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Sir John Hannam : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list the reasons for refusing attendance allowance during the 12 months to December 1991 where (a) an initial claim was refused and (b) an existing claim was withdrawn ; and how many claimants were affected in each category.
Mr. Scott : Such information as is available is in the tables.
Initial claim refused
|Number
------------------------------------------------------------
Medical criteria not satisfied |107,678
Constant attendance allowance total overlap |10
Residence and presence tests not satisfied |77
|-------
|107,765
!
Existing claim withdrawn (by
claimant or third party)
|Number
---------------------------------
Deceased |8,561
Other reasons<1> |5,832
|-------
|14,393
<1> A detailed breakdown of this
figure is not available.
Pensions
Mr. Janman : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what would be (a) the extra cost of increasing the state pension to £110 per week for a single person and £220 per week for a couple expressed as (i) total national cost and (ii) per contributor and (b) the corresponding reduction in the cost of housing benefit payments and income support payments if the pension figures in (a) were introduced.
Miss Widdecombe : The extra cost to the national insurance fund of increasing the basic state retirement pension to £110 per week and £220 for a married couple in 1991-92 would be £30.4 billion. The corresponding reduction in the combined cost of income support, housing benefit and community charge benefit would be £3.1 billion The combined extra weekly cost of this change in national insurance contributions for a man on average earnings and his employer would be £39.50 per week.
Column 160
Cold Weather Payments
Mr. Winnick : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list the areas where the cold weather payments have so far been paid in 1992 ; and also the number of areas where such payments have not been paid.
Mr. Scott : Such information as is available is in the Library.
National Insurance Numbers
Mr. Marlow : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what action is required to establish that an applicant for a national insurance number is properly resident in the United Kingdom and is so entitled ; and if he will make a statement on the enforcement of these conditions.
Mr. Jack : On receipt of an application for a national insurance number we require acceptable and verifiable evidence of identification. This could include a birth certificate, a passport or a Home Office immigration form. The Home Office is informed in any case where a passport indicates that there is a restriction on taking up employment in the United Kingdom or where there is a limit on length of stay which has expired, or is about to expire.
Questions on residence are matters for my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for the Home Department.
Pension Schemes
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the estimated total amount payable to personal pension schemes from the national insurance fund in respect of the year 1991-92 ; and what increase in the basic retirement pension could be given at the same cost.
Miss Widdecombe [holding answer 24 January 1992] : By December 1991, 4.6 million people had taken out personal pensions as an alternative to remaining in SERPS. The Government Actuary estimates that the amount of revenue foregone by the national insurance fund in respect of 1991-92 will be £2,740 million made up of £2,055 million in respect of the contracted out rebate, similar to that available to contracted-out occupational pension schemes, and £685 million in respect of the additional 2 per cent. incentive.
This gross cost does not take into account the numbers of people who would join a contracted out occupational pension scheme if appropriate personal pensions were not available, nor does it take into account the future reduced burden of the national insurance fund brought about by people being in receipt of a personal pension rather than SERPS.
The gross sum referred to above would not, therefore, be available to fund increases in the basic retirement pension.
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