Written questions by Braverman.

Whether his Department plans to reform the Personal Independence Payment reassessment process for people with (a) Type 1 diabetes and (b) other lifelong conditions.

Other than for claims made under the special rules for people nearing the end of their life, all claims to PIP are treated in the same way. Entitlement to PIP is assessed on the basis of the needs arising from a health condition or disability, rather than the health condition or disability itself. Individuals can be affected in different ways by the same condition and so the outcome of a PIP claim depends very much on individual circumstances, including age and the ability to manage a condition without supervision or assistance. I have launched the Timms Review with the aim of ensuring we have a system that supports disabled people to achieve better health, higher living standards and greater independence, including through employment. The Review will be co-produced with disabled people, the organisations that represent them, and other experts. This means the Government will share ownership and responsibility for how the Review runs and what it recommends. The Timms Review will report to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions by autumn 2026, with an interim update expected ahead of that.

What steps his Department is taking to help reduce the potential impact of PIP reassessments for chronic conditions on the mental health of families affected.

Other than for claims made under the special rules for people nearing the end of their life, all claims to PIP are treated in the same way. Entitlement to PIP is assessed on the basis of the needs arising from a health condition or disability, rather than the health condition or disability itself. Individuals can be affected in different ways by the same condition and so the outcome of a PIP claim depends very much on individual circumstances, including age and the ability to manage a condition without supervision or assistance. I have launched the Timms Review with the aim of ensuring we have a system that supports disabled people to achieve better health, higher living standards and greater independence, including through employment. The Review will be co-produced with disabled people, the organisations that represent them, and other experts. This means the Government will share ownership and responsibility for how the Review runs and what it recommends. The Timms Review will report to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions by autumn 2026, with an interim update expected ahead of that.

Whether his Department has considered exemptions or streamlined processes for PIP claimants with (a) Type 1 diabetes and (b) other lifelong and progressively complex conditions.

Other than for claims made under the special rules for people nearing the end of their life, all claims to PIP are treated in the same way. Entitlement to PIP is assessed on the basis of the needs arising from a health condition or disability, rather than the health condition or disability itself. Individuals can be affected in different ways by the same condition and so the outcome of a PIP claim depends very much on individual circumstances, including age and the ability to manage a condition without supervision or assistance. I have launched the Timms Review with the aim of ensuring we have a system that supports disabled people to achieve better health, higher living standards and greater independence, including through employment. The Review will be co-produced with disabled people, the organisations that represent them, and other experts. This means the Government will share ownership and responsibility for how the Review runs and what it recommends. The Timms Review will report to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions by autumn 2026, with an interim update expected ahead of that.

What plans his Department has to improve public awareness of the early signs of Type 1 diabetes.

The National Health Service has publicly accessible information on its website about the signs and symptoms of type 1 diabetes, available at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/type-1-diabetes/symptoms/The DigiBete app, launched in June 2020, provides a wide range of clinically approved, age-appropriate resources to help with the self-management and awareness of type 1 diabetes, with further information available at the following link:https://www.digibete.org/type-1-awareness/It is the responsibility of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to provide guidance and quality standards for the treatment and care of diabetes in England. The NICE NG18 guideline for type 1 and 2 diabetes provides clinical guidelines for the diagnosis, treatment, and care of children and young people.NG18 recommends that children and young people with suspected type 1 diabetes are referred immediately, on the same day, to a multidisciplinary paediatric diabetes team with the competencies needed to confirm diagnosis and provide immediate care.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that general practitioners receive training on recognising symptoms of Type 1 diabetes in children and young people.

The National Health Service has publicly accessible information on its website about the signs and symptoms of type 1 diabetes, available at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/type-1-diabetes/symptoms/The DigiBete app, launched in June 2020, provides a wide range of clinically approved, age-appropriate resources to help with the self-management and awareness of type 1 diabetes, with further information available at the following link:https://www.digibete.org/type-1-awareness/It is the responsibility of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to provide guidance and quality standards for the treatment and care of diabetes in England. The NICE NG18 guideline for type 1 and 2 diabetes provides clinical guidelines for the diagnosis, treatment, and care of children and young people.NG18 recommends that children and young people with suspected type 1 diabetes are referred immediately, on the same day, to a multidisciplinary paediatric diabetes team with the competencies needed to confirm diagnosis and provide immediate care.

What guidance his Department issues to GPs on immediate blood glucose testing when symptoms of Type 1 diabetes are reported.

The National Health Service has publicly accessible information on its website about the signs and symptoms of type 1 diabetes, available at the following link:https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/type-1-diabetes/symptoms/The DigiBete app, launched in June 2020, provides a wide range of clinically approved, age-appropriate resources to help with the self-management and awareness of type 1 diabetes, with further information available at the following link:https://www.digibete.org/type-1-awareness/It is the responsibility of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to provide guidance and quality standards for the treatment and care of diabetes in England. The NICE NG18 guideline for type 1 and 2 diabetes provides clinical guidelines for the diagnosis, treatment, and care of children and young people.NG18 recommends that children and young people with suspected type 1 diabetes are referred immediately, on the same day, to a multidisciplinary paediatric diabetes team with the competencies needed to confirm diagnosis and provide immediate care.

