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Column 269
DUCHY OF LANCASTER
HIV Infection
Dr. Strang : To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster if he will make a statement on the EC-approved network of co-operation agreements between the Imperial Cancer Research Fund, the Medical Research Council, University College, London, and the United States research foundation Southwest, for research and development of a vaccine to combat HIV infections.
Mr. Waldegrave : The Medical Research Council, University College, London, the Imperial Cancer Research Fund and the Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research are all shareholders of HIVER Limited which is a research driven healthcare company located in the United Kingdom. HIVER Limited focuses on developing vaccines, therapies and diagnostics for AIDS and other immunological disorders.
Since 1987, more than £4 million has been committed to the research programme. Research is currently underway at The MRC clinical research centre, University College London, The London hospital medical school and St. Georges hospital medical school. The research is coordinated from the HIVER executive office.
NATIONAL FINANCE
Lloyd's
Mr. Peter Bottomley : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much tax he expects to repay in the current year and 1993 for losses at Lloyd's.
Mr. Dorrell : In 1992-93, to the end of September, repayments to Lloyd's underwriters have amounted to £143 million. These relate almost entirely to losses incurred in 1988-89.
The Lloyd's market declared net trading losses of £509 million for the 1988-89 tax year. Lloyd's underwriters are entitled to set their shares of these losses against their other income which has been subject to tax.
No separate forecasts are made of the eventual amount of such repayments.
Column 270
Cross-border Shopping
Mr. Hardy : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what study has been made of the opportunities for cross-border shopping for people living in coastal areas following the abolition of EC frontier controls ; and what steps he proposes to take to ensure that people in inland areas are able to take advantage of the lower prices for goods on which duty will no longer be paid available in other member states of the Community.
Sir John Cope : Agreement has been reached for intra-EC duty free sales to continue after 1992, but all other purchases by private individuals for their personnel use will be subject to VAT and excise duty in the member state where they are sold. It is difficult to anticipate the extent to which these opportunities will be taken up.
Mr. Hardy : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what forecast has been made of the increase in each country in the amount of cross-border shopping between the United Kingdom and France, in respect of goods which will be free of duty from January 1993.
Sir John Cope : No increases are expected in cross-border shopping from the continuation of intra-EC duty free sales after 1992. All other purchases by private individuals for their personal use will be subject to VAT and excise duty in the member state in which they are sold.
Housing Loans
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will bring forward proposals for a code of practice for all lenders of house purchase loans covering the regulation of (a) interest rates on all loans, (b) lending practices and (c) recovery and repossession practices and proceedings.
Mr. Dorrell : We have no plans to do so.
Appointments
Mr. Redmond : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will list all the names of public appointments that he has made, giving the period for which the appointment was made, relevant qualifications of the appointees and what remuneration each currently receives.
Sir John Cope : The following provides the information requested for all current appointments to public bodies for which the Chancellor is responsible except for VAT tribunals on which, because of the numbers involved, I will write separately to the hon. Member.
