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SOCIAL SECURITY
Disability
Mr. Evennett : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what response he has received to his proposals for helping disabled people who are not able to work full time.
Mr. Scott : We have sent copies of "The Way Ahead : Benefits for Disabled People" (Cm. 917) to a wide range of disability organisations and other interested bodies inviting their comments on our proposals to improve the balance and structure of social security help for people with disabilities. We have now received comments from seven organisations and six individuals on our proposals to introduce a disability employment credit for people who are partially capable of work. The Social Security Advisory Committee has also written to my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State describing our proposals as a significant improvement to the system of benefits for disabled people. The committee particularly welcomed the introduction of a disability employment credit.
Mr. Wareing : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what plans he has to improve disability benefits in order to give assistance with communication costs.
Mr. Scott : The Command Paper "The Way Ahead : Benefits for Disabled People" published on 10 January contains several proposals that will give financial help to disabled people with communication costs. The introduction of an age-related addition for severe disablement allowance will assist many disabled people who have communication needs who have been disabled early in life or at birth. People with communication needs will be eligible for the new disability allowance in the same way as other disabled people. The introduction of a disability employment credit will also help people with communication needs who are partially capable of work. In addition, people who are both deaf and blind will, from April of this year, be able to receive mobility allowance at a rate of £26.25 per week.
Mr. Alfred Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is his estimate of the additional numbers of (a) disabled people aged 60 to 79 years and (b) people aged 80-plus years who became entitled to and were awarded (i) income support and (ii) housing benefit as a result of the increases to the premiums introduced in October 1989.
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Mrs. Gillian Shephard : I refer the right hon. Member to my reply to the hon. Member for Birkenhead (Mr. Field) on 23 February at column 937.Mr. Alfred Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is his estimate of the number of (a) single men, (b) married men, (c) single women and (d) married women who will qualify for each rate of the proposed addition to severe disablement allowance and the number in each category who will not qualify for any addition.
Mr. Scott : The available estimates are in the table :
|Men |Married|Single
|women |women
--------------------------------------------
Higher rate |80,000 |15,000 |65,000
Middle rate |10,000 |25,000 |15,000
Lower rate |10,000 |25,000 |10,000
No addition |2,500 |- |-
Benefit Fraud
Mr. McAllion : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many officials in his Department are involved in investigating benefit fraud.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : Precise figures are not available, but it is possible to estimate the number of full-time equivalent posts on the basis of records of staff time expended on benefit fraud work. In 1988-89, the last year for which figures are available, the number of full-time equivalent posts was 2,940. Benefit savings achieved in 1988-89 were £262 million.
Charities
Mr. Thurnham : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will make a statement on the role played by charities in the provision of welfare benefits.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : Charities play no role in the provision of social security benefits. In the income-related benefits, however, we have recently announced improvements which will enable charities to increase the additional help they give to people without affecting their benefits.
Benefits (Overpayments)
Ms. Short : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security in what circumstances overpayments of social security benefits are recovered at common law ; how many such actions were brought in the last year for which records are available ; which benefits were concerned ; and how much was recovered.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : Certain overpayments are not subject to a determination by the adjudicating authorities under section 53 of the Social Security Act 1986, for example, where duplicate payments of benefit have been made. Where the circumstances indicate that the claimant should have been aware of duplicate payments and taken appropriate action, repayment is sought on the common law principle that money paid under a mistake of fact should not be retained. No central records are kept on which an answer to the second part of the question could be based.
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Regulations
Mr. Skinner : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when he will publish the draft regulations of the Social Security (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1990 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : I refer the hon. Member to my reply to him on 8 February at column 787.
Mr. Skinner : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security whether the amendment to regulation 72 of the Social Security (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1990 will be referred to the Social Security Advisory Committee.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : The Social Security Advisory Committee has agreed that the Social Security (Miscellaneous Provisions) Amendment Regulations 1990 should not be referred to it.
