Home Page |
Column 419
Ms. Ruddock : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to his answer of 12 January, Official Report, column 693, what are the criteria on which
Column 420
the performance of the chief executive of the prison service agency will be assessed for eligibility for the performance bonus.Mr. Peter Lloyd : For the period up to 31 March 1993 the performance of the director general will be assessed wholly on a qualitative basis. Thereafter, when the agency comes into being, his performance will be assessed on the basis of both qualitative and quantitative measures, the nature and balance of which are still to be settled.
Mr. Richards : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many uniformed police officers were employed by each police authority in Wales for each year since 1979.
Mr. Charles Wardle : The information requested is set out in the table :
Column 419
Police strength<1>-Wales-1979 to 1992 Year |Dyfed-Powys |Gwent |North Wales |South Wales As at December |Numbers of officers|Numbers of officers|Numbers of officers|Numbers of officers ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1979 |918 |958 |1,271 |3,025 1980 |929 |973 |1,290 |3,068 1981 |925 |963 |1,288 |3,082 1982 |930 |969 |1,303 |3,096 1983 |924 |962 |1,275 |3,082 1984 |922 |957 |1,281 |3,106 1985 |924 |971 |1,251 |3,064 1986 |929 |973 |1,268 |3,099 1987 |929 |977 |1,307 |3,120 1988 |927 |989 |1,304 |3,114 1989 |934 |1,000 |1,332 |3,118 1990 |936 |1,001 |1,339 |3,123 1991 |944 |995 |1,343 |3,142 1992 (October) |966 |1,008 |1,369 |3,182 <1> Police strength varies from year to year according to wastage and recruitment patterns.
Mr. Luff : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to include the recent proposals of high street retailers in his consultations on the reform of Sunday trading laws ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : My right hon. and learned Friend is referring to the proposals for reform which have been drawn up by Marks and Spencer plc and other leading high street retailers. I met representatives of the traders on 3 November 1992 to discuss the proposals. At this stage we have no plans to include the model as one of the options to be put before the House.
Mr. Luff : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent representations he has received from high street retailers on the reform of Sunday trading legislation.
Mr. Peter Lloyd : Since 20 October 1992, we have received 83 written representations from retailers on this issue.
Mr. Richards : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many civilians have been employed by each police authority in Wales for each year since 1979.
Column 420
Mr. Charles Wardle : The information requested is set out in the table :
Strength of Civilians in Wales 1979 to 1992 -------------------------------------- 1979 |194 |206 |319 |866 1980 |194 |213 |320 |855 1981 |195 |214 |325 |855 1982 |198 |216 |328 |888 1983 |204 |228 |351 |892 1984 |208 |233 |373 |899 1985 |210 |232 |401 |905 1986 |198 |236 |382 |956 1987 |209 |241 |385 |1,009 1988 |215 |252 |388 |1,015 1989 |234 |250 |423 |1,082 1990 |243 |290 |439 |1,111 1991 |250 |304 |444 |1,079 1992<1> |268 |318 |459 |1,076 <1> Until October.
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people over the age of 17 years have been caught driving without having passed a recognised driving test within each police authority area during each of the last 10 years.