Column 269
Annex A
Public appointments by the Chancellor's Department
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Body Member Appointment Qualification Remuneration
|From |To |£
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Building Societies |Mr. M. R. C. Walden CBE |25 September 1986 |24 September 1994 |Building Society Director |17,500
Commission |Mr. S. Procter CBE |25 September 1986 |24 September 1993 |Banker |17,500
|Mr. G. Sunderland |1 October 1992 |30 September 1995 |Banker |17,500
|Mr. F. E. Worsley |1 May 1991 |30 June 1994 |Accountant |17,500
Friendly Societies |Mr. A. Wilson |25 September 1992 |24 September 1995 |Lawyer |12,500
Commission |Mr. J. A. Geddes |1 October 1992 |30 September 1995 |Actuary |12,500
|Mr. P. E. Couse |1 October 1992 |30 September 1995 |Accountant |12,500
|Dr. J. Dine |1 October 1992 |30 September 1995 |Barrister |12,500
Securities and |Mr. A. Large (Chairman) |1 June 1992 |31 May 1997 |The Financial Services Act 1986 |)
Investments |Mr. R. Quartano CBE |27 June 1985 |31 July 1993 |requires that the members of the |)
Board |(Deputy Chairman) |governing body must include |)
|Lord Runciman CBE |8 August 1986 |31 July 1994 |persons with experience of invest-|)
|(Deputy Chairman) |ment business of a kind relevant |)
|Mr. J. Craven |1 August 1990 |31 July 1993 |to the functions of the agency; |)
|Mr. R. Croft CB |8 August 1986 |9 June 1994 |and other persons, including |)
|Mr. J. Gardiner |1 August 1989 |31 July 1995 |regular users on their own ac- |)Matters for the Securities and
|Mr. N. Lessels |1 August 1989 |31 July 1994 |count or on behalf of others of |)Investments Board
|Mr. J. Manser |8 August 1986 |31 July 1994 |services provided by persons |)
|Mr. J. Palmer |1 August 1991 |31 July 1994 |carrying on investment business of|)
|Mr. G. R. Russell |8 August 1986 |31 July 1993 |any such kind; and the composi- |)
|Mr. L. Warwick |1 August 1989 |31 July 1993 |tion of that body must be such |)
|Mr. B. Williamson CBE |8 August 1986 |31 July 1993 |as to secure a proper balance |)
|Lady Scott CBE |1 August 1991 |31 July 1994 |between the interests of persons |)
|carrying on investment business |)
|and the interests of the public. |)
Financial Services |Mr. K. A. Blundell |4 May 1988 |30 April 1994 |The Financial Services Act 1986 |)
Tribunal |Mr. W. M. Carson |4 May 1988 |30 April 1994 |requires that there be a panel of |)
|Mr. P. G. Green |4 May 1988 |30 April 1994 |persons to serve as members of |)
|Mr. G. C. Grover |4 May 1988 |30 April 1994 |the Tribunal. The panel shall |)
|Mr. J. L. Kirkpatrick CBE |4 May 1988 |30 April 1994 |include persons who appear to be |)
|Mr. A. F. Lamb |4 May 1988 |30 April 1994 |qualified by experience or other- |)
|Mr. H. G. Littlefair |4 May 1988 |30 April 1994 |wise to deal with the cases that |)
|Sir J. McKinnon |4 May 1988 |30 April 1994 |may be referred to the Tribunal |)
|Mr. A. W. Mallinson |4 May 1988 |30 April 1994 |)per diem free
|Mr. W. O'Farrell |4 May 1988 |30 April 1994 |)
|Mr. J. B. Page |4 May 1988 |30 April 1994 |)
|Mr. J. C. Ritchie |1 May 1991 |30 April 1994 |)
|Mr. R. P. Wilkinson |1 May 1991 |30 April 1994 |)
|Mr. G. Willetts |4 May 1988 |30 April 1994 |)
|Mr. P. D. Williams |1 May 1991 |30 April 1994 |)
|Mr. H. Woods |1 May 1991 |30 April 1994 |)
National Savings |Mr. M. St. Giles |1 October 1991 |30 September 1993 |Marketing |10,000
Board |Mr. R. Heape |1 October 1991 |30 September 1993 |Financial Services |10,000
Royal Mint |Mr. J. Burnett-Stuart |17 June 1992 |16 June 1993 |Industry |3,120
Management |Mr. S. Cameron |17 June 1992 |16 June 1993 |Industry |3,120
Board
Treasure Trove |Professor J. Evans |5 years |- |Archaeologist |Nil
Reviewing |Mr. D. Sellwood |5 years |Numismatist |Nil
