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6 July 2009 : Column 515W—continued
Asbestos
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what guidance her Department issues to (a) employers and (b) employees on risks arising from the presence of asbestos in commercial properties. [283456]
Jonathan Shaw [holding answer 2 July 2009]: The Health and Safety Executive has produced a number of pieces of guidance for employers and employees on asbestos in commercial properties:
Two Approved Codes of Practice; “Work with Materials Containing Asbestos” and “The Management of Asbestos in Non-domestic Premises”.
Two guidance documents for those who manage buildings: “A Comprehensive Guide to Managing Asbestos in Premises'” and “A Short Guide to Managing Asbestos in Premises”. An online guidance tool to help those responsible for managing asbestos in buildings is about to be launched.
Two further documents for employers and employees who work with asbestos such as building maintenance trades in commercial properties: “Introduction to Asbestos Essentials”, and “Asbestos Essentials”.
In addition, a number of free leaflets are available in hard copy and on the HSE website; “Manage Buildings? You Must Manage Asbestos”, the “Duty to Manage Checklist” and 'Guidance for Safety Representatives”. HSE and partner organisations have been campaigning to raise awareness among tradesmen most recently through the Hidden Killer campaign which included radio and press advertising and a campaign leaflet and flyer.
Carer’s Allowance
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether her Department has made an estimate of the effect on the number of carers eligible for carer’s allowance of raising the current earnings threshold for eligibility to (a) £150, (b) £200 and (c) £250 per week. [283191]
Jonathan Shaw: Data limitations and lack of information regarding carers’ eligibility for carer’s allowance mean that we are unable to estimate accurately the effect on the number of eligible carers of extending the earnings limit.
We recognise the importance of supporting carers who want to combine work with caring. However, we also need to maintain a balance between the income of carers on benefits who can combine paid work with caring, and those who cannot.
Departmental Official Visits
Mr. Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many (a) Ministers, (b) consultants for and (c) employees of her Department travelled to Alicante for the launch of the We’re closing in campaign; how many nights of accommodation were paid for from the public purse; and how much this exercise cost. [277053]
Helen Goodman: The launch of the benefit fraud hotline took place on Thursday 25 September 2008. One Minister and two DWP officials travelled to Alicante the previous evening and stayed one night. No consultants were involved in the event. The cost of this exercise was approximately £4,200.00.
Departmental Services
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if she will assess the merits of providing the face-to-face services administered by her Department's agencies in partnership with the post office network. [282583]
Helen Goodman: The Government have now agreed a new contract for the Post office card account with Post Office Ltd. The contract will run through to March 2015, with the option of a two-year extension beyond that. The Government are looking to see whether more of their services can be delivered through post offices and my Department is taking an active part in those discussions. We want to deliver services in the most efficient way, which deliver both value for money and provide the best customer service. And we are always open to ideas about the role that the post office can play in that.
Departmental Telephone Services
John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent representations her Department has made to the Telephone Helplines Association on the inclusion of her Department’s benefit helplines on their industry list; and what estimate she has made of the savings which would result to (a) her Department and (b) service users. [278376]
Jim Knight: My Department believes strongly that calls to its 0800 numbers should be free to mobile phone users as they already are for callers from landlines. Officials from the Department have accordingly approached the Telephone Helplines Association and are now in discussion with mobile telephone operators seeking to secure the Department’s customers a free service when contacting the Department’s 0800 numbers via a mobile phone.
The respective costs and savings will depend on the arrangements entered into by operators and the Department.
Disability Living Allowance
Mr. Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many recipients of disability living allowance have had the mobility component of their allowance amended from the higher rate to the lower rate in the last 12 months. [274378]
Jonathan Shaw: In the year to November 2008, 4,470 disability living allowance recipients were recorded as having higher mobility award in payment which was subsequently reduced to a lower rate mobility award.
Notes:
1. Caseload figures are rounded to the nearest 10.
2. The figure quoted shows the number of people in receipt of an allowance, and excludes people with entitlement where the payment has been suspended, for example if they are in hospital.
3. The number of recipients to have moved from a higher to a lower rate mobility award over the 12 month period was derived by identifying those people on consecutive scans whose mobility rate had changed from higher to lower in each available quarter i.e. November 2007 to February 2008, February 2008 to May 2008, May 2008 to August 2008 and August 2008 to November 2008. This is an approximation and will include, for example, some who leave disability living allowance and make a second successful claim within the quarter at the lower rate, and those on the higher rate whose level of award is reviewed and revised to the lower rate from the start of the claim.
Source:
DWP Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study.
Disability Living Allowance: Tamworth
Mr. Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people claiming the higher rate mobility component of disability living allowance in Tamworth constituency gave a severe visual impairment as a reason for claiming. [282430]
Jonathan Shaw: The available information is in the following table:
| Disability living allowance cases in payment where blindness/visual disorder is recorded as the main disabling condition, November 2008 | |
| Number | |
| Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. From October 2008 the way in which the disabling condition is recorded on the live system changed. Disabling conditions are now recorded as primary and secondary, (previously recorded as disability care and mobility codes). For existing cases a mapping exercise was carried out which assigned disability care code to primary disabling condition and disability mobility code to secondary condition. Information Directorate has updated the methodology used to derive main disabling condition to reflect this change in the live system. The old category D08 (blindness) is now subdivided into a range of more specific condition codes. These are referred to by the over-arching title “Visual Disorder”. 3. The preferred data source for benefit statistics is 100% Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study. However, the 5 per cent. sample data are generally the preferred source for analysis on disabling condition as information is more complete for disabling condition on the 5 per cent. sample (some recipients of disability living allowance who transferred from the attendance allowance system may not have been allocated a specific disabling condition code. This problem can be corrected on the sample data but not on the WPLS data. The number of cases affected is decreasing over time). In this case the WPLS data have been used as some of the caseload figures produced are very small and so would have a high level of statistical variation should the sample data have been used. Source: DWP Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study. | |
Disabled: Discrimination
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 24 June 2009, Official Report, columns 1027-28W, on the Disability Discrimination Act 2005, if she will publish reviews of contractors' compliance with disability discrimination legislation. [283356]
Jonathan Shaw: The Department has no plans to publish reviews of contractors' compliance with disability discrimination legislation.