Mr. Jack : The following table sets out the number of prosecutions for offences of "driving without licence or
Column 421
causing or permitting to drive without licence" and "provisional licence holders not accompanied by qualified person" committed by persons 17 years old and above in each police force area in England and Wales for each of the years 1987 to 1991. Similar information for earlier years is not readily available.Column 421
Number of prosecutions for offences committed by persons aged 17 years and over England and Wales Number of offences Driving without licence or causing or permitting to drive without licence or |provisional licence |holder not |accompanied by |qualified person Police force |1987 |1988 |1989 |1990 |1991 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Avon and Somerset |3,896 |4,471 |4,485 |4,749 |6,040 Bedfordshire |1,933 |2,056 |1,842 |2,110 |1,834 Cambridgeshire |1,492 |1,476 |1,536 |1,795 |1,621 Cheshire |2,086 |2,113 |2,116 |2,402 |2,381 Cleveland |1,795 |1,828 |1,854 |1,950 |2,319 Cumbria |1,555 |1,634 |1,328 |1,290 |1,815 Derbyshire |2,683 |2,523 |2,525 |2,700 |2,189 Devon and Cornwall |3,647 |3,571 |3,582 |3,742 |4,292 Dorset |1,514 |1,644 |1,928 |1,993 |2,092 Durham |1,886 |1,784 |1,839 |2,272 |2,116 Essex |3,165 |3,370 |3,506 |3,153 |3,539 Gloucestershire |1,665 |1,886 |1,641 |1,639 |2,001 Greater Manchester |7,842 |8,936 |9,256 |10,242 |11,306 Hampshire |3,870 |4,471 |4,573 |4,158 |4,241 Hertfordshire |1,653 |1,659 |1,884 |2,111 |2,382 Humberside |1,765 |2,160 |2,185 |2,154 |2,080 Kent |3,248 |3,576 |3,998 |3,577 |3,125 Lancashire |4,588 |4,834 |5,413 |5,059 |5,067 Leicestershire |2,956 |3,210 |3,030 |3,209 |4,236 Lincolnshire |1,274 |1,383 |1,547 |1,663 |1,184 London, City |383 |535 |536 |461 |486 Merseyside |4,742 |4,940 |5,985 |6,437 |7,939 Metropolitan |11,129 |11,592 |10,614 |8,653 |19,605 Norfolk |1,296 |1,184 |1,279 |1,151 |1,094 Northamptonshire |1,401 |1,661 |1,913 |2,058 |2,483 Northumbria |4,139 |4,075 |4,385 |6,232 |8,050 North Yorkshire |1,184 |1,323 |1,381 |1,424 |1,772 Nottinghamshire |2,914 |2,704 |2,882 |3,210 |3,245 South Yorkshire |4,802 |4,343 |4,126 |3,856 |3,943 Staffordshire |2,327 |2,530 |3,053 |3,193 |3,164 Suffolk |1,218 |1,236 |1,361 |1,335 |1,464 Surrey |1,446 |1,605 |1,800 |1,777 |2,087 Sussex |3,356 |4,496 |4,868 |4,913 |4,984 Thames Valley |3,702 |4,340 |4,376 |5,658 |5,867 Warwickshire |1,126 |1,290 |1,652 |1,483 |1,352 West Mercia |2,730 |2,870 |3,155 |3,465 |3,327 West Midlands |9,080 |10,704 |11,034 |11,192 |12,539 West Yorkshire |6,151 |5,829 |5,831 |7,036 |6,831 Wiltshire |894 |1,004 |1,149 |1,314 |1,577 Dyfed Powys |845 |820 |1,041 |1,058 |1,317 Gwent |1,829 |1,747 |1,606 |1,581 |1,493 North Wales |1,910 |2,058 |2,397 |2,396 |2,521 South Wales |5,899 |7,174 |6,749 |7,002 |6,812 |------ |------ |------ |------ |------ Total |129,016 |138,645 |143,241 |148,853 |169,812
Mr. Batiste : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many convictions for (a) burglary, (b) assault, (c) offences against property, (d) taking vehicles without the owner's consent, (e) driving without a licence and (f) dangerous driving have been recorded in each of the last five years against residents of Ainsty Lodge, Wetherby ;
(2) in respect of how many offences residents of Ainsty Lodge, Wetherby have been (a) charged and (b) convicted in each of the last five years ;
(3) what proportion of crimes suspected to have been committed in England by juveniles in each of the last five years are suspected to have been committed by persons in the care of local authorities ;
Column 422
(4) how many offences residents of Ainsty Lodge in Leeds have committed while on bail in each of the last five years.Mr. Jack : The information requested is not collected.
Mr. Onslow : To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what reason it was decided to provide each member of every justices' bench in England and Wales with a copy of the relevant volume of his Department's analysis of the costs of the criminal justice system, 1992 ; and what were the costs of this exercise including the cost of multi-colour printing.
Mr. Jack : Section 95 of the Criminal Justice Act 1991 requires the Home Secretary to publish information annually to assist those engaged in the administration of criminal justice to become aware of the financial
Column 423
implications of their decisions. It was decided to provide magistrates with individual volumes to ensure that they had personal access to this important information.The total cost of printing, producing and distributing the volumes was £124,290, or £2.54 per copy.
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list, by county, in England and Wales the number of confirmed cases of BSE for the month of December 1992.
Mr. Soames : The information requested is available in the Library of the House.
Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what guidelines are used by his Ministry when determining whether a vet can sell medicine to a farmer ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Soames : The Medicines Act 1968 and its subordinate legislation sets the legal framework for the sale of and supply of medicines. This provides for a veterinary surgeon to prescribe medicines for use on animals under his or her care. Within those requirements, decisions on whether to sell medicines to farmers are a matter for the judgment of the individual veterinary surgeon.
Mr. Garnier : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what advice he has received from the Medicines Commission concerning BST products.
Mr. Gummer : The Medicines Commission has advised me that the BST products manufactured by the companies, Lilly Industries Ltd. and Monsanto SA/NV, meet the medicines licensing criteria of safety, quality and efficacy. I have told the companies that the United Kingdom position in forthcoming Committee on Veterinary Medicinal Products discussions will reflect this advice. However, no product licences under the Medicines Act may be issued so long as the licensing moratorium agreed by the European Community's Council of Ministers remains in force.
Mr. Jopling : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will make a statement on the progress to establish new environmentally sensitive areas ; and what management commitments and financial remuneration he is proposing.
Mr. Gummer : Pursuant to the answer given on 2 December 1992 at columns 224-25, I am today laying before both Houses of Parliament the six designation orders providing for the introduction of six new environmentally sensitive areas (ESAs) in England. These new ESAs are :
Avon Valley ;
Exmoor ;
Column 424
Lake District ;North Kent Marshes ;
South Wessex Downs ; and
South West Peak.
Information packs giving details of the areas covered, scheme conditions and payment rates are being placed in the Libraries. I am delighted to be able to introduce these new ESAs which will add some 426,000 hectares to the 387,000 hectares currently within ESAs in England. The new areas contain some of our most beautiful countryside and important wildlife areas. I am confident that like the existing schemes, they will play a significant part in the conservation and enhancement of landscapes, special habitats and features of historic interest.
Details of the new schemes are being sent to farmers in each area and applications to join them should be lodged with the Ministry's regional service centres before 31 March.
I will shortly be issuing for consultation our proposals for the introduction of a further six new ESAs which we plan to launch next winter. I will also be announcing the conclusions of my review of the existing schemes in the Breckland, Clun, North Peak, Suffolk river valleys and the Test valley.
Mr. Ieuan Wyn Jones : To ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food how many farmers in Wales have developed small-scale incinerators and waste disposal units to deal with fallen stock in each year since 1990 ; and what financial assistance was granted by his Department for such schemes in each year.
Mr. David Hunt : I have been asked to reply.
My Department does not provide financial assistance for the provision of incinerators and waste disposal units. No information as to the numbers of such facilities is held centrally.
Mr. Bermingham : To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will outline the maximum numbers of pupils per classroom laid down by his Department in accordance with best practice policy in (a) infant schools, (b) primary schools and (c) secondary schools, in England and Wales.
Mr. Forth : The Department does not issue guidance on the maximum number of pupils per classroom. The Education (School Premises) Regulations 1981 prescribe the overall minimum teaching areas to be provided for maintained and grant-maintained schools in England and Wales. These areas are based on the total number of registered pupils at the school and their age range. The apportionment of teaching space within the overall area available is a matter for local determination.
Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Secretary of State for Education what changes he proposes to make to the status of the National Union of Students ; and if he will make a statement.
Column 425
Mr. Boswell : In the light of the Department's consultations on student unionism, my right hon. Friend is considering proposals for reform, which he plans to announce in the near future.
Mr. Bermingham : To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will outline the criteria by which his Department currently calculates the total pupil capacity in (a) primary and (b) secondary schools in England.
Mr. Forth : Our recent survey of the capacity of primary and secondary schools was calculated on the basis of two different measures : for primary schools capacity was calculated (a) using the more open enrolment (MOE) formula set out in annex D of the Department's circular 6/91, and (b) by multiplying the standard admission number of the school by the number of year groups. For secondary schools the capacity was calculated (a) by using the more open enrolement (MOE) formula set out in annex A of the Department's circular 11/88, and (b) (for pupils aged under 16) by multiplying the standard number by the number of year groups. Both circulars are available in the Library.
Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many university and polytechnic careers officers there were in (a) 1979 and (b) 1985 ; and how many there are today.
Mr. Boswell : Information on careers officers in the former polytechnics is not held centrally. The table shows numbers of careers and appointments officers employed by institutions within the Universities Funding Council sector.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mr. Byers : To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will give for each grant-maintained school the number of permanent pupil exclusions in the academic year 1991-92 and for each previous year back to and including the final academic year in which the school was local authority maintained.
Mr. Forth : I refer the hon. Member to the reply that I gave to him on 5 November 1992 at col. 345.
Mr. Pawsey : To ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will make a statement about future levels of recruitment to teacher training courses.
Mr. Forth : My right hon. Friend is pleased to note the buoyant level of recruitment to initial teacher training courses in 1991 and 1992. He is however concerned that if
Column 426
the present pattern of recruitment continues it is likely to lead to an over-supply of teachers trained for primary schools, whereas secondary schools may face teacher shortages as pupil numbers rise during the 1990s. In advising the Higher Education Funding Council for England of intake targets for initial teacher training for the period 1993-1996 the Department has therefore proposed that they should fund a reducing number of places for primary school training and increasing numbers for secondary education. He has also asked the council to consider how it might help to tilt the balance of recruitment to primary school training towards applicants holding science, technology and mathematics qualifications, while containing overall numbers.A copy of the official letter to the council dated 7 January has been placed in the Library of the House. I understand that the Welsh Office has written in similar terms to the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales.
Ms. Mowlam : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list the contracts awarded by his Department to KPMG Management Consultants over the past 12 months.
Miss Widdecombe : The following contracts have been awarded to KPMG Management Consultants by the Department of Social Security during the 1992 -93 financial year :
Development of the Contributions Agency's Customer Education Project--(6 January 1992 to 30 June 1992).
Review of the Contributions Agency Performance Appraisal System--(21 April 1992 to 30 September 1992).
Development of the Contributions Agency's Customer Education Pilot Projects --(15 October 1992 to July 1993).
Promotion to Grade 5 Job Analysis Project--(25 November 1991 to 31 May 1992).
Service Delivery Market Testing Project in the Information Technology Services Agency--(21 January 1993 to 21 April 1993). Market Testing Project in the Information Technology Services Agency
Methodologies Evaluation in the Information Technology Services Agency--(1 April 1992 to 31 July 1992).
Market Testing Project in the Information Technology Services Agency--(6 January 1993 to 30 September 1993).
Mr. Illsley : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list the local authorities which operate (a) a total disregard, (b) a partial disregard and (c) no disregard, other than the statutory minimum of war pensions for housing and community charge benefit.
Column 427
Miss Widdecombe : The information requested, as reported by local authorities in the financial year 1990-91, is in the following tables.
Local authorities operating a total disregard scheme for both war disablement and war widows' pensions ---------------------------------------------------- Aberconwy Allerdale Angus<1> Arfon Arun Ashford Banff and Buchan<1> Bassetlaw Berwickshire<1> Blackpool Borders<2> Bracknell Braintree Brentwood Broxbourne Burnley Calderdale Carlisle Castle Point Ceredigion Chelmsford Cherwell Chiltern Clackmannan<1> Clydesdale<1> Congleton Cotswold Craven Cumbernauld (D.C.)<1> Cumnock and Doon<1> Dacorum Daventry Dumbarton<1> Dundee<1> Ealing East Devon East Hertfordshire East Kilbride (D.C.)<1> East Lothian<1> East Yorkshire Edinburgh<1> Elmbridge Epsom and Ewell Ettrick and Lauderdale<1> Fife<2> Forest of Dean Gillingham Glasgow<1> Gloucester Gordon<1> Grampian<2> Guildford Halton Hammersmith Harlow Hartlepool Hertsmere Hinchley and Bosworth Hounslow Huntingdon Inverclyde<1> Ipswich Isle of Scilly Islwyn Kensington and Chelsea Kincardine and Deeside<1> Kirklees Lambeth Langbaurgh Lewes Lichfield Livingston (D.C.)<1> Lochaber<1> Luton Maidstone Mansfield Melton Merton Midlothian<1> Mid Sussex Mole Valley Montgomery Motherwell<1> Neath Newbury Nithsdale<1> Northavon North Cornwall North East Fife<1> North Kesteven North Tyneside North West Leicestershire Nottingham Ogwr Perth and Kinross<1> Purbeck Redbridge Reigate and Banstead Rhuddlan Richmond-upon-Thames Rochford Rossendale<3> Roxburgh<1> Rushcliffe Rutland Sandwell Scunthorpe Sefton Sevenoaks Skye and Lochalsh<1> Solihull South Bucks South Derbyshire South Holland South Lakeland South Oxfordshire South Shropshire South Tyneside South Wight Staffs. Moorlands Stewartry<1> Stirling<1> Stoke on Trent Strathkelvin<1> Suffolk Coastal Sutton Tameside Tandridge Tendring Tewesbury The Wrekin Tower Hamlets Tweeddale<1> Wakefield Waltham Forest Wansbeck Watford Wellingborough<4> West Lothian<1> West Oxfordshire Wigtown<1> Windsor and Maidenhead Wokingham Woodspring Wycombe
Local authorities operating a total disregard scheme for war disablement pensions only --------------------------------------------------- Bath |Blaby Blackburn<5> |Bolton Bromley |Bury Cambridge |Corby Doncaster |Dudley<5> East Staffordshire |Exeter Grimsby |Hambleton Havering |Middlesbrough Newport |Oldham Ribble Valley<5> |Southampton<5> South Somerset<5> |Stevenage Stockton on Tees |Torbay Torfaen |Tunbridge Wells Vale Royal<5> |York
Local authorities operating a total disregard scheme for war widows' pensions only --------------------------- Castle Morpeth Kirkaldy<1><6> Thurrock<6>
Local authorities operating a partial disregard scheme for war pensions ------------------------------------------------------------------- Adur |Aylesbury Vale Barking<8> |Barnet Beverley |Bournemouth Breckland |Bromsgrove Camden |Canterbury Chichester |Chorley Crawley |Darlington<7> Derby<7> |Derbyshire Dales Dover |East Hampshire Fareham |Fenland Hastings<10> |Havant Holderness |Kingston upon Thames Knowsley |Lincoln Lliw Valley |Malvern Hills Meirrionnydd |New Forest North Dorset |Penwith<9> Poole |Portsmouth Preseli |Preston Reading |Rochdale Rhondda |Salisbury Scarborough |South Norfolk South Pembrokeshire |Swansea Teignbridge |Thamesdown<7> Tonbridge and Malling<7> |Vale of Glamorgan Wealden |West Norfolk Wigan |Worcester
Local authorities not operating a local scheme for war ----------------------------------------- Alnwick Babergh Barrow-in-Furness Basildon (D.C.)<1> Bexley Bolsover Brecknock Bristol Cannock Chase Carmarthen City of London Colchester Croydon Derwentside Durham Easington East Lindsey Enfield Gateshead Greenwich Harrogate High Peak Kerrier Kingston-upon-Hull Leominster Merthyr Tydfil Newcastle-upon-Tyne North Devon Norwich Oswestry Pendle Port Talbot Rhymney Valley Runnymede Ryedale Sheffield Shrewsbury and Atcham South Herefordshire St. Edmundsbury Sunderland Taff-Ely Teesdale Torridge Uttlesford Warrington (D.C.)<1> Waveney Welwyn Hatfield West Dorset West Lindsey Weymouth and Portland Wrexham Maelor Wyre Ynys Mon <1> Denotes those authorities responsible for Housing Benefit only. <2> Denotes those authorities responsible for Community Charge Benefit only. <3> Denotes those authorities responsible for both benefits but who operate a scheme for Housing Benefit only. <4> Denotes those authorities responsible for both benefits but who operate a scheme for Community Charge Benefit only. <5> Denotes those authorities who operate a scheme to fully disregard war disablement pension and part of war widows' pension. <6> Denotes those authorities who operate a scheme to fully disregard war widows' pension and part of war disablement pension. <7> Denotes those authorities who operate a scheme to partially disregard war disablement pension only. <8> Denotes an authority which operates a scheme to partially disregard war pensions for Housing Benefit only. <9> Denotes an authority which operates a scheme to fully disregard war pensions for Housing Benefit rent rebates and partially disregard war pensions for Community Charge Benefit. <10> Denotes an authority which operates a scheme to fully disregard war pensions for Community Charge Benefit and partially disregard war pensions in Housing Benefit.