Committee |Mr. C. Lyon |1 year |- |Numismatist |Nil
|Mr. J . Och |5 years |- |Auctioneer |Nil
Advisory Panel |Mr. M. Jones |No set period |- |Museum Keeper |Nil
on Treasure |Mrs. M. Buchanan |2 years |- |Museum Keeper |Nil
Trove in |Mr. J. Murray |2 years |- |Museum Keeper |Nil
Scotland
Retail Price Index |Mr. J. Astin |March 1992- |Eurostat |Nil
Advisory |Mr. S. Brittan |March 1992 |- |The Financial Times |Nil
Committee |Professor D. Currie |March 1992 |- |London Business School |Nil
|Professor M. C. Fleming |March 1992 |- |Loughborough University |Nil
|Mr. K. H. B. Frere |March 1992 |- |Nominated by the National |Nil
| Federation of Consumer
| Groups
|Mr. S. G. B. Henry |March 1992 |- |Bank of England |Nil
|Mr. T. J. Hoyes |March 1992 |- |Nominated by Age Concern |Nil
|Mr. J. Hughes |March 1992 |- |Nominated by the National |Nil
| Consumer Council
|Mr. D. Lea OBE |March 1992 |- |Nominated by the Trades Union |Nil
| Congress
|Miss R. Lea |March 1992 |- |The Mitsubishi Bank Ltd. |Nil
|Miss R. J. Maurice |March 1992 |- |- |Nil
|Mr. C. J. Mowl |March 1992 |- |HM Treasury |Nil
|Dr. J. Muellbauer |March 1992 |- |Nuffield College, Oxford |Nil
|Professor J. F. Pickering |March 1992 |- |Portsmouth University |Nil
|Professor D. G. Rhys OBE |March 1992 |- |Cardiff Business School |Nil
|Mrs. B. Rosewell |March 1992 |- |Business Strategies Ltd. |Nil
|Dr. P. Rowlatt |March 1992 |- |National Economic Research |Nil
| Associates
|Dr. A. Sentance |March 1992 |- |Nominated by the Confederation |Nil
| of British Industry
|Professor R. Turvey |March 1992 |- |London School of Economics |Nil
|Mr. R. G. Ward |March 1992 |- |Central Statistical Office |Nil
Central Statistical |Mrs. M. Berg |February 1992 |February 1994 |Economist |2,000
Management |Mr. P. Thornton |February 1992 |February 1994 |Marketing |2,000
Board
Central Statistical |Mr. A. Armstrong |July 1991 |July 1994 |Economics |Nil
Office Advisory |Mr. S. Brittan |July 1991 |July 1994 |Economics |Nil
Committee |Mr. R. Brown |July 1991 |July 1994 |Commerce |Nil
Members |Mr. A. Chantraine |July 1991 |July 1994 |Eurostat |Nil
|Dr. C. Cosgrove |July 1991 |July 1994 |Economic and Export |Nil
|Mr. H. L. Cousins |July 1991 |July 1994 |Commerce |Nil
|Mr. S. Jukes |July 1991 |July 1994 |Economics |Nil
|Mr. M. King |July 1991 |July 1994 |Economist, Bank of England |Nil
|Professor D. Lievesley |July 1991 |July 1994 |Economic and Social Research |Nil
|Professor D. Mayes |July 1991 |July 1994 |Economic and Social Research |Nil
|Mrs. B. Rosewell |July 1991 |July 1994 |Economics |Nil
|Dr. A. Sentance |July 1991 |July 1994 |Economic |Nil
|Dr. J. Whitley |July 1991 |July 1994 |Economic |Nil
|Mrs. A. Wright |July 1991 |July 1994 |Overseas Development |Nil
Treasury |Professor C. Bean |1991 |- |Academic |125 per diem
Academic Panel |Professor D. Begg |1982 |- |Academic |110 per diem
|Professor S. Holly |1983 |- |Academic |110 per diem
|Professor M. Miller |1976 |- |Academic |110 per diem
|Professor P. Minford |1976 |- |Academic |110 per diem
|Professor K. Wallis |1980 |- |Academic |110 per diem
|Mr. M. Weale |1990 |- |Academic |110 per diem
|Mr. P. Westaway |1990 |- |Academic |110 per diem
|Professor M. Wickens |1981 |- |Academic |110 per diem
|Professor S. Wren-Lewis |1987 |- |Academic |110 per diem
|Professor D. Vines |1985 |- |Academic |110 per diem
TSRB |Sir D. Nickson KBE DL |1988 |End March 1995 |Not held |Nil
|Ms. L. Botting |1987 |End March 1993 |Not held |Nil
|Mr. J. Pope OBE |1986 |End March 1993 |Not held |Nil
|Sir P. Cazalet |1988 |End March 1993 |Not held |Nil
|Sir A. Wilson |1988 |End March 1995 |Not held |Nil
|Mr. H. Pigott |1988 |End March 1994 |Not held |Nil
|Sir C. Clothier KCB QC |1989 |End March 1993 |Not held |Nil
|Ms. A. Burdus |1990 |End March 1993 |Not held |Nil
