AQW 24827/22-27


Ms Sian Mulholland
Alliance Party
North Antrim


Tabled Date: 21/03/2025
Answered On Date: 13/05/2025
Priority Written: No


Question:
To ask the Minister of Health, further to the Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working Green Paper, which outlined a £26 billion investment in the health and social care system to accelerate treatment and rehabilitation for those on long-term sickness benefits, whether he has any plans to invest in our health and social care system to ensure faster treatment and rehabilitation for individuals receiving long-term sickness benefits.


Answer:
The Northern Ireland Rehabilitation Framework is currently under development. The progression of the framework, which is focussing on ‘partnering for better outcomes’ is being led by the Chief Allied Health Professions Officer and her team as a workstream of the Advisory Committee for Allied Health Professionals. The Department has recently concluded an extensive stakeholder engagement exercise which will help inform the development of the framework and the final recommendations.
The Condition Management Programme (CMP) works in partnership with people to help them progress towards, move into, return to or remain in paid employment, with the support of health professionals including occupational therapists, physiotherapists and mental health nurses. The key aim of CMP is to provide short term work-focused and educational interventions to help clients manage their own condition and re-focus them on their potential to return to work or remain in work.
Work is also progressing on a new cross-departmental Executive Disability Strategy for Northern Ireland and, in parallel with this work, a Disability and Work Strategy is also being developed regarding employment for disabled people. Both strategies are being led by the Department for Communities and my officials are fully engaged and participating in the co-production of the strategies.
The new Disability and Work Strategy for Northern Ireland will seek to support people with disabilities and health conditions to move into work.
At present, there are no set/target launch dates for these strategies as the work very much depends on Ministerial/Executive endorsement and available budgets.