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Claims
Mrs. Jane Kennedy : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many claims remained to be cleared on 26 November 1992 (a) in total and (b) for claimants already in receipt of income support (i) for new claims for the highest rate of disabled living allowance care component and (ii) for new claims for the higher rate of attendance allowance.
Mr. Scott : The administration of disability living allowance 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 Ms. Jane Kennedy, dated 14 January 1993 :
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 concerning claims for Disability Living Allowance (DLA) and Attendance Allowance (AA) outstanding on 26 November 1992.
A claim to either DLA or AA is a claim for the benefit as a whole and not for a specific component or level of component of the benefit. It is therefore not possible to give figures on the number of outstanding claims to a particular level of component. Information about outstanding claims for claimants who are already in receipt of Income Support is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
You asked about the number of claims outstanding at 26 November 1992. The information about claims is held on a
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monthly basis, therefore the number of new claims outstanding at the end of November was just over 66,000 for DLA, and 55,000 for AA. I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report. A copy will also be placed in the Library.Disability Allowances
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what was the number and percentage of all inquiries received by the benefits inquiry line which relate to disability living allowances and attendance allowances in each month since February 1992 and the number and percentage of calls recorded but not able to get through on this line over the same period.
Mr. Scott : The administration of the benefit inquiry line for people with disabilities 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. Paul Flynn, dated 14 January 1993. 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 about the numbers and percentages of all enquiries received by the Benefits Enquiry Line related to Disability Living Allowance (DLA) and Attendance Allowance (AA) in each month since February ; and the number of calls recorded but not able to get through on this line over the same period.
The information requested is shown in the table :
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Month Number of times Percentage of <1>No calls and
subject covered in total subjects abandoned
calls
|DLA |AA |DLA |AA |Number |Per cent.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
February |49,431 |8,249 |66 |11 |37,943 |33
March |55,230 |7,247 |68 |9 |11,474 |13
April |57,455 |20,983 |52 |19 |11,370 |10
May |33,133 |16,159 |45 |22 |10,438 |13
June |45,917 |20,350 |45 |20 |11,019 |11
July |30,233 |10,979 |44 |16 |11,551 |13
August |25,010 |9,065 |44 |16 |9,290 |9
September |23,460 |8,880 |40 |15 |8,793 |11
October |21,505 |8,645 |37 |15 |8,130 |11
November |18,954 |8,650 |33 |15 |9,379 |16
December |15,048 |7,397 |31 |16 |7,380 |16
<1> The number of abandoned calls is relevant to the whole service provided by
the Benefit Enquiry Line.
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. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what plans he has to compensate claimants for the Benefits Agency delays in processing disability living allowance and attendance allowance and for backdating of linked benefits ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Scott : The administration of disability living allowance and attendance allowance 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. Paul Flynn, dated 14 January 1993 :
As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency, it is my responsibility to answer questions about relevant operational
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matters. I am therefore replying to the points raised in your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security, asking what plans he has to compensate claimants for Benefits Agency delays in processing Disability Living Allowance (DLA) and Attendance Allowance (AA) and for backdating of linked benefits.The present arrangements are that compensation can be considered only where, because of a clear and unambiguous Departmental error, a claim has taken longer than twelve months to process or, in the case of an existing award, there is an interruption in payment of three months or more. Normal backdating rules will apply in linked benefits and arrears can be backdated only up to the statutory maximum time limit of 52 weeks.
I recognise that delays are unacceptable at any stage, and Ministers have given a clear commitment that no-one will lose benefit due to the delays in processing claims.
I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report. A copy will also be placed in the Library.
Ms. Walley : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many disability living allowance and
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attendance allowance claims from (a) Stoke- on-Trent, North constituency and (b) the entire area dealt with by the relevant disability benefits centre have been outstanding each month since February 1992 ; and how many additional staff and at what grade have been taken on in each of those months.Mr. Scott : The administration of disability living allowance 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 Ms. Joan Walley, dated 14 January 1993 :
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 concerning the number of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) and Attendance Allowance (AA) claims in the Stoke North constituency and the relevant Disability Benefit centre.
