Stephen has spoken in Parliament on ensuring benefit claimants who were affected by processing errors at the Department for Work and Pensions are fully compensated.
In 2018, the Department for Work and Pensions was forced to pay arrears to 118,000 people, after it emerged that there was an error in benefit transfers. The Public Health Service Ombudsman has recently released a report on a complaint from one claimant, who is seeking further compensation following the error.
On 13 January, an urgent question was raised in the House of Commons: "to ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if she will make a statement on the historic underpayment of benefits to 118,000 benefit claimants and their plans for compensation." During the debate, Stephen raised the physical and mental toll this error has had on victims and asked if interest payments would be included in compensation. He also invited the Department for Work and Pensions to report back to the Work and Pensions Select Committee, which he chairs.
During the statement, Stephen said: “in this particular report, the Ombudsman has found that the failing had a “severe effect on [the claimant’s] existing mental and physical health problems.” No doubt the same would have been true for quite a number of the other 118,000 people affected, so will the Department proactively work out who should be getting compensation?”
You can watch Stephen’s full contribution, and the Minister’s response, below.