All DWP welfare to work contracts include detailed terms and conditions relevant to the Disability Discrimination Act 2005. DWP contract management processes are designed to ensure that contractors comply with all statutory and legislative requirements. In addition, external inspection and validation will ensure the quality and accuracy of their activities.
Employment and Support Allowance
Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what assistance for returning to work will be given to existing incapacity benefit claimants who are not in the invest to save pathfinder areas once they have transferred on to the employment and support allowance; [255116]
(2) whether the back-to-work regime for existing incapacity benefit claimants who have transferred on to the employment and support allowance (ESA) will be the same as for new ESA claimants. [255117]
Jonathan Shaw: The Pathways to Work programme was first introduced in pilot areas in October 2003. It has always been available to existing incapacity benefits claimants on a voluntary basis, as has our suite of specialist disability employment provision. In April 2008 Pathways to Work completed its national roll-out and is now accessible by everybody receiving incapacity benefits and Employment and Support Allowance in Great Britain.
Conditionality regimes for existing incapacity benefits and Employment and Support Allowance claimants are set out in the White Paper 'Raising expectations and increasing support: reforming welfare for the future' (Cm 7506).
Upon transfer to Employment and Support Allowance, existing incapacity benefits claimants not in the "invest to save" pathfinder areas will receive:
(i) three mandatory Work Focused Interviews and access to other elements of the Pathways to Work programme, for claimants aged under 50;
(ii) one mandatory Work Focused Interview and access to other elements of Pathways to Work for claimants aged 50 and above; and
(iii) pilots trialing new forms of support for claimants aged 50 and above.
In addition to the above, claimants will continue to have access to the Jobcentre Plus Disability Employment Adviser who can offer advice on the range of specialist disability provision for those with complex disability related barriers to work. A new specialist disability programme will be introduced in October 2010 to replace some of the existing provision.
Nationally, new Employment and Support Allowance claimants will continue to have access to back to work support through Pathways to Work. From late 2010 we will extend to two years the period during which new claimants are required to engage with us through work-focused interviews. In addition Employment and Support Allowance claimants in progression to work pathfinder areas, or personalised employment programme pilots, will be required to undertake work related activity in certain circumstances from 2010.
Claimants placed in the Support Group will not be required to undertake any mandatory activities, although they will be able to volunteer for back-to-work support.
Once disabled people have secured a job or have a firm job offer they may also be eligible for the Access to Work programme which can assist with the costs of support to help them overcome work related obstacles resulting from disability.
John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if her Department will add those in receipt of high care component of Disability Living Allowance to the list of those considered as having limited capability for work for employment and support allowance. [282897]
Jonathan Shaw: Receipt of Disability Living Allowance at any level does not automatically mean that a person will be considered as having limited capability for work for the purposes of Employment and Support Allowance. Entitlement criteria for Employment and Support Allowance are based on functional ability, not on the benefits an individual receives or their diagnosis. Entitlement to Disability Living Allowance depends on a person's care and mobility needs, not their capability for work. Each person is assessed on an individual basis to determine whether their level of functional ability is such that it is unreasonable to require them to work.
Energy Supply: Disclosure of Information
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when her Department expects to begin data-sharing with energy suppliers. [283248]
Angela Eagle: DWP and DECC are working with energy suppliers on the precise details of this project, we are hoping to start operating the scheme by the end of the financial year 2009-10.
Housing Benefit
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when she expects to bring forward proposals to reform the housing benefit regime, as referred to on page 43 of the Building Britain's Future document. [283668]
Helen Goodman: As was set out in the Building Britain’s Future document, we intend to consult on the reform of housing benefit later on this year.
Housing Benefit: Local Housing Allowance
Dr. Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate she has made of the number of housing benefit claimants who have cancelled their benefit immediately prior to making a claim for local housing allowance in the latest period for which figures are available. [281661]
Helen Goodman: The information is not available.
Jobcentre Plus: Standards
Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent guidance her Department has issued to Jobcentre Plus offices on waiting times in jobcentres; and if she will place in the Library a copy of such guidance. [271620]
Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the right hon. Member with the information requested.
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking what recent guidance his Department has issued to Jobcentre Plus offices on waiting times in jobcentres; and if he will place in the Library a copy of such guidance. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
Whilst we have not issued any specific guidance on waiting times, as part of our commitment to service standards, we always try to see customers on time if they have an appointment. To help manage rising business volumes we have implemented a number of related measures. These include speeding-up the recruitment, training and deployment of additional staff; and adopting a first-available personal adviser approach to make more effective use of resources and to minimise waiting times.
Pathways to Work
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what disability impact assessments there have been under provider-led Pathways to Work arrangements in respect of persons with a mental health condition in the last 12 months. [277736]
Jonathan Shaw: A Disability Equality Impact Assessment on Pathways to Work rollout and incapacity benefits reform was published on 9 May 2007.
An externally commissioned impact study into provider-led pathways, reporting in June 2010 will include impact assessments for those with mental health conditions.
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