THE Barrow and Furness MP has argued in Parliament against the closure plans for a centre which processes industrial injuries benefits for seriously and terminally ill people.

John Woodcock has urged ministers to keep Barrow's Phoenix House open, where some 80 jobs are at risk.

The Stephen Street office, which processes industrial industrial injuries and disablement benefit, is one of dozens of Department for Work and Pensions sites across the country proposed for closure.

During a debate in Westminster Hall, Mr Woodcock told ministers that the staff at Phoenix House are providing a "really important service to people right across the United Kingdom".

Mr Woodcock said the expertise in Barrow, in assisting people with industrial related diseases such as asbestosis, cuts the time to which they get compensation.

Mr Woodcock is fighting to keep the experienced Barrow team in place with the The Public and Commercial Services Union.

He said: "Due to the nature of the benefit, closing Phoenix House and taking the facilities somewhere else in the country, inevitably employing new people, will do damage to the service provided. The centre processes industrial injuries disablement benefit.

"The team say proudly that they have more than 100 years’ experience between them of processing that benefit. Due to that build-up of expertise, the Barrow team has taken part in a process that has reduced the processing time for that benefit from 175 days to 33 days.

That is an achievement and welcome in itself, but we must also take into account who receives the benefit. It goes to people who have developed terrible conditions. Many of them, such as those suffering from the likes of asbestosis, are terminally ill due to negligence in past decades. That is why they have been given compensation in the form of the benefit. The whole point of focusing on driving down the time that it takes for them to get it is that it makes the difference between them receiving it while they are still alive and receiving it after they have died."

Referring to the 80 jobs he said "when skilled office jobs are eliminated in a geographically remote constituency such as Barrow, they have little prospect of being replaced by something else, and people cannot realistically travel to another place two or more hours away."

Employment minister Damian Hinds MP said: "I recognise, of course, the difficult position that staff in Barrow are in and I join the hon. Gentleman in the tribute that he paid to the immensely valuable work that they do. I fully recognise, as he does, the accumulated experience that that group of dedicated staff has. One-to-one conversations will be going on in Barrow and, indeed, in all other locations where there are affected staff. There will be some limited opportunities for staff in Barrow jobcentre, but I am not suggesting that that covers everybody.

The industrial injuries work rightly raised by the hon. Gentleman is moving to Barnsley, which is an existing centre with experience and expertise. Overall for that work, reducing volume demand is projected over the next five years, and we do not expect an impact on service to the customer."