Family Incomes
Mrs. Beckett : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) if he will publish a table showing the level of gross earnings in April 1990 at which (a) a single householder, (b) a married couple, (c) a married couple with two children aged four and six years and (d) a single parent with one child aged three years will lose in housing benefit, assuming full take-up of family credit, average rent and rates and other assumptions, as in his reply to the hon. Member for Sunderland, North (Mr. Clay), Official Report, 1 December 1987, columns 565-66 ;
(2) if he will publish figures, similar to those in his Department's tax/benefit model table, showing net weekly spending power for a lone mother with two children aged four and six years under the benefit system as uprated in April 1990 and in each of the following circumstances : (a) not working, after one year on benefits, (b) earning £20 a week from part-time working and (c) working full time and earning (i) £60, (ii) £70, (iii) £80, (iv) £90, (v) £100, (vi) £110 and (vii) £120 per week ;
(3) if he will publish tables similar to those in his Department's tax/benefit model table showing net weekly spending power for each of a single-wage married couple (a) with two children aged four and six years and (b) with three children aged three, eight and 11 years, earning (i) £60, (ii) £70, (iii) £80, (iv) £90, (v) £100, (vi) £110, (vii) £120, (viii) £130, (ix) £140, (x) £150, (xi) £160, and (xii) £170 under the benefit system as uprated in April.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : The information requested will not be available until after the Budget. I will reply to the hon. Member as soon as possible after the Budget.
Community Charge
Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will provide as much information as is available to him regarding the take-up of poll tax benefit, with a local breakdown showing the number of successful applicants in each local area and the range of benefit levels awarded.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : Estimates of levels of take-up of community charge benefit can be obtained only when data from the relevant family expenditure survey become available. Figures for the numbers of benefit recipients in each local authority area will be available in due course but it will not be possible to provide a breakdown of the range of benefit levels awarded.
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Mr. Marlow : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when he expects to give a substantive reply to the question from the hon. Member for Northampton, North about community charge rebate for pensioners, tabled for priority written answer on 15 February.Mrs Gillian Shephard : I have answered my hon. Friend's question today.
Mr. Marlow : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what would be the increased cost of community charge rebate if the rebates available to pensioners were unaffected by their savings which would not be taken into account.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard [holding answer 15 February 1990] : Information is not available to make precise estimates, but it seems probable that expenditure on community charge benefit would increase by between £175 million and £225 million if the capital limit were abolished for pensioners and no income was assumed to be derived from their capital holdings.
Cash Limits
Mr. Patrick Thompson : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security whether there have been any changes to the cash limit of his Department for 1989-90.
Mrs. Gillian Shephard : The cash limit for class XV vote 7 will be reduced by £87,000 from £1,594,692,000 to £1,594,605,000. This reduction represents the Department of Social Security's contribution towards the scheme for providing temporary shelters by certain health authorities, local authorities and voluntary organisations in the event of a spell of exceptionally severe weather to safeguard the health of people sleeping rough in central London, as announced by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health on 20 February.
There will be a corresponding increase on administration, miscellaneous health services and personal social Services, England vote, class XIV, vote 3.
HEALTH
Northern Ireland Students
Mr. Beggs : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will publish a list of courses at universities and colleges in England for which his Department refuses to pay tuition fees for students from Northern Ireland.
Mr. Freeman : There are none. If a student successfully competes for a place tuition fees will be paid provided the student fulfils the EC residency requirements of the award scheme.
Mr. Beggs : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to establish whether any discrimination exists against Northern Ireland students academically eligible to enrol on courses at universities or colleges in England for which the Department of Health normally pays tuition fees.
Mr. Freeman : None. Northern Ireland students can compete for places on courses for which the Department of Health normally pays tuition fees.
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Mr. Beggs : To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the Department of Health pays tuition fees on behalf of students from the Republic of Ireland and other European Community states accepted for courses at universities and colleges in England.
Mr. Freeman : Tuition fees are payable on behalf of students from Republic of Ireland and other European Community countries provided they fulfil the EC residency requirements of the award scheme.
Tranquillisers
Mr. Fearn : To ask the Secretary of State for Health why his Department stopped its grant to the tranquilliser withdrawal group TRANX ; and what other similar groups his Department now supports.
Mr. Freeman : TRANX was grant-aided under the Department's central funding initiative for drug misuse for the maximum three-year period. Following this, TRANX obtained further funding from local statutory authorities. As TRANX continued to experience funding difficulties negotiations took place with the local statutory authorities but no agreement could be reached whereby funding could continue. It is Government policy that support and planning for direct client services should be the responsibility of the local statutory authorities which are best placed to decide, which organisations best fit in with local service plans and budgets. In order to help regions develop such services for drug misuse, substantial amounts of earmarked funding have been allocated each year since 1986-87. This funding totalled nearly £15 million in 1989-90.
When the North West Thames regional health authority and the London borough grants unit decided not to continue to support TRANX the Department wrote in December 1989 explaining that because of this and given the constraints on central funds no further grant aid was available from the Department.
