To ask the Minister for Communities whether she intends to review how welfare benefits are assessed; and whether she will consider bringing the process back into public sector control where her Department will be able to audit and manage performance.

An independent evaluation of the performance of both the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) Assessment Services and the Medical Support Services contracts in delivering health assessments for welfare benefits will be completed by the end of the year. Any enhancements identified through this evaluation will be considered for the future delivery of health assessments.

Additionally, a business case is under development to appraise all options for the delivery of health assessments from August 2023, including in-housing the service.

My Department manages a programme of monthly, quarterly and annual reviews of the current performance against defined service levels for both contracts. Officials also carry out an independent audit of completed health assessments to provide assurance on both quality and procedural accuracy.