Mr. Simon Hughes : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list (a) by borough, (b) by district health authority and (c) by country of origin, the number of migrants from Ethiopia, Somalia and Sudan currently resident in Greater London and claiming any type of social security benefit.
Miss Widdecombe : I understand from Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency that details of the country of origin of benefit recipients are not recorded routinely and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Matters concerning district health authorities are the responsibility of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health.
Sir John Hunt : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many unsuccessful claims were made for invalid care allowances in the past 12 months, and if he will publish a breakdown of refusals according to (a)
Column 431
non-receipt of the appropriate benefits by the cared for person, (b) claimant earning more than the weekly ICA earnings limit, (c) claimant caring for less than 35 hours a week, (d) claimant over 65 years of age and (e) claimant in receipt of an overlapping benefit.Mr. Scott : In the 12 months to 31 December 1992 there were 20,840 unsuccessful claims to invalid care allowance.
The breakdown of refusals requested is in the table.
Category |Number --------------------------- (a) |11,339 (b) |1,388 (c) |56 (d) |1,972 (e) |2,569
The balance of refusals were for reasons other than those mentioned by my hon. Friend.
Mr. Cryer : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when he expects to reply to the application by Mr. Keith Pownall of 20 August 1992 on behalf of his wife Valerie Pownall for invalid care allowance and the higher rate of attendance allowance.
Mr. Scott : The administration of invalid care 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 Michael Bichard to Mr. Bob Cryer, dated 21 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 Mr. Keith Pownall's applications for Invalid Care Allowance (ICA) and for higher rate Attendance Allowance (AA) made on behalf of his wife Mrs. Valerie Pownall.
I can confirm that decisions were made on 17 August 1992 on Mr. Pownall's ICA claim and on 19 January 1993 on his wife's AA claim. Mr. and Mrs. Pownall have been notified of both decisions. I have replied to you separately and in greater detail about the case. I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report. A copy will also be placed in the Library.
Dr. Lynne Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people aged 16 and 17 years in Birmingham not in employment, not on a youth training scheme and not in full-time education are receiving benefit.
Mr. Burt : The administration of benefits 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 Michael Bichard to Dr. Lynne Jones, dated 21 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
Column 432
Social Security asking how many people aged 16 and 17 years in Birmingham not in employment, not on a YT scheme and not in full time-education are receiving benefit.The complete range of information you requested is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. I have, however, detailed below the number of successful applications as a result of the hardship provisions, and these are outlined below. It should be noted that a direction to pay in these cases normally lasts for an eight week period, therefore, some of the applications successful in November may no longer be currently receiving benefit.
District |November 1992|December 1992 ----------------------------------------------------------------- Birmingham Chamberlain |13 |12 Birmingham North West |19 |10 Birmingham Heartlands |16 |16 Birmingham South East |9 |12 Birmingham South West |31 |19 |---- |---- Totals |88 |69
The number of successful applications do not equate to the number of customers as some customers may have made more than one application. The above information has been supplied by the Severe Hardship Claims Unit.
I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy of this reply will appear in the Official Report. A copy is also being placed in the library.
Mr. Cummings : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people are on income support within the Seaham and Peterlee agency areas ; and what were the comparable numbers each year since 1988.
Mr. Burt : The administration of income support 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 Michael Bichard to Mr. John Cummings, dated 20 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 asking how many people are on Income Support within the Seaham and Peterlee agency areas ; and what were the comparable numbers each year since 1988.
The complete range of information you requested is not available. This is because statistics of a local nature are destroyed at regular intervals in accordance with standing instructions. I have listed below the latest available data which shows the number of recipients at a given point in time rather than for a given period.
Date |Seaham |Peterlee ----------------------------------------- November 1989 |3,040 |6,782 November 1990 |3,300 |7,111 November 1991 |3,143 |7,348 November 1992 |3,518 |8,003
This information has been obtained from the Income Support Management Information System.
I hope you find this reply helpful. Copies of this letter will be placed in the library.
Next Section
| Home Page |