Wednesday 4 March 2026,
09.30, Committee Room 16
The author of the review into Carer's Allowance overpayments,
that laid the blame for the scandal that led tens of thousands of
carers to unknowingly build large debts at the DWP's door, will
give evidence to the Work and Pensions Committee.
The session comes just weeks after an evidence session with
DWP's Permanent Secretary, Sir Peter Schofield, after which the
Committee expressed
serious concerns with how his department continued to handle
the overpayments issue affecting more than 130,000 people. Within
a week he announced his intention to step down from the role.
Liz Sayce will be asked by the cross-party Committee for her
thoughts on how the DWP's efforts to fix the problem measure up
against her review's recommendations.
A second panel of carers' representatives and academics will also
inform MPs about challenges for carers' ability to combine work
and care as the Government seeks to encourage more people into
work.
How the DWP deals with the interaction between the earnings
threshold for working carers and the allowance is the primary
cause of the scandal. Carers who work are more likely to go above
the earnings threshold at which their Carer's Allowance will be
affected, currently £196 per week after tax and deductions. From
2019-2024, one in five carers who did so had earnings-related
overpayment.
Witnesses:
From 09.30
- Liz Sayce OBE, Independent Reviewer of Overpayments of
Carer's Allowance 2025.
From 10.30 (approx.)
- Emily Holzhausen CBE, Director of Public Affairs, Carers UK;
- Kirsty McHugh, Chief Executive, Carers Trust;
- Professor Anne McMunn, Professor of Social Epidemiology,
University College London; and
- Dr Maxine Watkins, Research Fellow, School of Public Policy,
University of Birmingham.
ENDS
Notes to editors
