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Mr. David Hunt : Dates for submission of bids have not been fixed. They will be set out in the invitations to tender which are expected to issue during the summer.
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what advice has been given to units within his Departments on the selection of advisers they should appoint to assist them in the market-testing process.
Mr. David Hunt : The in-house bid managers have been given training to help them to identify the issues which they need to consider in formulating their bids. Continuing discussions are also taking place between the bid managers and the Department's efficiency unit about the selection of relevant advisers.
Redundancies, Gwent
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list all redundancy and closure announcements involving more than 10 people made by Gwent companies sment Finance
Mr. Salmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) what is his Department's forecast of the number of people in Wales who were previously exempted from paying the community charge on the grounds of severe mental impairment and who (a) are liable for the water charge element of the council tax, (b) are liable for all or part of the property element of the council tax or (c) will be in receipt of 100 per cent. council tax benefit for the property element ;
(2) what is his Department's assessment of the number of people in Wales who (a) will be in receipt of 100 per cent, council tax benefit for the property element of the tax and (b) will be exempt from payment of the personal element of the council tax on the grounds of severe mental impairment ;
(3) if he will give details of the number of people in Wales exempted from payment of the community charge on the grounds of severe mental impairment in each year of its existence.
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Mr. Gwilym Jones : The information required is not held centrally.
NHS Joint Staff Consultative Council
Mr. Michael : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales when the next ministerial meeting with the members of the Joint Staff Consultative Council for the Welsh health service will take place.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : These meetings do not take place on a regular basis and I have not made arrangements for a further meeting.
SOCIAL SECURITY
Benefit Claimants
Mr. Frank Field : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list for each of the last five years the numbers of people receiving each social security benefit whose benefit was reviewed.
Mr. Burt : I understand from Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency, that the information is not readily available and could be obtained only at a disproportionate cost.
Myalgic Encephalomyelitis
Mr. McMaster : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, pursuant to his answer of 14 April to the hon. Member for Blaenau Gwent (Mr. Smith), Official Report, column 667, what estimate he has made of the number of people receiving benefits in respect of myalgic encephalomyelitis.
Mr. Scott : The information is not available. No specific estimate of the number of people receiving benefits in respect of myalgic encephalomyelitis has been made. In general incapacity and disablement benefits are payable on the effects of an illness or disability, and not on the condition itself.
Disability
Mr. McMaster : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list the additional benefits potentially available to single, double and multiple amputees, along with the relevant eligibility criteria ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Scott : A wide range of benefits is available to sick and disabled people, including amputees, provided they meet the conditions of entitlement. In general, disability benefits are payable on the basis of the effect an illness or disability has on a person's everyday life rather than the condition itself.
There is no specific benefit provided for amputees ; however, people who are born without both feet or have had both feet amputated at or above the ankle qualify automatically for the higher rate of the mobility component of disability living allowance, if they satisfy other conditions of entitlement.
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Benefits (Automatic Transfer)
Mr. Vaz : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many representations he has received from people concerned about Government plans to make pension and benefit payments directly to bank accounts : and if he will make a statement.
Miss Widdecombe : We have received various representations, including a number of letters from right hon. and hon. Members. The Government's policy is to ensure that people have a choice of payment method and are aware of the choices available.
Mr. Beggs : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) how many benefit or pension recipients (a) collect benefit directly from a post office and (b) have benefit paid directly into (i) a bank or (ii) a building society ;
(2) how many claim forms have been issued to new pension or benefit applicants which do not provide information regarding the Post Office as a location from which allowances can be collected.
Miss Widdecombe : The payment of social security benefits 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. Roy Beggs, dated 24 May 1993 :
As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency, it is my responsibility to answer questions about relevant operational matters. I am, therefore, replying to your recent Parliamentary Questions to the Secretary of State for Social Security asking how many benefit or pension recipients (a) collect benefit directly from a post office and (b) have benefit paid directly into (i) a bank or (ii) a building society ; and how many claim forms have been issued to new pension or benefit applicants which do not provide information regarding the Post Office as a location from which allowances can be collected.
Although the number of beneficiaries for each benefit is known, because some individuals can receive more than one benefit, statistics on the total number of social security recipients are not available. However, at December 1992 around 4.3 m beneficiaries were paid directly into a bank or building society, while around 23.25 m were paid by a method of payment encashable at a post office. It is not possible to say, from our records, how many payments were made into bank accounts and how many into building society accounts. In a recent trial, three versions of the Retirement Pension (RP) claim form were piloted. One version of the form did not refer directly to the Post Office as a location where RP may be collected, but it stated that other methods of payment were available and invited customers to request further information if required. Eight thousand copies of this form were issued. I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report. A copy will also be placed in the Library.
Visual Handicap
Mr. Callaghan : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what information he has as to additional costs incurred by people with a visual handicap as a result of their disability.
Mr. Scott : Information about the additional costs incurred by visually handicapped people was included in the surveys of disability commissioned by the Government, carried out by the Office of Population
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Censuses and Surveys, and published in 1988. Further information is available in the Royal National Institute for the Blind survey "Blind and Partially Sighted Adults in Britain", published in 1991.Income Support
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will publish figures indicating (a) the number of claimants for income support in respect of mortgage interest in each standardised United Kingdom region, (b) the average weekly payment and (c) the total annual payment in each year since 1988.