Information about the number of DLA and AA claims from Stoke North constituency is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
All new claims from people in the Stoke on Trent area are dealt with by the Midlands Disability Benefit Centre in Birmingham. The following table shows the number of DLA and AA claims outstanding at the DBC for each month.
|Disability living |Attendance allowance
|allowance
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
February |1,712 |11,238
March |7,536 |15,237
April |12,617 |17,027
May |18,187 |18,486
June |19,978 |20,210
July |19,759 |20,639
August |20,004 |18,787
September |16,713 |15,168
October |11,357 |7,136
November |9,639 |8,464
December |9,121 |8,557
You also asked about additional staff taken on at the DBC during each month. This information is in the following table.
|HEO |EO |AO |AA |Casual AA
----------------------------------------------------------------------
February |- |5 |- |2 |-
March |- |2 |<2>1 |6 |4
April |- |3 |1 |1 |1
May |- |- |- |- |8
June |- |- |- |- |8
July |- |- |4+<2>1 |- |36
August |- |- |6 |- |1
September |<1>1 |1 |9 |1 |-
October |- |- |2 |- |-
November |- |- |1 |1 |-
December |- |- |- |- |-
<1> 6 months.
<2> Part time.
In addition to the extra staff recruited, considerable overtime has been worked and staff have worked on a detached duty basis from other Benefits Agency offices. Work was also processed by staff at additional units which were set up elsewhere to assist in the clearance of the backlog. I gave details of this in my letter of 19 October 1992 to all MPs.
I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report. A copy will also be placed in the Library.
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Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when he received a copy of the report of the survey of disability living allowance and disability working allowance jointly undertaken by the Disability Alliance and Royal Association for Disability and Rehabilitation during this summer ; what response he has made ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Scott : I received a copy of the report of the survey of disability living allowance and disability working allowance by the Disability Alliance and Royal Association for Disability and Rehabilitation on 25 November 1992 and I replied on 22 December. I noted that, although this report was based on an unrepresentative sample, it raised a number of issues, many of which were already being tackled. Officials from this Department intend to meet the researchers to discuss their findings and recommendations.
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will provide a breakdown of successful disability working allowance applicants by (a) average hourly earnings, (b) average hours worked, (c) average age, (d) sex, (e) marital status, (f) householder status and (g) qualifying benefit.
Mr. Scott : Information on the householder status of applicants is not available. The table provides estimated figures derived from an analysis of successful claims up to 30 November.
|Number
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Average hourly earnings |£2.95
Average hours worked a week<1> |30
Average age |37
Number of awards to men |1,538
Number of awards to women |1,099
Number of awards to single people |1,595
Number of awards to couples |1,042
Qualifying benefits<2>:
Invalidity benefit |382
Severe disablement allowance |120
Income support with disability premium |196
Housing benefit with disability premium |27
Community charge benefit with disability premium |52
Lower rate disability living allowance |259
Higher rate disability living allowance and
attendance allowance |1,601
<1> Mean average of cases analysed. Forty-five per cent. work
more than 32 hours and 38 per cent. between 16 and 24 hours.
<2> Main qualifying benefit taken for claim purposes; applicants
may have more than one qualifying benefit.
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people awarded disability working allowance failed to apply to renew the benefit after six months ; and what plans his Department has to monitor reasons for failure to renew in such circumstances.
Mr. Scott : It is not possible to say how many people fail to renew their claim at any one time because they have an eight-week period around the time their award expires in which they can make a renewal claim. However, an analysis of the 1,159 awards made by 30 June 1992 shows that by the end of December, 834 of these recipients had been given a second award. This figure is likely to increase when late claims are decided.
We are monitoring disability working allowance claims and awards carefully and are also planning further research.
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Fraud
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many prosecutions there have been for social security fraud in the most recent six-month period for which figures are available and the previous five comparable six-month periods.
Miss Widdecombe : The investigation of social security fraud 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. Paul Flynn, dated 14 January 1993 :
As Chief Executive to the Benefits Agency, it is my responsibility to answer questions about relevant operational matters. I am therefore replying to your Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security about the number of prosecutions that there have been for Social Security fraud in the most recent six month period for which figures are available and the previous five comparable six month periods.
The number of prosecutions conducted by, or on behalf of, the Benefits Agency in the six month period 1.4.92-30.9.92 was 2,047. Prior to April 1992 statistics were kept based on the number of prosecutions that had been authorised, not those actually prosecuted. These figures were :--
|Total
-----------------------------------------
October 1991 to March 1992 |2,069
April 1991 to September 1991 |2,286
Before April 1991 these figures are only available on an annual total of the cases authorised, namely:-
|Total
--------------------------
1990-91 |7,911
1989-90 |8,671
I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report. A copy will also be placed in the Library.
Invalidity Benefit
Mr. Bayley : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) how many invalidity benefit claimants in (a) York, (b) North Yorkshire and (c) England have been called for medical examination in the past 12 months ; and what proportion these figures represent of all invalidity benefit claimants ;
(2) how many claimants in (a) York, (b) North Yorkshire and (c) England have had their invalidity benefit withdrawn following medical examination in each quarter for the last two years ; and what proportion of these claimants subsequently had their benefit reinstated.
Mr. Scott : The information is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Press Office
Mr. Milburn : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many staff were employed by his Department's press office in each year since 1979.
Mr. Burt : Information for the years 1979 to 1988 is not available in the form requested. There was no separate Department of Social Security until August 1988.
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The figures for 1988 onwards are as follows :
|Professional |Administrative
|support
--------------------------------------------------------------------
August 1988-April 1989 |8 |1.5
April 1989-April 1990 |8 |1.5
April 1990-April 1991 |8 |1.5
April 1991-April 1992 |8 |1.5
April 1992-April 1993 |9 |1.5
Wales This Week"
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what contribution his Department made to the HTV Cymru programme "Wales This Week", broadcast on 7 January.
Miss Widdecombe : The Department had no involvement in the broadcast.
Young People
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will publish figures for the numbers of persons aged 16 and 17 years by county or region who received hardship benefit (a) in the financial year 1991-92 and (b) in the period April to October 1992.
Mr. Burt : The information is not available in the precise from requested. The table gives details of the number of claims for income support under the severe hardship provision by old DSS regions. Some people will have made more than one claim.
DSS Region 1991-92 April-October 1992
Scotland 12,754 11,493
North Eastern 9,340 7,812
North Western 6,835 7,235
Midlands 6,926 6,792
Wales and South West 6,846 6,305
London North 5,805 5,794
London South 6,303 5,763
Source : Severe Hardship Claims Unit database.
Mr. Ashdown : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) how many of the applications made in 1992 by (a) 16 and 17-year-olds and (b) 18 to 21-year-olds for (i) social fund loans and (ii) community care grants were made by females ;
(2) how many applications were made in 1992 by 18 to 21-year-olds for (a) social fund loans and (b) community care grants ; how many of these applications were refused ; and on what grounds ; (3) how many applications were made in 1992 by 16 and 17-year-olds for (a) social fund loans and (b) community care grants ; how many of these applications were refused ; and on what grounds.
Mr. Scott : Information is not collected centrally on social fund applications by people from these age groups. This information could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
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NATIONAL FINANCE
Licensed Premises
Mr. Colvin : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he is taking to ensure that excise verification officers, in carrying out spot checks on licensed premises to prevent fraudulent sales of excisable goods, do not impose an undue burden on the operation of legitimate businesses ; and if he will make a statement.
Sir John Cope : Excise verification officers are specially trained to counter the new revenue risks following completion of the single market. They will operate unobtrusively and will impose no undue burdens on legitimate businesses. Their controls will be largely intelligence-based and targeted at points of greatest risk, using information derived in many cases from trade sources. Legitimate traders will welcome this additional protection against dishonest competitors who have evaded United Kingdom duties on the goods they sell.
VAT
Mr. Ian Taylor : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what is the yield of VAT estimated for the current financial year ; and what would be the yield if VAT at 17.5 per cent. were extended to all goods and services currently zero-rated or exempt ;
(2) what would be the yield of VAT in the current year if a rate of 15 per cent. were applied to all goods including those presently exempted or zero- rated.
Sir John Cope : We estimate the VAT yield for 1992-93 will be £37.7 billion.
The ready reckoner published in table 4.8 of the 1991 autumn statement suggests that, had the VAT rate been reduced to 15 per cent. from April 1992, the yield might have been £4.3 billion less. No estimates are available for the likely revenue effect from applying the standard rate of VAT to goods and services that are currently zero-rated or exempt from VAT. The 1992 "Financial Statement and Budget Report" provides some indication of the individual costs of the zero rates in 1991-92. These costs are not additive, however, and make no allowance for the likely behavioural response were the standard rate of VAT to be applied to these supplies.
Whisky
Mr. Peter Bottomley : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much he received last year in duty on whisky and whiskey ; and how much more in real terms was received 10 years ago.
