Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Work Capability Assessments: Claimant Health

Monday 27 January 2020 · 1 question

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 0 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Debbie Abrahams questioned the government about deaths linked to work capability assessments.
  • The minister acknowledged the stress associated with attending such assessments.
  • The government commissioned five independent reviews and implemented over 100 recommendations.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Debbie Abrahams Lab Gorton
Benefits & Welfare Mental Health
Context

A constituent, Jodey Whiting, took her own life in 2017 following issues with a work capability assessment.

Question

Last week, a psychiatrist stated that Jodey's mental state was likely to have been 'substantially affected' by the DWP's decision. Another death, Errol Graham's, occurred under similar circumstances. The questioner requests an urgent independent inquiry into these deaths.

Answer from Justin Tomlinson (Minister for Disabled People, Work and Health) (Conservative)

We recognise that attending a work capability assessment can be stressful; therefore, measures are in place to address this. We commissioned five independent reviews implementing more than 100 recommendations, including training frontline staff with the Royal College of Psychiatrists to identify people at risk.

Answered
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