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Numbers of males and females in receipt of bridging allowance-by ES region
October 1992-December 1992
October November December
|Male |Female|Male |Female|Male |Female
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Northern |316 |174 |255 |133 |247 |121
Yorkshire and Humberside |452 |250 |421 |197 |455 |217
East Midlands and Eastern |566 |274 |460 |268 |463 |237
London and South East |1,264 |707 |1,149 |622 |1,242 |635
South West |418 |193 |356 |184 |423 |197
Wales |293 |146 |257 |127 |252 |155
West Midlands |581 |327 |450 |237 |544 |274
North West |784 |405 |571 |284 |697 |359
Scotland |732 |422 |510 |303 |533 |273
|---- |---- |---- |---- |---- |----
Total |5,406 |2,898 |4,429 |2,335 |4,856 |2,468
Numbers in receipt of extended child benefit
October 1992-December 1992
|Weekly average per
|month
---------------------------------------------------------
October |26,581
November |26,343
December |25,691
Restart Interviews
Mr. Cousins : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if she will publish a table showing the results of Restart interviews for the period 1 April 1992 to 1December 1992 on the same basis as the answer to the hon. Member for Birmingham, Ladywood (Ms. Short), of 29 October, Official Report, columns 834-36.
Mr. McLoughlin : Responsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Employment Service Agency under its chief executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given. Letter from M. Fogden to Mr. Jim Cousins, dated 10February 1993 :
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As the Employment Service is an Executive Agency, the Secretary of State has asked me to write to you direct to respond to your Parliamentary Question to her about the results of Restart interviews conducted during the period April to December 1992. This is something which falls with the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of the Agency.The information you asked for is given in the attached annex. As you will appreciate, these figures reflect only the direct results of Restart. We do not know how many people subsequently take up a job or place on an employment or training programme as a result of the guidance given to them at their interview. It is through these indirect results of the help which advisers give clients in reviewing their options for returning to work that Restart has its effect. An indication of the scale of that effect is provided by the report "The Restart Effect" which was recently published by the independent Policy Studies Institute. It is based on an analysis of the largest survey of unemployed people in the United Kingdom since 1980. This showed conclusively that the programme had a major effect in reducing the time it takes people to leave unemployment, to get a job and to enter Employment Training, particularly for those people who were at a disadvantage within the labour market.
I hope this is helpful.
As decided by the Administration Committee of the House of Commons, Chief Executive replies to written Parliamentary Questions will now be published in the Official Report. I will also place a copy of this letter in the Library of the House.
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Outcomes of Restart interviews April 1992-December 1992 Region |Interviews |Job placings |ET |Jobclub |Restart courses|EAS ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Northern |126,957 |557 |3,938 |4,454 |5,995 |112 Yorkshire and Humberside |152,981 |1,683 |6,301 |4,840 |7,857 |518 East Midlands and Eastern |181,669 |2,345 |4,868 |7,075 |6,524 |507 London and South East |624,657 |9,826 |14,988 |27,755 |19,079 |2,087 South West |141,185 |1,211 |4,770 |5,467 |4,874 |512 Office for Wales |106,575 |1,518 |3,648 |3,884 |4,133 |250 West Midlands |190,619 |2,333 |5,875 |6,881 |9,287 |552 North West |320,600 |3,003 |7,369 |10,900 |13,483 |535 Office for Scotland |208,639 |3,305 |5,944 |7,296 |8,071 |424 Great Britain |2,053,882 |25,781 |57,701 |78,552 |79,303 |5,497
Temporary Employment
Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if she will list the numbers of people who have been employed in temporary employment in each year since 1979.
Mr. McLoughlin : Available information based on estimates from the labour force survey is given in the following table.