|Mr. A. Gormly CBE |1990 |End March 1993 |Not held |Nil
Royal Mint |Mr. J. Porteous MA |1968 |- |Numismatist |Nil
Advisory |Sir H. Casson CB, KCVO, |1971 |- |Royal Academy |Nil
Committee | PPRA, RDI, RIBA
|Sir J. Hale D. Litt, FBA |1979 |- |Professor of History |Nil
|Mr. V. Duggleby |1985 |7 years |Financial Journalist |Nil
|Mr. N. D. Cadbury |1985 |7 years |Chief Executive of Cadbury |Nil
|Miss M. Warner |1985 |7 years |Writer |Nil
|The Most Hon. The |1991 |7 years |Chairman of the British Council |Nil
| Marchioness of Anglesey
|Dr. C. E. Challis |1991 |7 years |Numismatist |Nil
|Mr. M. H. Harvey |1991 |7 years |Lettering expert |Nil
|Professor B. Kneale RA |1992 |7 years |Master of Sculpture |Nil
|Professor E. A. Bell CB, |1992 |7 years |Former Director of the Royal |Nil
| Ph.D | Botanical Gardens, Kew
Public Works |Mr. R. J. Dent (Chairman) |1991 |4 years |Finance/Local authorities |Nil
Loan Board |Miss F. M. Cook (Deputy |1992 |4 years |Finance/Local authorities |Nil
| Chairman)
|Miss V. J. di Palma |1990 |4 years |Finance/Local authorities |Nil
|Mr. G. R. Russell |1991 |4 years |Finance/Local authorities |Nil
|Mr. P. Brackfield |1990 |4 years |Finance/Local authorities |Nil
|Mr. D. Adams |1992 |4 years |Finance/Local authorities |Nil
|Mr. R. A. Chapman |1989 |4 years |Finance/Local authorities |Nil
|Mr. A. Morton |1989 |4 years |Finance/Local authorities |Nil
|Mr. I. C. Wilson |1989 |4 years |Finance/Local authorities |Nil
|Mr. G. G. Williams |1990 |4 years |Finance/Local authorities |Nil
|Mr. R. G. Tettenborn |1991 |4 years |Finance/Local authorities |Nil
|Mr. J. E. Scotfield |1992 |4 years |Finance/Local authorities |Nil
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will introduce legislation to ensure that housing loans lenders should not have the automatic right of repossession in arrears cases.
Mr. Dorrell : We have no plans to do so.
House Renovations
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make it his policy to ensure that house renovation costs are not liable to value added tax charges.
Sir John Cope : VAT at the standard rate has been applied to house renovation costs since 1973 when the tax was first introduced. Our obligations under the EC Sixth VAT Directive prevent us extending the scope of our present zero rating.
Auditors
Mr. Austin Mitchell : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proposals he has for legislation under which the auditors of banks would be required to detect and report fraud to the regulators.
Mr. Dorrell : On 22 October, the Chancellor announced that the Government accepted all the recommendations of Lord Justice Bingham's inquiry into the supervision of the Bank of Credit and Commerce International, including the recommendation that there should be a statutory duty on auditors of banks to report to the Bank of England. A similar recommendation had been made in the Treasury and Civil Service Committee's fourth report for 1991-92. Consultation with the accounting profession and with the banks on the formulation of such a duty and its enforcement will begin shortly.
Housing Loans
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make it his policy to amend the Building Societies Act 1986 to enable mortgage lenders to transfer shortfall suffered when redeeming the mortgages from sale proceeds to new mortgage accounts.
Mr. Dorrell : We have no plans to do so.
We recently announced two new measures which will help borrowers with a shortfall to move house ( Official Report, 20 October 1992, column 243 ).
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will introduce legislation to require housing loan lenders to explore alternative legal remedies for debt recovery before repossession is considered.
Mr. Dorrell : We have no plans to do so.