The Department is supporting MIND to produce a national directory of local tranquilliser services and public information material on tranquillisers.
Nursing Homes
Mr. Andrew Bowden : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what information he has on the number of places currently provided by (a) private and (b) voluntary registered residential homes in each local authority area in England.
Mr. Freeman : The number of places provided by (a) private and (b) voluntary registered residential homes in each local authority, as at 31 March 1987 is published in "Residential Accommodation for Mentally Ill and Mentally Handicapped People : Number of local authority, voluntary and private homes and places at 31 March 1987 England" and "Residential Accommodation for Elderly and Younger Physically Handicapped People : All Residents in Local Authority, Voluntary and Private Homes Year Ending 31 March 1987 England". Copies of these publications are available in the Library.
Tuberculosis Vaccine
Mr. Harry Barnes : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will give details of the supplies of tuberculosis vaccine that are available to children.
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Mr. Freeman : I refer the hon. Member to the reply that I gave to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Hodge Hill (Mr. Davis) on 1 March at columns 304-5.Cervical Cytology
Mr. Steen : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make it his policy to issue guidance to the Devon family practitioner committee to the effect that women who have had hysterectomies and those who, at their own request, do not wish to be placed on the cervical cytology recall system will not cause their general practitioner to be placed at financial disadvantage with regard to the calculation for new target payments under the new contract for general practitioners.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : No. The method of calculating target payments for cervical cytology is set down in paragraph 28 of the revised statement of fees and allowances. The population used in the calculations includes all women aged 25 to 64 save those who have had full hysterectomies. The Devon family practitioner committee is well aware of these arrangements.
Mr. Steen : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will set out the authority under which non-medical personnel may request information from general practitioners as to why patients on their lists are not on the cervical cytology recall system.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : HC(88)1, a copy of which is in the Library, states that all women aged 20 to 64 should be invited for cervical screening, unless their general practitioner has indicated that they should be excluded. The detailed operation of computerised call and recall systems for cervical screening is a matter for family practitioner committees on behalf of district health authorities.
Speech Therapy
Mr. Alton : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people are registered as requiring speech therapy in Liverpool ; how many currently receive such help ; how many speech therapists are employed by the health authority ; how many vacancies remain unfilled ; and if he will make a statement.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : Liverpool health authority has had difficulty recruiting qualified speech therapists and is currently examining, with the help of an expert adviser, how the situation can be improved. A report is due at the end of March. For detailed information, the hon. Member may wish to contact the chairman of Liverpool health authority.
Schizophrenia
Mr. Alton : To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will make a statement about the provision of facilities for sufferers of schizophrenia on Merseyside ; how many acute admission wards, day hostels and day hospitals exist for the care of schizophrenics on Merseyside ; how many trained psychiatric staff are employed by the health authority ; and how many schizophrenics are registered with the health authority.
Mr. Freeman : We do not hold this information centrally. The hon. Member may wish to contact the chairman of Mersey regional health authority.
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AIDS
Mr. Alton : To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he will review compensation payments for HIV patients who contracted the AIDS virus as a direct result of blood transfusions made during the course of surgery ; what are the latest estimates of the number of patients involved ; what would be the total cost if they were treated on a par with haemophiliac HIV victims ; and if he will make a statement.
Mrs. Virginia Bottomley : The additional ex-gratia payment made to the Macfarlane Trust enabling lump sum payments of £20,000 to each haemophiliac with HIV was not compensation.
It recognised the wholly exceptional circumstances which haemophiliacs and their families face, that their insurance, employment and mortgage prospects were already affected by their serious disability, and the hereditary nature of haemophilia can mean that more than one member of a family may be affected. The situation of someone who has contracted HIV as the result of a blood transfusion is, therefore, not directly comparable.
The position at the end of January 1990, as reported to the communicable disease surveillance centre, is that in England, Wales and Northern Ireland there have been 18 cases of AIDS in people known to have been transfused in the United Kingdom, of whom 13 are known to be dead (not necessarily directly as a result of AIDS). The comparable figure on HIV seropositive transfused in the United Kingdom was 17.
Compensation is a matter for the courts.
Durham Health Authority
Mr. Steinberg : To ask the Secretary of State for Health when he expects to reply to the question tabled by the hon. Member for City of Durham for answer on 9 February concerning spending by Durham health authority.
Mr. Freeman : I refer the hon. Member to my reply to him of 28 February at columns 226-27.