People employed in temporary employment Great Britain Spring |Numbers (thousands) ------------------------------------------------------------ 1983 |1,345 1984 |1,497 1985 |1,403 1986 |1,439 1987 |1,547 1988 |1,529 1989 |1,465 1990 |1,442 1991 |1,450 1992 |1,185
Construction Industry
Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if she will list the rate of unemployment among construction workers in each year since 1979 ; and if she will make a statement.
Mr. McLoughlin : Available information for Great Britain based on estimates from the labour force survey is given in the following table.
Spring each year |ILO Unemployment
|rate for
|construction
|workers
|(Per cent)
---------------------------------------------------
1984 |11.6
1985 |11.8
1986 |12.0
1987 |11.0
1988 |6.7
1989 |7.9
1990 |7.1
1991 |12.6
1992 |17.6
Source: labour force survey.
Note: ILO unemployment rates obtained from the
labour force survey are defined following
internationally standard guidelines. Comparable
information on this basis is not available for
years prior to 1984.
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DEFENCE
Atomic Weapons Establishments
Mr. Bennett : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list all reportable accidents and incidents that have occurred at AWE Burghfield and AWE Cardiff since 1962 ; and if he will provide a breakdown of the annual totals into the number of (i) fatalities, (ii) major injuries, (iii) other injuries, (iv) dangerous occurrences and (v)disease.
Mr. Aitken : The breakdown of figures for reportable accidents and incidents for AWE Burghfield and AWE Cardiff during the period 1962 to 1992 is not readily available in the form requested. I shall write to the hon. Member when they are available.
Regulations
Mr. Sproat : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library a list of all the regulations for which his Department is currently responsible with a descriptive title for each individual regulation.
Mr. Aitken : A provisional list of regulations that impact on business has recently been compiled. It will be fully checked for accuracy and placed in the Library as soon as possible.
Trident
Mr. Charles Kennedy : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is the average weight of a Trident submarine.
Mr. Aitken : The submerged displacement of the Vanguard class Trident missile submarine is some 16,000tonnes.
Public Appointments
Mr. Canavan : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what public appointments he has made since 1 November 1992 ; and what information he has on the political affiliations of those appointed.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : Three appointments have been made to Ministry of Defence executive non-departmental bodies since 1 November 1992. Appointments are made on the basis of aptitude and merit, and political affiliation, if any, is not relevant or recorded.
UN (Military Secretariat)
Mr. Home Robertson : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to send a retired senior officer to the United Nations to advise on the establishment of a military secretariat there ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave the hon. Member for South Shields (Dr. Clark) on Monday 8 February, Official Report, column 498.
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Army Redundancies
Mr. Martlew : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what percentage of the redundancies in the British Army in 1993-94 will be compulsory.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : A total of 9.6 per cent. of Army redundancies, all of whom will be officers, will be compulsory.
Mr. Martlew : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what levels of redundancies are to be made in the British Army in the year 1993-94 ; and what is the estimated cost to the Exchequer of those redundancies.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : The position on planned redundancies remains as set out in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Wimbledon (Dr. Goodson-Wickes) on 10 December 1992, Official Report, column 800 ; the estimated cost of the redundancy payments--special capital payments--is £188 million.
Royal Yacht Britannia
Mr. Alan Williams : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions have taken place about the replacement of the royal yacht Britannia.
Mr. Archie Hamilton : I have nothing to add to the answer I gave on 26 January, Official Report, column 646.
European Fighter Aircraft
Mr. Foulkes : To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what current discussions he has had with the German Government about prospects for German participation in the European fighter aircraft project.
Mr. Aitken : I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Glasgow, Pollock (Mr. Dunnachie) on 9 February.
SOCIAL SECURITY
Invalid Care Allowance
Mr. Cormack : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is his estimate of the cost, and how many people would benefit, if the earnings limit for invalid care allowance was (a) raised to the lower earnings limit for paying national insurance contributions or (b) abolished.
Mr. Scott : I refer my hon. Friend to my reply to the hon. Member for Moray (Mrs. Ewing) on 18 November 1992 at column 252 .