Sir John Cope : In 1991-92 an estimated £730 million was received in excise duty on whisky and whiskey.
In real terms, at 1991-92 prices, £365 million more than this was received in 1981-82.
Carbon Dioxide Tax
Mr. Colvin : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to introduce a carbon dioxide tax.
Sir John Cope : In 1992 the United Kingdom signed the United Nations framework convention on climate change,
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which, on entry into force will commit the United Kingdom to draw up a programme of measures aimed at returning emissions of carbon dioxide to their 1990 levels by the year 2000. The Secretary of State for the Environment has recently issued a discussion document designed to stimulate a public debate about how to achieve this target. A tax on carbon dioxide and energy, and a tax on carbon, were included in the summary of possible Government measures.The European Commission has proposed a draft directive to introduce a tax on carbon dioxide and energy. The draft directive requires the unanimous approval of all member states. The proposal was discussed at the Economic and Finance Council of the European Community on 14 December 1992. The United Kingdom made it clear that the Government are not yet convinced that an EC-wide tax on carbon and energy is a necessary or appropriate response to the problem of global warming. The Council agreed that before a decision could be taken on whether, and if so under what circumstances, such a tax should be introduced throughout the Community, further analysis should be undertaken on the impact of the proposed tax, notably on energy consumption, economic activity and competitiveness.
Further work should also be undertaken on a number of important features of the Commission's proposals, such as the balance between the carbon and energy elements of the proposed tax and the treatment of electricity. This work will take account of the conclusions of the Edinburgh European Council on the principles of subsidiarity. The Government are examining the Commission's proposal carefully but without prejudice as to its final adoption.
Books (VAT)
Mr. Galbraith : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to impose VAT on books.
Sir John Cope : The hon. Member will not expect me to comment in the period running up to the Budget.
Village Halls
Mr. Nigel Jones : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what financial controls are imposed on loans granted by (a) Action with Communities in Rural England and (b) the Sports Council ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Nelson [holding answer 14 January 1993] : The conditions attached to loans will depend on the terms of the scheme under which the loan is offered. Conditions vary between schemes and, over time, within schemes.
Manufactured Goods
Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will set out in a table the value of (a) imports, (b) exports and (c) trade balance for manufactured goods for each year since 1979 ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Nelson [holding answer 14 January 1993] : Information on imports, exports and the balance for manufactured goods is published regularly in the Central Statistical Office "Monthly Review of External Trade Statistics" and is also available on the CSO database which may be accessed by the House of Commons Library.
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Mr. Fatchett : To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will set out in a table an index of United Kingdom manufacturing output for each year from 1979, with 1979 set at 100.
Mr. Nelson [holding answer 14 January 1993] : Indices of United Kingdom manufacturing output can be accessed by the House of Commons Library. The indices are based on 1985 = 100, but may be scaled appropriately.
NATIONAL HERITAGE
Marlborough High Street (Fire)
Mr. Ancram : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what reports he has received about the fire in Marlborough high street, Marlborough, Wiltshire, on 1 January ; and what approaches have been made to his Department with regard to assisting its full restoration.
Mr. Brooke : I was greatly saddened to read of the disastrous fire which destroyed a number of 17th century buildings in Marlborough high street, and I have requested a full report on the incident from English Heritage. The only approach so far made to my Department concerning the possibility of financial assistance has been from my hon. Friend. The extent to which such assistance may be appropriate is a matter which is currently being considered by English Heritage in conjunction with other interested parties.
Press Regulation
Sir Jerry Wiggin : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage if he will list the recipients of embargoed copies of the report by Sir David Calcutt and the dates on which they received them.
Mr. Brooke : No embargoed copies of the report by Sir David Calcutt QC were made available outside Government and civil service prior to the date of the report's publication.
Broadcasting
Dr. Spink : To ask the Secretary of State for National Heritage what representations he has had from the Broadcasting Standards Council and the Independent Television Commission regarding television broadcasts originating from outside the United Kingdom with regard to standards of taste, decency, violence and sexual content ; which broadcasts have been mentioned ; and if he will make a statement about the United Kingdom's ability to control pornographic broadcasts.
Mr. Brooke : I have received reports from both the Broadcasting Standards Council and the Independent Television Commission concerning the satellite channel Red Hot Dutch. I am considering what action is open to me to take under the powers available to me in the Broadcasting Act 1990, consistent with the United Kingdom's obligations under the EC broadcasting directive.
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