Written questions by Fox.

What steps his Department is taking to raise awareness of the symptoms of Chiari malformation with NHS practitioners.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has produced guidance on the recognition and referral of suspected neurological conditions, which was last updated in October 2023. This guideline covers the initial assessment of symptoms and signs that might indicate a neurological condition, such as Chiari malformation. It helps non-specialist healthcare professionals to identify people who should be offered referral for specialist investigation.The Royal College of General Practitioners has also produced an e-learning module on the recognition and referral of suspected neurological conditions, to raise awareness of these conditions and their associated symptoms amongst general practitioners.At the national level, there are several initiatives supporting service improvement and better care for patients with neurological conditions such as Chiari malformation, including the Getting It Right First Time Programme for Neurology. NHS England has also established a Neurology Service Transformation Programme, a multi-year, clinically-led programme to develop a new model of integrated care for neurology services.

What estimate she has made of the cost of her Department's campaign to encourage people to apply for Pension Credit.

The Department’s paid marketing activity to promote Pension Credit, which includes radio, national and regional press, paid social media and GP and Post Office screens has been live since 16 September and is ongoing. It is not possible to provide an accurate assessment of the cost of this paid activity until it is concluded.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of her Department's campaign to promote Pension Credit on the number of successful applications.

The latest available data published on the 27 September [Weekly Pension Credit claims received from 1 April 2024 to 22 September 2024 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)] shows that the Department received around 74,400 Pension Credit claims in the 8 weeks since the Winter Fuel Payment announcement on 29 July. This is compared to around 29,500 Pension Credit claims in the 8 weeks preceding the announcement. This represents a 152% increase in Pension Credit claims. Data on the number of successful applications is not currently available.

What estimate she has made of the number of people who will be affected by the change is eligibility criteria for the winter fuel payment in the Bridgwater constituency.

It is estimated that around 19,200 pensioners in Bridgwater Constituency (2024 boundaries) will be impacted by the decision to amend the eligibility criteria for the Winter Fuel Payment. This is based on February 2024 Pension Credit statistics which are available via DWP Stat-Xplore and the Winter Fuel Payment statistics for winter 2023 to 2024 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) which are available via GOV.UK. This estimation is calculated by subtracting the number of people claiming Pension Credit in Bridgwater Constituency from the number of Winter Fuel Payment recipients in Bridgwater Constituency. It is possible to use the Pension Credit statistics, to give a minimum estimate of the number who may be eligible for Winter Fuel Payments. Therefore, the above estimation is essentially the number of Winter Fuel Payment recipients who are not claiming Pension Credit pre-policy change, as an estimate of those who will no longer receive the Winter Fuel Payment. Please note that the above estimation would not take into account any potential increase in Pension Credit take-up that we might see as a result of the Government’s Pension Credit Awareness Campaign. We do not have data on those additional Pension Credit claims by Parliamentary constituencies or Local Authorities. The published Pension Credit figures refer to households, so the number of individuals in respect of whom Pension Credit is paid will be higher (i.e. taking account of households where a claimant has a partner and / or dependents.) In addition, while Pension Credit claimants constitute the majority of those that will be eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment, pensioners who claim other qualifying means-tested benefits will also be eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment. It is not, however, possible to include those on other qualifying means-tested benefits in these figures.

What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to improve employment opportunities for people with disabilities.

Our Get Britain Working plan will support more disabled people and people with health conditions to enter work and stay in it. We will devolve power to local areas to join up work, health and skills support for local people.

What fiscal steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to make efficiency savings in the welfare system.

In the July Statement, the Chancellor set out that all departments will find a 2% saving against their administration budgets so that we can improve the efficiency of the public sector, and prioritise frontline services. This government is also committed to bringing down rates of fraud and error in the welfare system, ensuring support is targeted to those who need it.