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Jobcentres: Sanctions

Answer

The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Darra Singh. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.Letter from Ruth Owen:"The Secretary of State has asked Darra Singh to reply to your question asking whether Jobcentre Plus has set any targets for the number of sanctions to be issued by each Jobcentre Plus officer and whether Jobcentre Plus has established any targets for the number of sanctions to be issued by each Jobcentre Plus office. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to Darra Singh as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus. As Darra Singh is currently unavailable, I am replying in his absence.""Jobcentre Plus is responsible for ensuring customers are compliant with the conditions of entitlement and remain eligible to receive ""Jobseeker's Allowance. To help ensure the associated sanctions regime is applied efficiently, effectively and consistently across Districts, Jobcentre Plus has established the following internal benchmarks:""A minimum of 6% of the JSA live load is referred to Decision Makers to consider areas of doubt arising from entitlement and sanctions, and""At least 50% of these referrals result in decisions adverse to the customer""These are benchmarks and not targets. There is no 'right level' of referrals. The intention is that, if District performance is significantly different from this benchmark, either above or below, this is a signal to management to assure themselves that processes are being followed correctly, fairly and consistently."

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

31065; 520 c1193-4W

Session

2010-12

Subjects

Jobcentres Disqualification Jobcentre Plus Social security benefits

Link

View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk