[
  {
    "id": "gap-assessment-cost-per-case",
    "question": "What does each PIP and Work Capability Assessment cost, by provider and year?",
    "why_it_matters": "Health assessments are one of the largest outsourced parts of the system. Without a cost per assessment there's no way to judge value for money or compare providers.",
    "stage": "outsourcing",
    "holder": "Department for Work and Pensions",
    "priority": "high",
    "already_published_check": [
      "WhatDoTheyKnow",
      "DWP FOI releases (GOV.UK)",
      "Written PQs",
      "DWP Annual Report & Accounts",
      "Contracts Finder"
    ],
    "foi": {
      "status": "to-check",
      "draft": "Please provide, for each financial year 2021-22 to 2025-26 and for each contracted provider of PIP and WCA (Work Capability Assessment) health assessments: (1) the total amount paid to the provider; (2) the number of assessments completed; (3) any service credits, penalties or deductions applied for under-performance. Contract-level totals are acceptable if a per-assessment breakdown is not held.",
      "submitted": null,
      "due": null,
      "url": null,
      "exemptions_cited": [],
      "outcome_figures": []
    }
  },
  {
    "id": "gap-carers-allowance-scotland-split",
    "question": "How much of the Carer's Allowance line in the DWP expenditure tables is Carer Support Payment paid in Scotland rather than Carer's Allowance paid by DWP?",
    "why_it_matters": "The benefit expenditure tables report one GB total for Carer's Allowance. Carer Support Payment has replaced Carer's Allowance in Scotland, so the single line now covers two schemes run by two different bodies. Without a split, the DWP line cannot be compared with the Scottish Government's own figures for disability and carer benefits.",
    "stage": "payments",
    "holder": "Department for Work and Pensions",
    "priority": "low",
    "already_published_check": [
      "WhatDoTheyKnow",
      "DWP FOI releases (GOV.UK)",
      "Social Security Scotland benefit statistics",
      "Benefit expenditure by country and region tables",
      "Written PQs"
    ],
    "foi": {
      "status": "to-check",
      "draft": "Please provide, for each financial year from 2023-24 to 2025-26, the expenditure recorded in the DWP benefit expenditure tables under Carer's Allowance, split between (a) Carer's Allowance paid by DWP in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and (b) Carer Support Payment paid by Social Security Scotland. Please provide any existing management information or reconciliation used to compile the GB Carer's Allowance line for these tables, rather than new analysis.",
      "submitted": null,
      "due": null,
      "url": null,
      "exemptions_cited": [],
      "outcome_figures": []
    }
  },
  {
    "id": "gap-dwp-admin-cost-by-benefit",
    "question": "How much does it cost DWP to administer each benefit?",
    "why_it_matters": "Knowing the running cost per £ paid out for each benefit shows which parts of the system are expensive to deliver.",
    "stage": "administration",
    "holder": "Department for Work and Pensions",
    "priority": "high",
    "already_published_check": [
      "WhatDoTheyKnow",
      "DWP FOI releases (GOV.UK)",
      "Written PQs",
      "DWP Annual Report & Accounts",
      "Contracts Finder"
    ],
    "foi": {
      "status": "to-check",
      "draft": "Please provide DWP's administrative (DEL) cost attributed to each benefit — including Universal Credit, PIP, State Pension, ESA, Pension Credit and Carer's Allowance — for each financial year 2021-22 to 2025-26, as held in DWP's cost-allocation or activity-based costing data. If held, please also provide unit cost per claim.",
      "submitted": null,
      "due": null,
      "url": null,
      "exemptions_cited": [],
      "outcome_figures": []
    }
  },
  {
    "id": "gap-fe-programme-roi",
    "question": "What does DWP spend on counter-fraud and error activity, and what does it save?",
    "why_it_matters": "DWP has invested heavily in counter-fraud. Spend versus measured savings shows whether that investment pays back.",
    "stage": "leakage",
    "holder": "Department for Work and Pensions",
    "priority": "medium",
    "already_published_check": [
      "WhatDoTheyKnow",
      "DWP FOI releases (GOV.UK)",
      "Written PQs",
      "DWP Annual Report & Accounts",
      "Contracts Finder"
    ],
    "foi": {
      "status": "to-check",
      "draft": "Please provide DWP's annual expenditure on counter-fraud and error activity (including the Targeted Case Review, Integrated Risk and Intelligence Service and data-analytics/third-party data programmes) for 2021-22 to 2025-26, alongside the savings DWP attributes to each.",
      "submitted": null,
      "due": null,
      "url": null,
      "exemptions_cited": [],
      "outcome_figures": []
    }
  },
  {
    "id": "gap-hb-admin-subsidy",
    "question": "How much is paid to councils to administer Housing Benefit, and what does it actually cost them?",
    "why_it_matters": "Councils run Housing Benefit on DWP's behalf. Admin subsidy versus true cost shows a hidden cost borne locally.",
    "stage": "local-delivery",
    "holder": "Department for Work and Pensions",
    "priority": "medium",
    "already_published_check": [
      "WhatDoTheyKnow",
      "DWP FOI releases (GOV.UK)",
      "Written PQs",
      "DWP Annual Report & Accounts",
      "Contracts Finder"
    ],
    "foi": {
      "status": "to-check",
      "draft": "Please provide the Housing Benefit administration subsidy paid to each local authority for 2021-22 to 2025-26, and any information held on local authorities' reported actual costs of administering Housing Benefit.",
      "submitted": null,
      "due": null,
      "url": null,
      "exemptions_cited": [],
      "outcome_figures": []
    }
  },
  {
    "id": "gap-landlord-direct-payments",
    "question": "How much Universal Credit housing money is paid directly to landlords?",
    "why_it_matters": "Housing support is one of the largest flows of benefit money. Who receives it (private landlords, housing associations, councils) is part of following the pound.",
    "stage": "pass-through",
    "holder": "Department for Work and Pensions",
    "priority": "medium",
    "already_published_check": [
      "WhatDoTheyKnow",
      "DWP FOI releases (GOV.UK)",
      "Written PQs",
      "DWP Annual Report & Accounts",
      "Contracts Finder"
    ],
    "foi": {
      "status": "to-check",
      "draft": "Please provide, for each financial year 2021-22 to 2025-26: the total value of Universal Credit housing costs paid via Managed Payments to Landlords, broken down by landlord type (social/private) if held, and the number of households concerned.",
      "submitted": null,
      "due": null,
      "url": null,
      "exemptions_cited": [],
      "outcome_figures": []
    }
  },
  {
    "id": "gap-mr-appeal-cost",
    "question": "What do mandatory reconsiderations and tribunal appeals cost?",
    "why_it_matters": "A large share of PIP and WCA decisions are changed on appeal. The cost of correcting wrong decisions is a measure of system failure that isn't published in one place.",
    "stage": "decisions",
    "holder": "Department for Work and Pensions",
    "priority": "high",
    "already_published_check": [
      "WhatDoTheyKnow",
      "DWP FOI releases (GOV.UK)",
      "Written PQs",
      "DWP Annual Report & Accounts",
      "Contracts Finder"
    ],
    "foi": {
      "status": "to-check",
      "draft": "Please provide for financial years 2021-22 to 2025-26: (1) DWP's cost of processing mandatory reconsiderations (staff and other costs), by benefit if held; (2) DWP's cost of preparing and presenting cases at the Social Security and Child Support tribunal; (3) any estimate held of the arrears paid following decisions overturned at MR or appeal.",
      "submitted": null,
      "due": null,
      "url": null,
      "exemptions_cited": [],
      "outcome_figures": []
    }
  },
  {
    "id": "gap-overpayment-debt",
    "question": "How much overpayment debt is owed, recovered, and written off each year, and at what cost?",
    "why_it_matters": "Recovering overpayments costs money and often comes out of ongoing benefit. The net position (recovered minus cost of recovery, minus write-offs) isn't published simply.",
    "stage": "recovery",
    "holder": "Department for Work and Pensions",
    "priority": "high",
    "already_published_check": [
      "WhatDoTheyKnow",
      "DWP FOI releases (GOV.UK)",
      "Written PQs",
      "DWP Annual Report & Accounts",
      "Contracts Finder"
    ],
    "foi": {
      "status": "to-check",
      "draft": "Please provide for 2021-22 to 2025-26: (1) total benefit overpayment debt outstanding at year end; (2) amount recovered in-year, split by deduction from benefit vs other methods; (3) amount written off; (4) DWP Debt Management's operating cost.",
      "submitted": null,
      "due": null,
      "url": null,
      "exemptions_cited": [],
      "outcome_figures": []
    }
  },
  {
    "id": "gap-state-pension-fe",
    "question": "How much State Pension is over- or underpaid?",
    "why_it_matters": "State Pension is the largest single benefit, but fraud and error on it is not measured every year, so the headline loss figure may exclude it.",
    "stage": "leakage",
    "holder": "Department for Work and Pensions",
    "priority": "high",
    "already_published_check": [
      "WhatDoTheyKnow",
      "DWP FOI releases (GOV.UK)",
      "Written PQs",
      "DWP Annual Report & Accounts",
      "Contracts Finder"
    ],
    "foi": {
      "status": "to-check",
      "draft": "Please provide the most recent measured estimates of fraud and error in State Pension (over- and underpayments, £ and %), the year each was measured, and any internal plan or decision on when State Pension will next be reviewed.",
      "submitted": null,
      "due": null,
      "url": null,
      "exemptions_cited": [],
      "outcome_figures": []
    }
  },
  {
    "id": "gap-top-suppliers",
    "question": "Who are DWP's largest suppliers and what is each paid annually?",
    "why_it_matters": "Contracts Finder gives award values, not what is actually paid each year. Actual spend by supplier shows where non-benefit money goes.",
    "stage": "outsourcing",
    "holder": "Department for Work and Pensions",
    "priority": "medium",
    "already_published_check": [
      "WhatDoTheyKnow",
      "DWP FOI releases (GOV.UK)",
      "Written PQs",
      "DWP Annual Report & Accounts",
      "Contracts Finder"
    ],
    "foi": {
      "status": "to-check",
      "draft": "Please provide total payments made by DWP to each of its 25 largest suppliers by value for each financial year 2021-22 to 2025-26, with the main service each provides.",
      "submitted": null,
      "due": null,
      "url": null,
      "exemptions_cited": [],
      "outcome_figures": []
    }
  },
  {
    "id": "gap-uc-advances",
    "question": "How many Universal Credit advances are paid, and how much is later deducted from claimants?",
    "why_it_matters": "Advances are loans repaid from benefit. Volume, value and deduction levels show how much of the payment stage loops back.",
    "stage": "recovery",
    "holder": "Department for Work and Pensions",
    "priority": "low",
    "already_published_check": [
      "WhatDoTheyKnow",
      "DWP FOI releases (GOV.UK)",
      "Written PQs",
      "DWP Annual Report & Accounts",
      "Contracts Finder"
    ],
    "foi": {
      "status": "to-check",
      "draft": "Please provide for 2021-22 to 2025-26: the number and total value of Universal Credit advances paid, the total recovered via deductions, and the amount written off.",
      "submitted": null,
      "due": null,
      "url": null,
      "exemptions_cited": [],
      "outcome_figures": []
    }
  }
]