Business Expansion Scheme
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make it his policy to extend the business expansion scheme to include assured shorthold tenancies.
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Mr. Dorrell : We have no plans to do so ; the business expansion scheme will not be available for new investment after the end of 1993.
Cohesion Funds
Mr. John D. Taylor : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how the United Kingdom will benefit from the cohesion funds of the Maastricht agreement ; what was the gross domestic product per capita in the United Kingdom, expressed in ecus, at 15 September ; and what it is now.
Mr. Lamont : The cohesion fund envisaged in the Maastricht treaty will be a structural fund ; and the usual method of calculating relative wealth for these funds is to use purchasing power parities. On that basis the United Kingdom would not qualify for any assistance from the cohesion fund.
The latest forecast of money GDP at market prices for financial year 1992- 93 is £619.2 billion, or £10,721 per head. This would be equivalent to 14,810 ecus per head at the exchange rates on 15 September ; and 13,191 ecus per head at the exchange rates on 29 October.
Visual Handicap
Mr. Alfred Morris : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what consultation took place with organisations representing visually handicapped people before the design of the new £10 and £20 notes was approved ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Lamont : The Bank of England's consultations with organisations representing the visually handicapped, regarding the new series of banks notes, began in March 1984. Regular meetings, approximately annually, have taken place since then with the Royal National Institute for the Blind, which co-ordinates communication between the bank and other organisations representing the visually handicapped.
Unemployment
Mr. Milburn : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what have been the additional costs to the Exchequer of benefit payments and lost income tax and national insurance contributions arising from the increase in unemployment since April 1990.
Mr. Dorrell : Figures for benefit expenditure on the unemployed are set out in figure 9 on page 8 of the DSS departmental report (Cm. 1914). The effect of the increase in unemployment on tax revenues and national insurance contributions cannot be estimated reliably.
Mr. Milburn : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the estimated annual cost of maintaining the current number of people on the unemployment register in each region in terms of benefits payments and lost tax and national insurance contributions.
Column 277
Mr. Dorrell : Figures for benefit expenditure on the unemployed people are set out in figure 9 on page 8 of the DSS departmental report (Cm. 1914). A regional breakdown for this expenditure is not available. The effects on tax revenues and national insurance contributions cannot be calculated reliably.
European Community
Mr. Cryer : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the number of civil servants in his Department whose main task is work related wholly or mainly to the European Community.
Mr. Dorrell [holding answer 3 November 1992] : There are currently 35 civil servants in the Treasury whose main task is work related wholly or mainly to the European Community.
NATIONAL HERITAGE
Football
Mr. Parry : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what discussions he has had with the Football Association regarding unfair practices in football ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Brooke : None. But I deplore unfair practices in all sports. The United Kingdom has taken the lead in developing the Council of Europe's code of sports ethics, the basic principle of which is that ethical considerations and fair play are integral elements of all sports activities. The enforcement of discipline is a matter for the governing bodies of sport.
National Lottery
Mr. Peter Bottomley : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Eltham of 28 October, Official Report, column 690, whether the national lottery and football pools are to be regarded as equivalent forms of gambling ; and whether controls will be the same.
Mr. Brooke : No. Lotteries are a game of chance, while football pools are a game of skill and judgment which depend on the outcome of a sporting event. The national lottery will need its own system of regulation. Details of the control regime for the national lottery will be announced when the Bill is published.
SOCIAL SECURITY
Cold Weather Payments
Mr. Pickthall : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many households in the Lancashire, West constituency qualify for payments under the cold weather payments scheme.
Mr. Scott : The administration of social fund is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member with such information as is available and a copy will be placed in the Library.
Letter from M. Bichard to Mr. Colin Pickthall, dated 3 November 1992 :
Column 278
As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency it is my responsibility to answer questions about relevant operational matters. I am therefore replying to the points raised in your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security asking how many households in the West Lancashire constituency qualify for payments under the cold weather payments scheme.Lancashire West constituency is covered by the Agency's South West Lancashire District. It is not possible to give an exact figure of how many customers would qualify for a Cold Weather Payment except at disproportionate cost. However, based on figures for those claiming Income Support in November 1991, it is estimated that approximately 15,000 customers in the South West Lancashire District may qualify for a Cold Weather Payment should the area be triggered. The constituency and District boundaries do not, however, correspond and a proportion of these will live outside the constituency. I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy of this reply will appear in the Official Report. Copies are also being placed in the Library.