Whether his Department has considered implementing routine screening for Type 1 diabetes in children.

A National Institute for Healthcare Research funded the EarLy Surveillance for Autoimmune diabetes, or ELSA, study, which is currently underway in England to explore the feasibility and benefits of screening for type 1 diabetes in children aged three to 13 years old.The UK National Screening Committee, which advises ministers on all aspects of population and targeted screening, is aware of the ELSA study and looks forward to receiving the results of this study when the trial is complete.

If his Department will review eligibility criteria for Carer’s Allowance in cases where unpaid carers support individuals with severe epilepsy.

The government keeps eligibility criteria under review to ensure they are meeting the needs of carers. Entitlement to Carer's Allowance depends on certain conditions relating to the circumstances of both the disabled person and the carer being satisfied. A carer must care for a severely disabled person for a minimum of 35 hours per week. The disabled person (including those with severe epilepsy) must be in receipt of a gateway benefit:Attendance Allowance.The middle or highest rate care component of Disability Living Allowance.The middle or highest rate care component of Child Disability Payment.The daily living component of Personal Independence Payment.The daily living component of Adult Disability Payment.The equivalent rate of a Constant Attendance Allowance.Armed Forces Independence Payment.Pension Age Disability Payment.Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance.

What guidance his Department provides to PIP assessors on the (a) risks and (b) limitations for people with uncontrolled seizures.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) ensures that all health professionals (HPs) receive comprehensive training in disability analysis, including how to assess the impacts of medical conditions on people’s day-to-day activities, as well as awareness training on epilepsy and uncontrolled seizures.Assessment quality is assured by suppliers and through DWP’s independent audit function, which checks assessments against a set of guidelines to ensure the criteria is applied appropriately and consistently in all cases, including those involving epilepsy and uncontrolled seizures.The Personal Independence Payment Assessment Guide (PIPAG) provides detailed instructions for HPs, with Part 2, Section 2.3 covering guidance for HPs on applying the criteria for the daily living component. HPs also have access to Condition Insight Reports and Continuing Professional Development materials on epilepsy, offering clinical and functional information to support HP’s in delivering informed assessments.Furthermore, if during the course of the assessment a HP identifies a deterioration in symptoms, or new symptoms that their usual health care professional is not aware of, DWP has a robust process in place to ensure this information is passed to the NHS, or if the individual if acutely unwell, they are transferred to an NHS service on the same day.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure that people with uncontrolled epilepsy are adequately assessed for the daily living component of Personal Independence Payment.

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) ensures that all health professionals (HPs) receive comprehensive training in disability analysis, including how to assess the impacts of medical conditions on people’s day-to-day activities, as well as awareness training on epilepsy and uncontrolled seizures.Assessment quality is assured by suppliers and through DWP’s independent audit function, which checks assessments against a set of guidelines to ensure the criteria is applied appropriately and consistently in all cases, including those involving epilepsy and uncontrolled seizures.The Personal Independence Payment Assessment Guide (PIPAG) provides detailed instructions for HPs, with Part 2, Section 2.3 covering guidance for HPs on applying the criteria for the daily living component. HPs also have access to Condition Insight Reports and Continuing Professional Development materials on epilepsy, offering clinical and functional information to support HP’s in delivering informed assessments.Furthermore, if during the course of the assessment a HP identifies a deterioration in symptoms, or new symptoms that their usual health care professional is not aware of, DWP has a robust process in place to ensure this information is passed to the NHS, or if the individual if acutely unwell, they are transferred to an NHS service on the same day.

What steps his Department is taking to improve public (a) awareness and (b) education on (i) epilepsy and (ii) Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy.

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance on epilepsy recommends that clinicians should discuss the risk of Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy (SUDEP) with patients newly diagnosed with epilepsy, and ensure their understanding of the risk, which will raise awareness of the issue among patients and their families.Additionally, the Royal College of General Practitioners aims to raise awareness of SUDEP amongst GPs and other primary care professionals, through its e-learning modules on SUDEP and seizure safety, which were developed in collaboration with SUDEP Action and last updated in December 2024.Health Education England, now part of NHS England, has also developed an Epilepsy Programme in collaboration with SUDEP Action, which is designed to enable healthcare professionals, particularly those who are not specialists in epilepsy, to better understand SUDEP and how the risk of SUDEP can be reduced.

What assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of levels of epilepsy medication availability on patient safety.

