Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)
Central Freedom of Information Team
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx@xxx.xxx.xxx.xx
Our reference: FOI2018/02442 and FOIIR2018/4595
Date: 3 December 2018
Dear Mrs Langton
Thank you for your Freedom of Information request received on 27 August
and review request received on 25 September.
I acknowledge that in this instance, the Department failed to respond within
the 20 working days and DWP apologise for the delay. Furthermore, we
apologise for not keeping you updated of the progress of your request. DWP
is working to avoid any such errors occurring in the future.
In reviewing your request the reviewing officer upholds your complaint as the
Department failed to respond to your request within 20 days.
The response to your original request is set out below. You asked:
From the
PENSIONS ACT 2011 – IMPACTS - ANNEX A: STATE PENSION
AGE
Title:
A sustainable State Pension: when the State Pension age will increase
to 66 Lead department or agency: Department for Work and Pensions
Impact Assessment (IA) Date 21/11/2011 Final Stage
Primary legislation Implementation
Item 64 which had written the piece below:
As well as ensuring that information about the changes is available on
its website and in its leaflets and guides, the Government intends to
communicate these changes in State Pension age to individuals
affected in a timely way.
Between January and the end of March 2012, the Department will write
to around 800,000 individuals born between 6 April 1953 and 5 April
1955. People born between these dates will either have a State
Pension age between birthdays, or would have been affected by the
original equalisation timetable.
From a Foi request DATE:16th August 2017 reference number Fol
3166 The DWP had responded in this Foi 3166 with dates and how
many letters were sent to the same group of people and when:
The dates on which the women and men were notified, and the number
of women and men notified, are in the tables below. The Department
wrote to all those directly affected to inform them of the changes, using
the address recorded by HMRC at the time.
They were:
Between Birthdays 6th Apr 1953 to 5th Dec 1953 Letters sent Jan 2012
People qty 275,001 Between Birthdays 6 Dec 1953 to 5th Oct 1954
Letters sent Feb 2012 People qty 646,001 Between Birthdays 6th Oct
1954 to 5Th Apr 1955 Letters sent Feb 2012 People 375,001
My freedoms of Information request are:
Why is their discrepancy to what the Final Stage Impact Assessment
had said that the Department will write to around 800,000 individuals
born between 6 April 1953 and 5 April 1955 ,against what the DWP
had said in the reply to the Fol 3166 on the same period between 6
April 1953 and 5 April 1955 the figure total is 1296003 people who
were sent a letter, this is a discrepancy of 496003 people.
Why is the date also incorrect when the letters were sent as the Fol
3166 has the date Jan 2012 to Feb 2012 when the letters were sent
when the Final Stage Impact Assessment has said it would be between
January and the end of March 2012 one full month discrepancy.
Were the DWP aware of the true figure of people between the dates
between 6 April 1953 and 5 April 1955.
Did the DWP receive the amount of people who were between the
dates between 6 April 1953 and 5 April 1955 from the HM Revenue &
Customs.
Did the DWP receive the amount of people who were between the
dates between 6 April 1953 and 5 April 1955 from the HM Revenue &
Customs and this was forward to who produced the Final Stage Impact
Assessment., or did the information was not originated or supplied by
the DWP?
My freedoms of Information request are:
Which is the true answers/reported figure to how many letters were
sent to this group of people born between 6 April 1953 and 5 April 1955
,is it the figures from the Impact Assessment which was sign off by the
Minister Steven Webb of the figures that of the Fol 3166?
This Impact Assessment had a:
Ministerial Sign-off For final proposal stage Impact Assessments:
I have read the Impact Assessment and I am satisfied that (a) it
represents a fair and reasonable view of the expected costs, benefits
and impact of the policy, and (b) the benefits justify the costs.
Signed by the responsible Minister: Steven Webb on the Date:
21/11/2011
It shows that a vast amount of people were missed from the Impact
Assessment against what the DWP had reported since it was signed by
the Minister: Steven Webb.
A discrepancy of 496003 people born between 6 April 1953 and 5 April
1955 were missed off the Final Impact Assessment which was For
Primary legislation I presume the correct total of people who fitted into
this period would have been provided by the HM Revenue & Customs,
the DWP on many occasions not just from other Foi but from complaint
letters and on the internet the DWP have said that the HMRC had
supplied the address/name updated at the time ! which the DWP had
used to inform people by letter of the pension changes.
This was signed off by the Minister, this is more than misleading not
just for the Minister but for the Government and this failure to give the
correct amount of people born between 6 April 1953 and 5 April 1955
requires investigation
My freedoms of Information request are:
What is the process will the DWP undertake to such a glaring
discrepancy by not having the correct figure of missing of the 496003
people from the Final Impact Assessment?
DWP Response:
The Freedom of Information Act gives you a legal right of access to any
recorded information held by a public authority. We do not have to provide
opinions or explanations, generate answers to questions, or create or obtain
information we do not hold. If you ask a question, rather than requesting
recorded information, we will provide you with the recorded information that
best answers the question. Once we have provided the recorded information,
we have met our obligations under the Act; interpreting the information
provided is up to you.
We do not hold any recorded information to answer your request. However,
you may find the following explanations useful. We have provided these
outside our obligations under the Freedom of Information Act.
As you have asked a number of questions, the Department has responded to
each one individually below;
1.) Why is their discrepancy to what the Final Stage Impact
Assessment had said that the Department will write to around 800,000
individuals born between 6 April 1953 and 5 April 1955 ,against what
the DWP had said in the reply to the Fol 3166 on the same period
between 6 April 1953 and 5 April 1955 the figure total is 1296003
people who were sent a letter, this is a discrepancy of 496003 people.
The Department does not hold recorded information to explain the origin of
the ‘800,000’ figure used in the Final Stage Impact Assessment. This figure is
incorrect and we believe it was recorded in error. We believe that the 800,000
figure refers to the cohort of people born between 6 April 1953 and 5 October
1954. There are around 1.3 million people projected to reach State Pension
age who were born between 6 April 1953 and 5 April 1955. Approximately 1.3
million letters were sent to this cohort of individuals between January and
February 2012.
2.) Why is the date also incorrect when the letters were sent as the Fol
3166 has the date Jan 2012 to Feb 2012 when the letters were sent
when the Final Stage Impact Assessment has said it would be between
January and the end of March 2012 one full month discrepancy.
The Impact Assessment was completed in advance of the mailing exercise.
FOI 3166 gives the actual periods when the letters were sent.
3.) Were the DWP aware of the true figure of people between the dates
between 6 April 1953 and 5 April 1955.
The Department was aware that there were around 1.3 million people in this
cohort, this is reflected in the volume of letters issued. The correct figures
were used to calculate the main impacts included in the Impact Assessment.
4.) Did the DWP receive the amount of people who were between the
dates between 6 April 1953 and 5 April 1955 from the HM Revenue &
Customs.
Estimates of the number of people affected by the 2011 Act were based on
ONS population data covering the number of men and women alive in 2009
and resident in Great Britain.
5.)
Did the DWP receive the amount of people who were between the
dates between 6 April 1953 and 5 April 1955 from the HM Revenue &
Customs and this was forward to who produced the Final Stage Impact
Assessment., or did the information was not originated or supplied by
the DWP?
Please see response to question 4.
6.)
Which is the true answers/reported figure to how many letters were
sent to this group of people born between 6 April 1953 and 5 April 1955
,is it the figures from the Impact Assessment which was sign off by the
Minister Steven Webb of the figures that of the Fol 3166?
The information provided in response to FOI 3166 is correct.
7.) What is the process will the DWP undertake to such a glaring
discrepancy by not having the correct figure of missing of the 496003
people from the Final Impact Assessment?
The Department sent approximately 1.3 million letters to the cohort of people
born within the dates stated in the Impact Assessment, and used the correct
population figures to assess the main impacts of the changes.
The Impact Assessment includes the 800,000 figure as an error in the text.
Given this is a historical document; we will not be updating it. However, the
letters were sent out to the correct number of customers.
If you have any queries about this letter please contact me quoting the
reference number above.
Yours sincerely,
DWP Central FoI Team
Your right to complain under the Freedom of Information Act
If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review you may apply directly to the
Information Commissioner’s Office for a decision. Generally the Commissioner cannot make a
decision unless you have exhausted our own complaints procedure. The Information
Commissioner can be contacted at: The Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House,
Water Lane, Wilmslow Cheshire SK9 5AF
www.ico.org.uk/Global/contact_us or telephone 0303 123 1113 or 01625 545745