Mr. Pickthall : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security on what dates cold weather payments were made in Lancashire, West in response to a forecast of a qualifying period ; and what was the period taken for payments to be made once the system had been triggered.
Mr. Scott : The administration of social fund is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member with such information as is available and a copy will be placed in the Library.
Letter from M. Bichard to Mr. Colin Pickthall, dated 3 November 1992 :
As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency it is my responsibility to answer questions about relevant operational matters. I am therefore replying to the points raised in your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security asking on what dates cold weather payments were made in West Lancashire in response to a forecast of a qualifying period ; and what was the period taken for payments to be made once the system had been triggered. Neither of the weather stations which give information for the area covered by the constituency declared a forecast period of cold weather from 1 November 1991 to date. Details of dates where payments were made in response to a recorded period of cold weather are available in the Library.
It is not possible to give the exact time taken for payments to be made. However, the average time taken to identify all eligible customers is 6.5 days. The preparation of payments starts immediately after identification, but it may take a few days further before they are posted depending on the volumes.
A copy of this reply will appear in the Official Report. Copies are also being placed in the Library.
Mr. Llwyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many households in the Meirionnydd Nant Conwy constituency qualify for payments under the cold weather payments scheme.
Mr. Scott : The administration of the social fund is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member and a copy will be placed in the Library.
Letter from M. Bichard to Mr. Elfyn Llwyd, dated3 November 1992 :
As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency, it is my responsibility to answer questions about relevant operational matters. I am therefore replying to the points raised in your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security asking how many households in the Meirionnydd Nant Conwy constituency qualify for payments under the cold weather payments scheme.
The Meirionnydd Nant Conwy constituency is covered by Gwyneddigion, Mid Wales and Maelor, and North Wales Coast Districts. It is not possible to give an exact figure of how
Column 279
many customers would qualify for a Cold Weather Payment except at disproportionate cost. However, based on figures for those claiming Income Support in November 1991, it is estimated that approximately 36,200 customers claiming from those Districts may qualify for a Cold Weather Payment, should the area be triggered. Parliamentary constituencies and District boundaries do not correspond however and therefore a proportion of these will live outside the constituency boundaries.I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy of this reply will appear in the Official Report. Copies are being placed in the Library.
Mr. Connarty : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many households in the Falkirk, East constituency qualify for payments under the cold weather payments scheme.
Mr. Scott : The administration of the social fund is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member with such information as is available and a copy will be placed in the Library.
Letter from M. Bichard to Mr. Michael Connarty, dated 3 November 1992 :
As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency it is my responsibility to answer questions about relevant operational matters. I am therefore replying to the points raised in your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security asking how many households in the Falkirk East constituency qualify for payments under the cold weather payments scheme.
Falkirk East constituency is covered by the Forth Valley District. It is not possible to give an exact figure of how many customers would qualify for a Cold Weather Payment except at disproportionate cost. However, based on figures for those claiming Income Support in November 1991 it is estimated that approximately 11,900 customers in the Forth Valley District may qualify for a Cold Weather Payment should the area be triggered. The constituency and District boundaries do not correspond, however, and a proportion of these will live outside the constituency boundaries.
I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy of this reply will appear in the Official Report. Copies are also being placed in the Library.
