HC Deb 18 December 2000 vol 360 cc71-2W
20. Mr. Quinn

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what steps his Department is taking to reduce the number of people leaving work because of long-term illness. [141821]

Mr. Bayley

We believe that people with long-term illnesses should have the support to remain in work. The Inland Revenue has introduced a Disabled Person's Tax Credit (DPTC) Fast-Track to make it financially possible for sick and disabled people to stay in work. This allows people who become long-term sick or disabled while they are in work to receive DPTC on their return to work where they need to move to a job with lower pay (e.g. because of reduced hours).

This Department is also working with the Department for Education and Employment and the Department of Health to implement, from next year, a series of Job Retention and Rehabilitation pilots to test the effectiveness of better co-ordinated, earlier work-focused interventions by health and employment services in helping people to stay in work.