War Disablement Pensions
Mr. Rowlands : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people in receipt of war disablement pensions have made a claim for loss of hearing below the 20 per cent. level in 1990, 1991 and 1992 ; and how many are currently outstanding.
Miss Widdecombe : The information is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However, claims for war disablement pension have increased significantly during the period as follows.
|Claims
------------------------
1990 |27,004
1991 |42,881
1992 |133,972
Note: Records do not
show how many of these
claims were for noise
induced hearing loss.
Residential Care Homes
Mr. Cousins : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Services how many claimants received income support in respect of costs for (a) nursing care homes and (b) residential care homes in (i) May 1991 and (ii) May 1992 ; and if he will provide a regional and social services authority based breakdown of these figures.
Mr. Burt : Information in the form requested is not available. Such information as is available is in the table.
T
|May 1991 |Residential Care
|People receiving
|income support in
|(thousands)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
England |123 |76
Scotland |8 |9
Wales |7 |9
Great Britain |139 |94
|May 1992 |Residential Care
|(thousands)
--------------------------------------------------------------------
England |135 |95
Scotland |10 |12
Wales |7 |10
Great Britain |152 |116
Notes:
All data rounded to nearest thousand.
Source: Quarterly statistical inquiry.
Industrial Injuries
Mr. Byers : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will amend the relevant regulations to allow claims for vibration white finger in circumstances where the claimant has been mainly working with wood ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Scott : There are no plans at present to amend the industrial injuries benefit regulations relating to claims for vibration white finger. The Industrial Injuries Advisory Council is currently studying the scientific evidence relating to hand/arm vibration syndrome, which includes vibration white finger, and will report in due course.
Benefits Agency
Mr. Spearing : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will instruct the Benefits Agency to cease to refer to members of the public eligible for benefits of any sort as customers and to substitute applicants or other words or phrases appropriate to the context.
Mr. Burt : Ministers fully support the Benefits Agency's use of the word "customer" where appropriate. I have asked Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency, to write with a full reply to the hon. Member and a copy will be placed in the Library. Letter from Michael Bichard to Mr. Nigel Spearing, dated 9 February 1993 :
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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 if the Agency will cease to refer to members of the public eligible for benefits as customers and substitute the word applicant or some other words or phrases.At the launch of the Benefits Agency in April 1991 one of the four Core Values on which the Agency was to conduct its business was Customer Service. The term "customer" was introduced in an attempt to focus our attention on the people we serve and to break down long standing barriers often implied in the use of other terminology. People who use the services of the Benefits Agency are entitled to be treated with the care and respect which is normally denoted by the term customer.
"Customer" is also a more useful and all-embracing term than either claimant or applicant. The Benefits Agency deals not only with people who are claiming (or in the process of claiming) benefit, but also with their relatives, people acting on behalf of those claiming benefits, employers, welfare rights officers, other government departments and agencies. We use the term "internal customer" when describing the relationship between the links in the organisation, and this is a principle common to many organisations. The term reflects the attitude we should adopt and we have no plans to change it at the present time.
I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report. A copy will also be placed in the Library.
Income Support
Mr. Fraser : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will make an estimate of the number of (a) individual claimants and (b) households in Lambeth dependent upon income support at any one time.
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 Fraser, dated 9 February 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 for an estimate of the number of (a) individual claimants and (b) households in Lambeth dependent upon Income Support at any one time. The information requested could be obtained only at
disproportionate cost. However, I have listed below the available information, as at 30 November 1992, of the number of Income Support recipients at the Benefits Agency Districts covering the London Borough of Lambeth. Benefits Agency District boundaries do not correspond with those of individual boroughs and some may, therefore, live outside the borough of Lambeth. This information has been obtained from the Income Support Management Information Statistics.
District |Number of Recipients
---------------------------------------------------------------
Bankside |25,616
Lewisham and Brixton |57,393
Palace |65,007
South West Thames |55,474
Total |203,490
Column 690
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 income support claimants who have lost their benefit books have been refused a replacement in the 1991-92 financial year and from April 1992 to date ; and where there has been a previously lost book, how many have been subject to unauthorised encashments.
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 Dr. Lynne Jones, dated 9 February 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 Income Support claimants have lost their benefit books and were then refused a replacement in the 1991-92 financial year and from April 1992 to date ; and where there has been a previous lost book, how many have been subject to unauthorised encashments.
The information requested is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However, I should explain that the number of cases where a customer reported an Income Support order book lost in 1991-92 and up to the quarter ending 30 June 1992, the latest date for which figures are available, were :
|1991-92 |Q/E 30 June 1992
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number of IS books issued: |6,472,016 |1,337,865
Number of IS books reported |66,594 |19,873
lost: |(1.03 per cent.)|(1.48 per cent.)
Number of IS books reported |28,004 |10,559
lost, stolen, destroyed |(0.4 per cent.) |(0.8 per cent.)
after receipt:
When customers report that they have lost an order book, they will be asked about the circumstances of the loss, and a replacement will be issued. The interviewing officer will have to be satisfied that reasonable efforts to trace the book have been made. The customer may not automatically receive a replacement book, but could be paid benefit temporarily by girocheques on a weekly basis.
The overall number of payment transactions makes a full reconciliation of order books by weekly counterfoils impracticable and not cost effective. It is therefore not possible to readily identify how many of those missing order books have subsequently been cashed.
I hope that you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report. Copies are also being placed in the Library.
Disability Living Allowance
Mr. Steen : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when he expects to begin paying Mrs. Shirley Wakeham of The Nook, Ugborough, Ivybridge, South Devon, the disability living allowance awarded to her on 26 February 1992 ; if he will make a statement as to the reasons for the delay ; and if he will consider the payment of interest to reimburse Mrs. Wakeham for the unpaid benefit.
Column 691
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 my hon. Friend and a copy will be placed in the Library.
Letter from Michael Bichard to Mr Anthony Steen, dated 9 February 1993 :
As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency, it is my responsibility to answer questions raised 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 when payments of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) awarded to Mrs Shirley Wakeham of The Nook, Ugborough, Ivybridge, South Devon, will begin, the reasons for the delay, and whether he will consider the payment of interest to reimburse Mrs Wakeham for the unpaid benefit. Outstanding payments of DLA were made to Mrs Wakeham on 5 February 1993. Payment was unfortunately delayed due to a clerical error made in recording the Adjudication Officer's (AO) decision onto the DLA computer system.
The rules governing the payment of compensation for loss of interest are quite specific and require that delay in making payment on a claim must amount to 12 months or more before compensation can be considered. In Mrs Wakeham's case the delay amounts to less than 12 months therefore compensation cannot be paid.
Clearly her payments have not been handled with the efficiency I would expect and I offer my sincere apologies for any distress or inconvenience caused.
I have separately replied to you in greater detail about this case. I hope that you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report . A copy will also be placed in the Library.
Attendance Allowance
Mr. Steen : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when he expects to make a decision on the application for attendance allowance submitted by Graham Peter Barton of 7 Churchill Cottages, Ugborough, Ivybridge, South Devon, NI No. NZ 46 58 27 A ; and if he will make a statement as to the reasons for the 13 month delay in settling this matter.
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 my hon. Friend and a copy will be place in the Library.
Letter from Michael Bichard to Mr. Anthony Steen, dated 9 February 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 when he expects to make a decision on the application for Attendance Allowance (AA) submitted by Graham Peter Barton of 7 Churchill Cottages, Ugborough, Ivybridge, South Devon NI No NZ 46 58 27 A ; and if he will make a statement as to the reasons for the 13 month delay in settling this.
A decision was made on Mr. Barton's AA claim on 24 June 1992 and notified to him on 30 June 1992. The subsequent review decision was made on 26 January 1993 and notified to him on 3 February 1993. Unfortunately Mr Barton's original AA claim made on 5 December 1991 was mislaid. A further claim was not obtained until 19 March and subsequent delays have resulted from the heavy volumes of work following the successful launch of Disability Living Allowance (DLA).
My letter of 19 October 1992 to all MPs explained the problems the Agency has faced since the successful launch of DLA and the positive steps I have taken to improve the situation. Further steps are being taken to recruit additional, and redeploy existing resources to clear the backlog of reviews.
Column 692
I must apologise for the delay in dealing with Mr Barton's case. Such matters are not taken lightly when they fail to come up to the standard of service the Benefits Agency is trying to give all its customers and in this instance Mr Barton has clearly not received the standard of service to which he is entitled.I have separately replied to you in greater detail about Mr Barton's case. I hope that you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report. A copy will also be placed in the Library.
Benefits Agency (Customer Charter)
Ms. Gordon : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the number of claimants who have applied for compensation under the Benefits Agency's customer charter ; and what is the number of successful claims.
Mr. Burt : The administration of compensation under the Benefit Agency's customer charter 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 Ms. Mildred Gordon, dated 9 February 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, what is the number of claimants who have applied for compensation under the Benefit Agency's Customer Charter ; and what is the number of successful claims.
I would like to explain that the Department has operated Special Payment arrangements for many years and not solely as a result of the Benefits Agency's Customer Charter.
However, the information you require is not available in the precise form requested. This is because, although some customers request compensation themselves, cases are normally forwarded for consideration as a result of identification by Benefits Agency office staff.
I am able to state that, in the period 1 April 1992 to 30 September 1992, compensation for delay in payment of benefit was agreed in 3, 085 cases.
I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy of this letter will appear in the Official Report and a copy will also be placed in the Library.
Mr. Steen : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when the arrangements detailed in Mr. Michael Bichard's letter of 6 January, whereby Mr. James Johnston of 17 Summerlands Court, Brixham, will receive his disability living allowance each month by automatic credit transfer, will be activated ; and when Mr. Johnston may expect to receive the next instalment of disability living 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 and a copy will be placed in the Library.
Letter from Michael Bichard to Mr. Anthony Steen, dated 9 February 1993 :
As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency, it is my responsibility to answer questions raised 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 when the Disability Living
Column 693
Allowance awarded to Mr. James Johnston will be paid by automated credit transfer and when may he expect to receive the next instalment of his benefit.Mr. Johnston's benefit has been paid by automatic credit transfer since 14 September 1992 and the next payment is due on 24 February 1993. I have written to you separately and in greater detail regarding Mr. Johnston's claim.
I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report. A copy will also be placed in the Library.
HEALTH
Drugs
Mr. Alexander : To ask the Secretary of State for Health what representations her Department has received from the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry regarding membership of the Advisory Committee on National Health Service Drugs ; what was the date of any representations ; and what was her Department's response.
Dr. Mawhinney : The Director of the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry wrote to me on 11 December on this matter. A reply was sent on 25 January. I can now announce the names of the new members. They are as follows :
Column 694
Dr. P. R. Fellows--General practitioner, Gloucestershire and chairman of Gloucester local medical committee.Miss A. F. Glasier--Consultant gynaecologist and director of family planning, Lothian health board.
Dr. C. Grattan--Consultant dermatologist, Norfolk and Norwich hospital.
Dr. G. Hargreaves--Former GP with experience of the pharmaceutical industry.
Professor S. Holgate--Specialist in allergic disorders, Southampton university.
Mrs. S. Noyce--Pharmacist adviser to Sefton FHSA.
Hospital Patients
Ms. Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients were treated in each of the last five years per regional health authority (a) as national health service patients and (b) as private patients within the national health service.
Mr. Sackville : The information that is available is set out in the table. The latest information on private patients is for 1989-90. Information for earlier years is not available.
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