Mr. Burt : The information available for Great Britain is in the following tables. Information for Northern Ireland should be requested from my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.
Income support recipients with mortgage interest considered in their assessment May 1992 Social Security |Number of cases |Average amount of|Annual amount of Administrative |mortgage interest|mortgage interest Region --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Recipients with half mortgage interest North Eastern |7,000 |21.35 |8,100,000 London North |15,000 |39.93 |30,500,000 South Western |6,000 |31.25 |9,600,000 Wales |3,000 |21.47 |3,100,000 Midlands |10,000 |22.43 |11,900,000 North Western |8,000 |24.10 |10,100,000 Scotland |3,000 |21.49 |3,100,000 London South |13,000 |39.63 |25,800,000 Great Britain |64,000 |30.59 |102,300,000
Income support recipients with mortgage interest considered in their assessment May 1992 Social Security |Number of cases |Average amount of|Annual amount of Administrative |mortgage interest|mortgage interest Region --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Recipients with half mortgage interest North Eastern |7,000 |21.35 |8,100,000 London North |15,000 |39.93 |30,500,000 South Western |6,000 |31.25 |9,600,000 Wales |3,000 |21.47 |3,100,000 Midlands |10,000 |22.43 |11,900,000 North Western |8,000 |24.10 |10,100,000 Scotland |3,000 |21.49 |3,100,000 London South |13,000 |39.63 |25,800,000 Great Britain |64,000 |30.59 |102,300,000
Income support recipients with mortgage interest considered in their assessment May 1992 Social Security |Number of cases |Average amount of|Annual amount of Administrative |mortgage interest|mortgage interest Region --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Recipients with half mortgage interest North Eastern |7,000 |21.35 |8,100,000 London North |15,000 |39.93 |30,500,000 South Western |6,000 |31.25 |9,600,000 Wales |3,000 |21.47 |3,100,000 Midlands |10,000 |22.43 |11,900,000 North Western |8,000 |24.10 |10,100,000 Scotland |3,000 |21.49 |3,100,000 London South |13,000 |39.63 |25,800,000 Great Britain |64,000 |30.59 |102,300,000
Income support recipients with mortgage interest considered in their assessment May 1992 Social Security |Number of cases |Average amount of|Annual amount of Administrative |mortgage interest|mortgage interest Region --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Recipients with half mortgage interest North Eastern |7,000 |21.35 |8,100,000 London North |15,000 |39.93 |30,500,000 South Western |6,000 |31.25 |9,600,000 Wales |3,000 |21.47 |3,100,000 Midlands |10,000 |22.43 |11,900,000 North Western |8,000 |24.10 |10,100,000 Scotland |3,000 |21.49 |3,100,000 London South |13,000 |39.63 |25,800,000 Great Britain |64,000 |30.59 |102,300,000
Income support recipients with mortgage interest considered in their assessment May 1992 Social Security |Number of cases |Average amount of|Annual amount of Administrative |mortgage interest|mortgage interest Region --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Recipients with half mortgage interest North Eastern |7,000 |21.35 |8,100,000 London North |15,000 |39.93 |30,500,000 South Western |6,000 |31.25 |9,600,000 Wales |3,000 |21.47 |3,100,000 Midlands |10,000 |22.43 |11,900,000 North Western |8,000 |24.10 |10,100,000 Scotland |3,000 |21.49 |3,100,000 London South |13,000 |39.63 |25,800,000 Great Britain |64,000 |30.59 |102,300,000
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Income support recipients with mortgage interest considered in their assessment May 1992 Social Security |Number of cases |Average amount of|Annual amount of Administrative |mortgage interest|mortgage interest Region --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Recipients with half mortgage interest North Eastern |7,000 |21.35 |8,100,000 London North |15,000 |39.93 |30,500,000 South Western |6,000 |31.25 |9,600,000 Wales |3,000 |21.47 |3,100,000 Midlands |10,000 |22.43 |11,900,000 North Western |8,000 |24.10 |10,100,000 Scotland |3,000 |21.49 |3,100,000 London South |13,000 |39.63 |25,800,000 Great Britain |64,000 |30.59 |102,300,000
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Income support recipients with mortgage interest considered in their assessment May 1992 Social Security |Number of cases |Average amount of|Annual amount of Administrative |mortgage interest|mortgage interest Region --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Recipients with half mortgage interest North Eastern |7,000 |21.35 |8,100,000 London North |15,000 |39.93 |30,500,000 South Western |6,000 |31.25 |9,600,000 Wales |3,000 |21.47 |3,100,000 Midlands |10,000 |22.43 |11,900,000 North Western |8,000 |24.10 |10,100,000 Scotland |3,000 |21.49 |3,100,000 London South |13,000 |39.63 |25,800,000 Great Britain |64,000 |30.59 |102,300,000
Housing Benefit
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will make it his policy to amend housing benefit regulations to secure that any disincentive for local authorities wishing to embark on private sector leasing arrangements as opposed to
bed-and-breakfast accommodation is removed provided that value-for-money criteria are met.