Yorkshire Regional Health Authority
Mrs. Peacock : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what is the total cost involved in the running of the Yorkshire regional health authority headquarters and administration for 1990-91 and for each of the past five years.
Mr. Freeman [holding answer 25 January 1990] : Figures for headquarters administration expenditure in the Yorkshire region for the years 1983-84 to 1988-89 (the latest year available) are shown in the table :
Headquarters administration expenditure-Yorkshire region
£ thousand (cash)
|Regional |District |Total
|health |health
|authority |authorities
------------------------------------------------------------
1983-84 |4,926 |22,444 |27,370
1984-85 |5,924 |23,741 |29,665
1985-86 |7,113 |23,199 |30,312
1986-87 |7,997 |24,218 |32,215
1987-88 |8,675 |28,113 |36,788
1988-89 |8,962 |30,479 |39,441
Source: Annual accounts of the Yorkshire regional health
authority (RHA) and the district health authorities (DHAs)
comprising the Yorkshire region.
Notes:
1. Expenditure on headquarters administration includes all
current expenditure on the pay and pay related costs of
staff of all disciplines (for recent years including
general managers) employed at headquarters levels and their
office costs and overheads. It excludes the cost of
clerical and secretarial support staff employed in
departments at hospital and unit level: such costs are
regarded as operational.
2. Prior to 1 April 1985 some districts had an associated
family practitioner committee (FPC). Those authorities'
expenditure for the years before that date include small
elements relating to FPCs administrative expenses which are
not separately identifiable.
3. Regions are managed in an integrated way and total
expenditure by the Yorkshire region is more meaningful than
that for the Yorkshire RHA in isolation from the districts
within the region.
FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS
BBC External Services
Mr. David Martin : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether, in the light of developments in eastern Europe, he will review the level of provision of English language teaching of the BBC external services in those countries.
Mr. Sainsbury : We regularly review with the BBC World Service the hours of English language teaching (ELT) for eastern Europe and other regions. ELT in English to Europe and the Soviet Union increased by 50 per cent. to 26.5 hours a week between 1986 and 1989. In addition, 4.5 hours a week are broadcast in eastern European and Russian vernaculars.
Nicaragua
Mr. Tom Clarke : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the outcome of the elections in Nicaragua.
Mr. Sainsbury : I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister to my hon. Friend the Member for Shipley (Sir M. Fox) on 27 February.
NATO Arms Definitions
Mr. Macdonald : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what are NATO's current definitions of (i) main battle tanks, and (ii) combat aircraft currently being discussed at the conventional forces in Europe talks in Vienna ; and how these differ from NATO's previous definitions.
Mr. Waldegrave : Copies of the NATO texts tabled on 8 February for a new definition of tanks/armoured combat vehicles and for a revised proposal on combat aircraft are being placed in the Library of the House.
The new texts reflect western efforts to meet Warsaw pact concerns. On tanks the weight limit has been reduced to capture more vehicles (13 tonnes for tracked tanks ; 20 tonnes for wheeled) and a limit of 1,500 has been introduced on heavy armoured combat vehicles (the category into which less heavy but comparably armed vehicles would fall). On combat aircraft a new ceiling of 4,700 has been set (to include medium bombers and land-based naval aircraft) ; aircraft whose primary function is training have been excluded and an additional 500 limit is set on air defence interceptors. The 30 per cent. sufficiency rule will still apply.
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Eastern Europe
Mr. Macdonald : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is Her Majesty's Government's policy on the total withdrawal of Soviet short-range nuclear forces from eastern Europe outside the terms of a multilateral disarmament agreement between NATO and the Warsaw pact.
Mr. Waldegrave : NATO has repeatedly called on the Soviet Union to reduce the number of its short-range nuclear missile systems, in which it enjoys a substantial numerical superiority vis-a-vis the West.
Mr. Macdonald : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is Her Majesty's Government's policy on the total withdrawal of Soviet armed forces from eastern Europe (a) at the request of east European Governments and (b) as part of the conventional forces in Europe talks in Vienna.
Mr. Waldegrave : The CFE agreement will set limits on participating states' armed forces in the area of application (from the Atlantic to the Urals). The western treaty text (tabled on 14 December) envisages that it will be for each alliance to determine how these residual forces will be apportioned among its members. Soviet armed forces are already being withdrawn from certain east European countries as a result of bilateral agreements. The future of Soviet forces in the GDR has yet to be agreed. But we could imagine the continued presence of Soviet troops for a transitional period.
Chemical Weapons
Mr. Macdonald : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is Her Majesty's Government's policy with regard to states that are capable of producing chemical weapons having signed a chemical weapons convention before the transitional period for the implementation of a chemical weapons convention can be deemed to have been concluded.
Mr. Waldegrave : We shall encourage all states to sign and ratify a chemical weapons convention at the earliest possible time after it has been agreed.
Conventional Force Talks
Mr. Macdonald : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the policy of Her Majesty's Government on the time scale for the resumption of further conventional force reduction talks in Europe upon completion of the current conventional forces in Europe talks in Vienna.
Mr. Waldegrave : This was set out in the speech by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs to the Ottawa open skies conference on 12 February.
He said :
"I believe that we should launch immediately after the CSCE Summit later this year continuing consultations among all the countries concerned, with a view to new negotiations on an agreed basis as soon as possible. We should focus on both types of dividend--on the political, as well as the military, goals of arms control. Those negotiations should be closely supervised at the political level and involve participation by Ministers, where necessary."
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Warsaw Pact
Mr. Macdonald : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what proportion of the Warsaw pact's armed forces in the Atlantic to the Urals region in the categories of (i) main battle tanks, (ii) other armoured vehicles, (iii) artillery, (iv) anti-tank weapons, (v) combat aircraft and (vi) personnel belong to member states other than the Soviet Union.
Mr. Waldegrave : Updated data on armed forces (which corresponds to agreed definitions) will be exchanged formally on signature of a CFE agreement. Until this is done, it is not possible to say precisely what proportion Soviet forces form of total Warsaw pact forces, but as the figures provided in the NATO booklet "Conventional Forces in Europe : The Facts" show, it is substantial.
Under the sufficiency rule in the CFE negotiations, individual country holdings will be limited to a fixed proportion of total equipment holdings in the area. Under the West's envisaged 30 per cent. limit, the Soviet Union would be entitled to 60 per cent. of the Warsaw pact entitlements (under the eastern 35-40 per cent. limit, 70-80 per cent.). As this sufficiency rule would take effect after parity, it implies the Soviet Union holds more than that proportion now.
Nuclear Non-proliferation
Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if, in light of non-proliferation goals set by the European Community, he will make it his policy to make representations to his French counterpart concerning the agreement made on 21 February by France with Pakistan to sell a nuclear plant.
Mr. Waldegrave : If the sale to which the hon. Member refers goes ahead, we are confident, in view of the stated French position, that it will be subject to adequate guarantees that no nuclear material can be diverted to non-peaceful uses. Such guarantees would include the application of safeguards by the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if any member state of the 1968 nuclear non- proliferation treaty has notified Her Majesty's Government over its concern with Anglo-French technical collaboration on air-launched nuclear missile systems, in the context of United Kingdom commitments under the nuclear non -proliferation treaty article 1.
Mr. Waldegrave : No. Article 1 of the non-proliferation treaty would be relevant to possible Anglo-French collaboration on an air-launched missile only if that collaboration were to involve the transfer of a nuclear warhead, which it would not.
Diplomatic Immunity
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if Her Majesty's Government have made any representations since May 1979 to any other Government following the violation of diplomatic immunity of an embassy or ambassadorial residence by forces not representing the Government of the state where the embassy was based.
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Mr. Sainsbury : The information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
UN Disarmament Literature
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if his Department has any commitment to the United Nations for the responsibility of distribution in the United Kingdom and dependent territories of United Nations disarmament literature.
Romania
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans he has to assist in the provision of books, journals and academic literature to Romania.
Mr. Waldegrave : Following the destruction of Bucharest university central library during the Romanian revolution, the British Council has agreed to pay for the transport to Romania of more than 250,000 academic books collected from the public and publishers by Professors Deletant, Crampton, Clogg and Pavlovitch.
Diplomatic Personnel
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what requirements are placed on United Kingdom diplomatic personnel based at Her Majesty's embassies abroad with regard to keeping within the law of the state where they are based ; and what guidance is given to diplomatic personnel concerning their actions under conditions when the Government of the country in which they are based are removed by a revolution.
Mr. Sainsbury : In accordance with article 41 of the Vienna convention on diplomatic relations, staff of missions overseas are expected to respect the laws and regulations of the receiving state. Guidance on this point, but not on the specific circumstances of a Government being removed by revolution, was issued to all posts and to staff in London in October 1989.
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