system, Financial Year Ending (FYE) 2025 - GOV.UK
The Department is taking action to reduce incorrectness in all benefits. The Public Authorities (Fraud Error and Recovery) Act 2025 Eligibility Verification Measure requires banks and financial institutions to provide data that will enable the Department to check the accuracy of awards. We are also introducing case reviews in Pension Credit to help ensure customers continue to receive the correct benefit amount.
Asked by: Andrew Snowden (Conservative - Fylde)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department cross-checks identity information with (a) HM Revenue and Customs and (b) other government databases before initiating debt recovery action relating to Universal Credit.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
This department is committed to fairness in debt recovery and will always work with people to ensure that any recovery activity does not cause hardship or is unfairly detrimental. Identity checks are undertaken by DWP at the point a customer makes a benefit claim, and we work closely with other government departments during the claimant journey where necessary.
Asked by: David Chadwick (Liberal Democrat - Brecon, Radnor and Cwm Tawe)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 5 March 2026 to Question 108679 on Universal Credit: Work Capability Assessment, what estimate his Department has made of the reasons for the reduction in the number of Universal Credit Work Capability Assessments completed in December 2025 compared to each of the previous four months; and what steps his Department plans to take to increase capacity.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Work Capability Assessments reduced in December 2025 compared to the previous four months due to fewer working days over Christmas and an increase of staff on annual leave, again due to the festive period.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 28 October 2025 to Question 84673, for what reason the Health and Safety Executive is recorded as having not responded to the Prevention of Future Deaths report concerning the death of Graham Faulkner.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) responded directly to the Coroner’s office by email on 3 July 2024. This response was then resent to the Coroner on 11 March 2026.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much funding his Department plans to provide to the Local Government Association to help support disabled people hold office in local government in (a) 2024-25, (b) 2025-26 and (c) 2026-27.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
It is this government’s ambition to see more disabled people in public office. We have been clear that we will champion disabled people’s rights and work closely with them so that disabled people’s views and voices are at the heart of decision-making.
A new fund is currently being developed to assist with the additional disability-related costs of contesting elected office. More information about the fund will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Tom Morrison (Liberal Democrat - Cheadle)
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 adequacy of Personal Independence Payment assessments in addressing the fluctuating and energy-limiting nature of Myalgic encephalomyelitis.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Myalgic encephalomyelitis or chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a medically recognised condition associated with a range of disabling effects which depend upon the severity of the condition.
All Health Professionals (HPs) receive comprehensive training in disability analysis, including how to assess the impacts of medical conditions on claimant’s day-to-day activities, as well as awareness training in a range of conditions, symptoms and disabilities. HPs have access to a wide range of Core Training and Guidance Material (CTGM). These resources offer detailed clinical and functional information, including the potential risks and limitations of a range of conditions, such as ME/CFS, to support HPs in delivering informed assessments. All core training and guidance materials are quality assured to ensure their accuracy from both a clinical and policy perspective.
In addition, the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) criteria consider an individual’s ability over a 12-month period, ensuring that fluctuations are considered. It is essential for the assessment to accurately reflect the impact of variations in an individual's level of impairment, this is important for all health conditions, not only those which more typically fluctuate. For each activity, if a descriptor applies on more than 50 per cent of the days in the 12-month period, that descriptor should be chosen. In general, HPs should record function over an average year for conditions that fluctuate over months, per week for conditions that fluctuate by the day, and by the day for conditions that vary over a day.
Asked by: Anna Sabine (Liberal Democrat - Frome and East Somerset)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reason the stopping of a state pension is automatic on imprisonment but reinstatement on release is not.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
State Pension and Pension Credit payments are suspended immediately when the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is notified by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) that an individual has entered custody for a criminal offence.
A citizen who has served a criminal offence must inform DWP of their release to enable DWP to reinstate their payments. Upon receiving notification from the citizen, reinstatement of State Pension and Pension Credit is usually completed instantaneously. The timing of their first payment will depend upon their regular payment cycle, which is usually 4-weekly but can be changed to weekly upon request.
Of the c13 million citizens receiving State Pension, around 1,400 citizens per annum are subject to suspension of their payments due to imprisonment. In 2025, there were 1,415 State Pension and Pension Credit related cases suspended.
Asked by: Anna Sabine (Liberal Democrat - Frome and East Somerset)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how long does it take to restore the state pension once a prisoner is released.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
State Pension and Pension Credit payments are suspended immediately when the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is notified by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) that an individual has entered custody for a criminal offence.
A citizen who has served a criminal offence must inform DWP of their release to enable DWP to reinstate their payments. Upon receiving notification from the citizen, reinstatement of State Pension and Pension Credit is usually completed instantaneously. The timing of their first payment will depend upon their regular payment cycle, which is usually 4-weekly but can be changed to weekly upon request.
Of the c13 million citizens receiving State Pension, around 1,400 citizens per annum are subject to suspension of their payments due to imprisonment. In 2025, there were 1,415 State Pension and Pension Credit related cases suspended.
Asked by: Anna Sabine (Liberal Democrat - Frome and East Somerset)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many pensioners are affected by the stopping of the state pension on imprisonment.
Answered by Torsten Bell - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
State Pension and Pension Credit payments are suspended immediately when the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is notified by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) that an individual has entered custody for a criminal offence.
A citizen who has served a criminal offence must inform DWP of their release to enable DWP to reinstate their payments. Upon receiving notification from the citizen, reinstatement of State Pension and Pension Credit is usually completed instantaneously. The timing of their first payment will depend upon their regular payment cycle, which is usually 4-weekly but can be changed to weekly upon request.
Of the c13 million citizens receiving State Pension, around 1,400 citizens per annum are subject to suspension of their payments due to imprisonment. In 2025, there were 1,415 State Pension and Pension Credit related cases suspended.
Asked by: Mike Wood (Conservative - Kingswinford and South Staffordshire)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reason PIP claimants can provide their identity through providing foreign national identity cards.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
To be awarded Personal Independence Payment (PIP), claimants must satisfy the Residence and Presence conditions, a person must:
In some circumstances a European Economic Area (EEA) national, or British or Swiss citizen arriving in the UK, from the EEA or Switzerland may satisfy the past presence test from a date earlier than 104 weeks.
DWP follows government identity verification standards, verifying identities before paying benefits, updating systems, or sharing claimant information. These rules apply to all channels and services, including PIP.
A claimant’s identity can be verified in several ways, including by requesting identification documents. Foreign nationals from EU or European Economic Area (EEA) countries may use their national identity cards as part of the DWP’s identity verification (IDV) process for PIP. These cards are accepted as photographic ID when accompanied by two additional forms of identification.