The Work and Pensions Committee publishes the Government response to its two reports on PIP and ESA Assessments. The response has also been produced in Easy read.
Commenting on the Government's response being published today, Rt Hon Frank Field MP, Chair of the Committee, said:
"Recording PIP assessments as standard is a tremendous step forward. The process relies on trust, and our inquiry found it sorely lacking. This move should go a long way to restoring trust and driving up the quality of assessments.
A commitment to improving the gruelling application forms is also very welcome, and clearly the Government has listened to the thousands of claimants who contributed to our work.
But the response falls short in several areas. For example, we think claimants should always receive their assessment reports without having to ask, and we are concerned that the Government lacks the levers to get value for money out of its private contractors.
This response marks the start of another stage in our work on PIP and ESA – we will use House of Commons debates to push the Government to go further in support of disabled people."
The Committee's final report published in February expressed its concerns over assessment reports "riddled with errors and omissions" and that public contract failures had “led to a loss of trust that risks undermining the operation of major disability benefits".
Pervasive lack of trust
Commenting at that time, Committee Chair Rt Hon Frank Field MP said:
"For the majority of claimants the assessments work adequately, but a pervasive lack of trust is undermining its entire operation. In turn, this is translating into untenable human costs to claimants and financial costs to the public purse.
Government cannot, must not, fail to recognise the unprecedented response the Committee had to this inquiry, remarkable for the consistency and clarity of themes that emerged through thousands of individual accounts. No one should have any doubt the process needs urgent change.
Recording the face-to-face assessment would go so far toward increasing transparency and restoring trust it beggars belief that this is not already a routine element of the process.
The resistance from the Department to instituting this is equally bewildering. The cost of providing a record of the assessment is surely nothing compared to the benefits of restoring trust. Those benefits should include far fewer decisions going to appeal – and being overturned there - at considerable legal expense to taxpayers.
The current contracts have not made the system fairer, have not made it more transparent and have not made it more efficient. They are up for review, and market interest appears limp. The existing contractors have consistently failed to meet basic performance standards but other companies are hardly scrambling over each other to take over. The Government should be prepared to take assessments in house."
Key points from Government response
ABC Note: Please find the governments response below: