To ask the Minister for Communities whether he has held any discussions with the Minister for Infrastructure on the alignment of reassessments for the new benefits system with reassessments for the Blue Badge Scheme.

Paul Givan MLA

Minister for Communities

Causeway Exchange, 1-7 Bedford Street

Belfast BT2 7EG

Paula Bradshaw MLA

Northern Ireland Assembly

Parliament Buildings

Ballymiscaw

Stormont

AQW 8694/16-21

Paula Bradshaw has asked

The Minister for Communities whether he has held any discussions with the Minister for Infrastructure on the alignment of reassessments for the new benefits system with reassessments for the Blue Badge Scheme.

Answer

I have not held any discussions with the Minister for Infrastructure on this specific matter. The reassessment process for new benefits such as Personal Independence Payment is designed to enable a decision – maker in my Department determine eligibility to the benefit. The criteria and processes for determining eligibility for the Blue Badge Scheme are a completely separate matter for the Department for Infrastructure.

Prior to the introduction of Personal Independence Payment in Northern Ireland in June this year, officials from my Department were in contact with policy officials from the former Department for Regional Development, who were then responsible for the Blue Badge Scheme to ensure they were aware of this particular change.

Signed: ______________________________________________________

Paul Givan MLA

Date: ________________________________________________________

BACKGROUND NOTE TO ASSEMBLY QUESTION AQW 8694/16-21

Paula Bradshaw is an Alliance Party MLA for South Belfast constituency. She has not asked any previous questions specifically relating to Personal Independence Payment (PIP). She has another current written AQ asking the Minister for Infrastructure for an update on reassessments for the Blue Badge Scheme under AQW 8692/16-21.

PIP has replaced Disability Living Allowance (DLA) for working age claimants (16 to 64 years) in Northern Ireland from 20 June 2016. This is effective for all new claimants and also existing DLA working age claimants, who will be reassessed over the next 3 years.

Since 2012, officials from the Personal Independence Payment Project have been in contact on a number of occasions with officials in the former Department for Regional Development (DRD), which had responsibility for the Blue Badge Scheme at that time. At that stage PIP was expected to be introduced in Northern Ireland in June 2013. Discussions involved DRD officials receiving an awareness presentation on PIP, eligibility for it and a break down of the Disability Living Allowance (DLA) liveload, in terms of how many working age customers were receiving the higher and lower rates of the mobility component.

Under DLA claimants could qualify for a Blue Badge if they had been awarded the higher rate mobility component. The Department for Infrastructure has decided that to qualify for a Blue Badge under PIP, the claimant must have been awarded eight points or more under the ‘moving around’ activity of the mobility component.

Reply prepared by:

JOHN MCKERVILL

EXT. 75336