Question
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the increasing number of benefits appeals, notably for Personal Independence Payments and the greater success rates where appeals are heard by tribunals at which the claimant appears, what their reasons are for proposing to reduce the number of cases in which an appellant may appear in person and in which the panel includes a member with direct experience of the relevant benefit; and what savings they estimate will arise from that change.
Answered on
26 October 2016
The Government is investing close to £1 billion to reform and digitise our courts and tribunals to deliver swifter and more certain justice.
Technology will be at the forefront of our reforms but specific support will be provided to ensure tribunals remain accessible to all and physical hearings will continue to be used to resolve many cases.
The impact assessment published alongside the Transforming our Justice System consultation paper sets out our estimate of potential savings from tribunal panel composition reform based on possible future scenarios.
The panel composition reforms will ensure that the most appropriate panel is always selected to hear a case. As now, relevant expertise will always be available where needed, regardless of how a case is resolved. The Senior President of Tribunals will continue to determine when panel members are used.