Medicine supply issues are global in their nature and, whilst not wholly preventable, the Department has a range of well-established processes and tools to manage and mitigate risks to patients. The Department has worked hard with industry to help resolve intermittent supply issues with some epilepsy medications. As a result of ongoing activity and intensive work, including asking manufacturers to expedite deliveries, most issues have been resolved.The Department is currently aware of supply issues affecting some suppliers of clobazam 10 milligram tablets, all strengths of topiramate tablets, clonazepam 2 milligram tablets, and phenobarbital 15 milligram tablets, used in the management of epilepsy.The supply issue with clonazepam 2mg tablets from one manufacturer is expected to resolve late January 2026. The affected suppliers of topiramate 25 milligram and 50 milligram tablets, and clobazam 10 milligram tablets, are expected to resupply these products by early December 2025. The resupply date from the other affected manufacturers for topiramate 50 milligram, 100 milligram and 200 milligram tablets and phenobarbital 15 milligram tablets is yet to be confirmed. Stock remains available from alternative manufacturers of these products to meet patient demand, and we have issued comprehensive management guidance to the National Health Service.We have issued guidance for the discontinuation of sodium valproate (Epilim Chronosphere) 750 milligram and 1000 milligram modified release (MR) granules sachets. Alternative strengths of sodium valproate MR granules sachets remain available.

Whether he plans to introduce mandatory epilepsy training for (a) employers and (b) employees.

Employers have a key role to play in supporting workers with long-term health conditions or disabilities in the workplace and it is for employers to assess the training requirements for their workforce. However, the Department of Health and Social Care has no plans to introduce mandatory epilepsy training.The Department for Work and Pensions’ current offer to employers includes a digital information service which provides tailored guidance to businesses to support employees, including epileptic employees, to remain in work.The service was developed with user-centred design principles. It offers a simple, interactive, and highly usable resource which helps employers to feel more confident having conversations with their employees about health and disability as well as understanding and fulfilling their legal obligations.This digital service provides tailored guidance on supporting employees in common workplace scenarios involving health and disability. This enables small businesses to self-serve, by guiding them through key processes. Employers are also able to access links to related government products and services as well as links to sources of external expert support including Epilepsy Action and Epilepsy Society.The digital information service is available at the following link:https://www.support-with-employee-health-and-disability.dwp.gov.uk/support-with-employee-health-and-disability

Whether his Department had made an assessment of the adequacy of Capita’s cybersecurity protocols prior to the March 2023 data breach.

The Cabinet Office (CO), which is responsible for managing the contract with Capita for the Royal Mail Statutory Pension Scheme (RMSPS), ensured the adequacy of Capita's cybersecurity protocols through a robust contractual framework. Capita is required to adhere to Government Security standards and the Security Schedule of the contract, which includes providing annual independent penetration testing by a National Cyber Security Centre-accredited team and maintaining security accreditations such as ISO27001 and Cyber Essentials Plus. These standards and Capita’s security posture are overseen by CO Information Assurance professionals and captured via regular reporting and audits. It should be noted that all of the accredited RMSPS systems were not compromised during the Capita cyber attack and remained secure; however, a small number of scheme members were unfortunately impacted when some data was extracted from a separate Capita finance file related to compensation payments.

What steps he has taken to ensure that all Civil Service Pension Scheme members that were affected by the Capita data breach have been (a) notified and (b) supported.

No members of the Civil Service Pension Scheme were affected by the Capita data breach as the scheme is administered by MyCSP. However, a small number of members of the Royal Mail Statutory Pension Scheme were affected. All were notified and full support was provided by Capita.

What steps he has taken to ensure transparency regarding the nature of the data compromised with the people affected by the Capita data breach.

Capita contacted all impacted members to inform them of the potential loss of data. Capita provided all impacted members with clear communications and also a subscription to Experian Plus that allowed members to monitor their online records for any signs of potential issues. Capita also initiated an independent full review of their systems to review security and to identify any further potential data exfiltration. Capita cooperated fully with investigations into the breach with the Information Commissioner's Office and with Cabinet office in assessing any potential risks to the membership of the scheme.

What steps his Department takes to ensure that employers share accurate (a) data and (b) instructions with Civil Service Pensions; and how often this is audited.

The Cabinet Office ensures employer data accuracy through a mandatory Interface Compliance Process, in place since 2018, which monitors the quality of all data and instructions against a 'right first time' standard. This process flags all Errors and Warnings on monthly submissions. The administrator, MyCSP, does not load the following month's data until all previous errors are corrected, ensuring a continuously maintained data quality. Compliance is audited weekly by the administrator, with summary reports provided to the Cabinet Office.

What estimate he has made of the (a) legal, (b) administrative, (c) remedial and (d) other costs to the public purse of Capita's data breach.

In respect of the data breach for the Royal Mail Statutory Pension Scheme members, there was no cost borne by the public purse. However, Capita’s data breach is known to have impacted both private and public sector organisations and is much broader than just pension schemes. We cannot comment on the impact on anything other than the Royal Mail Pension scheme.

Whether his Department plans to review its guidance on outsourcing contracts following the Capita data breach.

The Sourcing Playbook, which provides policy and guidance on sourcing decisions, is published by the Cabinet Office and is reviewed and updated regularly. The last update was 26 February 2025. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/64901fcc5f7bb700127fac5e/Sourcing_Playbook_Final.pdf

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Capita data breach on the (a) integrity and (b) security of the Civil Service Pension Scheme.

Civil Service Pension Scheme members were not affected by the Capita data breach, as the incident impacted data held by the Royal Mail Statutory Pension Scheme and their members. Therefore, there was no impact on the a) integrity or b) security of the Civil Service Pension Scheme