Benefits Agency
Mr. Barnes : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) when the chief executive of the Benefits Agency acknowledged case MOB/172/8898 pursued by the hon. Member for Derbyshire, North-East (ref. DB102919) ; when a reply was received ; and what was the reason for the time taken ;
(2) when the chief executive of the Benefits Agency will send an acknowledgement and reply to the hon. Member for Derbyshire, North-East to a letter sent on 14 September concerning the case of the person with the national insurance number JE 54 08 98 C ; (3) when the chief executive of the Benefits Agency will send acknowledgements and replies to the hon. Member for Derbyshire, North-East for letters sent on 7 August, 14 and 16 September concerning the case of the person with the national insurance number ZT 349 447A ;
(4) when the chief executive of the Benefits Agency will reply to the letter sent to him by the hon. Member for Derbyshire, North-East on 6 July concerning case NM 139 765A and acknowledged by the Benefits Agency on 27 July under its reference DB 103229 ; when there will be a follow up to his Department's reference S6/3193/5 of 5 August on
Column 280
this case ; and what record he holds of the number of telephone calls that have been made by the hon. Member for Derbyshire, North-East in connection with this matter.Mr. Scott : Correspondence about operational matters is the responsibility of Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member and a copy will be placed in the Library.
Letter from M. Bichard to Mr. Harry Barnes, dated 3 November 1992 :
As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency, it is my responsibility to answer questions about relevant operational matters. I am therefore replying to the points raised in your recent Parliamentary Questions to the Secretary of State for Social Security relating to the replies to letters you had sent about individual constituents. All four letters relate to disability benefits processed at the Fylde Benefits Directorate. Regrettably because of the heavy workload at the Directorate following the introduction of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) and the volume of correspondence this has generated there have been some delays in replying to Members' letters about these benefits. I can assure you that all the cases are receiving urgent attention but replies are sometimes delayed whilst the individual case is resolved. Once the backlog of claims has been cleared it will be possible to respond to correspondence much more promptly. In the meantime I apologise for the delays on the cases referred to in your questions.
The situation on each of these is as follows :--
Case MOB/172/8898
An acknowledgement is not normally sent by the Benefits Agency when a Minister has written to the Member confirming a letter has been passed to me to reply. In this case an interim reply was sent on 10 June explaining that a full reply was not yet possible. A final reply was sent on 19 August. The delay in replying was due to the heavy workload at the DLA Unit.
Case JE540898C
I apologise that your letter to me of 14 September was not acknowledged. I replied to you on 28 October with full details of the award made to this customer.
Case ZT349447A
Again I am sorry that your letters were not acknowledged. This was a mistake on the part of my correspondence section. I replied to your letter on 2 November.
Case NM139765A
I replied to your letter on 2 November with full details of the award made to this customer. The DLA Unit has a record of five telephone calls from your office about this case.
I hope you will find this reply helpful. A copy of this reply will appear in the Official Report. Copies are also being placed in the Library.
Earnings
Mr. Dewar : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will publish estimates of the number of part-time and full-time employees earning (a) below the PAYE threshold and (b) below the national insurance lower earnings limit, in (i) 1989, (ii) 1990, (iii) 1991 and (iv) the current year, respectively.
Miss Widdecombe : The information requested is given in the table.
Column 281
Estimated numbers (millions) earnings less than
|PAYE threshold |National insurance
|lower earnings
|limit
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1989 |3.50 |3.00
1990 |3.50 |3.00
1991 |3.50 |3.25
1992 |3.75 |3.25
Notes:
1. Figures are broad estimates based on the annual New Earnings Survey and
estimates of the number of employees in employment.
2. It is estimated that around one tenth of these employees are full-time,
most of whom fell below the thresholds because their earnings were affected
by absence in the survey period.
Retirement Pensions
Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if it is his policy that retirement pensions shall continue to be uprated annually in line with the retail prices index.
Miss Widdecombe : The plans for the uprating of benefits will be announced to the House in due course.
Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if it is his policy that retirement pensions shall continue to be free of a means test.
Drug and Alcohol Problems
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is his estimate of the expected total expenditure on allowances towards the cost of residential rehabilitation services for persons with drug or alcohol problems during the current financial year.
Mr. Burt : The estimated income support payable in the current financial year to people in independent residential care and nursing homes claiming the drug or alcohol abuse limit is about £20 million.
Benefit Fraud
Mr. Cryer : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what was the total amount of money discovered to have been fraudulently claimed from his Department by benefit claimants in 1991 and the current year to the most recent practicable date.
Miss Widdecombe : I refer the hon. Member to my reply to him on 27 October 1992, at column 640 . The Benefits Agency's estimated fraud savings for 1991-92 were £427 million. For the first half of 1992-93 the estimated savings were £268 million.
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