Mr. Burt : The housing benefit subsidy arrangements are designed to provide a similar level of support for authorities whether they choose bed and breakfast accommodation or short-term leased accommodation to house homeless persons.
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Benefits
Mr. Steen : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what changes he is making to the availability of benefits for disabled people ; when they will come into effect ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Burt : New regulations come into effect today. They will mean that the presence of a person who is registered blind is ignored for the purpose of the living alone rule when deciding whether a disabled person qualifies for the severe disability premium. This change recognises that someone who is blind should not be expected to care for a severely disabled person. It applies to income support, housing benefit and council tax benefit and will give worthwhile extra help to those who qualify.
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Top-up Claims (Forecasts)
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security to what extent forecasts of claimants for top-up claims were inaccurate ; and what action he intends to take to ensure that future forecasting for changes in benefit schemes is improved.
Mr. Scott : Forecasts of claims to any new benefit scheme are subject to significant margins of error as they are dependent upon estimates of both the eligible population and their likely claiming behaviour. Estimating eligibility for disability benefits is particularly difficult as the eligible population can only be identified through surveys.
Top-up claims to disability living allowance could be made by all those aged under 65 who were receiving either attendance allowance or mobility allowance. The forecast was that 137,000 of the eligible population would apply, the actual number to do so was 234,000. This underestimate of 97,000 was offset by an over-estimate of 61,000 for new claims so that overall, claims were within 4 per cent. of forecasts.
For the future, the establishment of the family resources survey and the improvement in social security statistical systems should help reduce the margin of error attached to future forecasts.
Paying for Independence"
Mr. Alfred Morris : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what consideration his Department has given to the Policy Studies Institute's findings from a survey of disabled people entitled "Paying For Independence", a copy of which has been sent to him ; what action he will be taking ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Scott : I have read with interest the first findings of the research undertaken by the Policy Studies Institute, and I look forward to reading it when it is published in the autumn.
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Allowances (Processing Delays)
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what plans he has to compensate claimants who may have suffered financial loss, resulting in delays in processing claims for (a) disability living allowance, (b) attendance allowance and (c) mobility allowance, where the delays were less than eight months or where financial loss exceeded £10 a month.
Miss Widdecombe : Under the Department's special payment arrangements, consideration will be given to making an ex-gratia payment to someone who has incurred extra expense or suffered actual finanical loss as a result of official error.
Over and above these payments, compensation for loss of use of benefit can also be considered when payment of benefit is excessively delayed. A significant improvement to the arrangements, announced on 4 May means that, for a new claim, compensation can be considered if payment of the benefit is delayed by more than a period of six months plus the target clearance time for clearing the bulk of the claims--usually between 85 per cent. and 95 per cent.
Special compensation arrangements for late payment of benefit were also announced for those people who claimed disability living allowance, attendance allowance or mobility allowance on or after 3 February 1992 who were paid before 1 April 1993 and who suffered a delay of more than eight months in the payment of their benefit. For these people, a payment of £10 per month for each month which exceeded the eight-month period is payable to compensate for the late payment of benefit. No actual financial loss has to have been incurred before payment can be made.
Benefits (Abatement)
Mr. Milburn : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many (a) men and (b) women have had their unemployment benefit abated due to receipt of a personal or occupational pension scheme in each year since 1981.
Mr. Burt : The available information is in the table.
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Date Numbers whose UB Numbers whose UB
was extinguished was reduced due to
due to receipt of receipt of an
an occupational or occupational or
personal pension personal pension
|Men |Women |Total |Men |Women |Total
---------------------------------------------------------------
November 1982 |3,900 |16,300
November 1983 |1,200 |9,500
November 1984 |1,000 |9,700
November 1985 |1,200 |9,100
November 1986 |1,100 |10,700
November 1987 |600 |8,200
November 1988 |700 |6,700
November 1989 |4,700 |300 |5,000 |7,700 |500 |8,200
November 1990 |4,100 |200 |4,300 |7,600 |500 |8,100
November 1991 |7,900 |400 |8,400 |14,400|1,100 |15,500
November 1992 |10,900|900 |11,800|16,600|1,600 |18,200
Notes:
<1> Source: Half-yearly analysis of unemployed claimants.
<2> No information was available for 1981 due to industrial
action.
<3> The age threshold for abatement of UB by an occupational
pension was reduced from age 60 to age 55 from 1 January 1989.
<4> The abatement rule was extended to include personal
pensions from 9 October 1989.
<5> A separate breakdown for men and women is not available
for the years up to 1988. However, the number of women in the
total figure for these years is believed to be negligible as
it would only have applied to the small number of women who
claimed UB after the age of 60 years and who received
occupational pensions of an amount in excess of the threshold.
text
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Mr. Milburn : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the level at current prices of the £35 abatement provision on occupational pensioners in the year it was introduced.
Mr. Burt : The current value of the threshold for the abatement provision on occupational and personal pensions would be £66.44 per week.
Disability Allowances
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many disability living allowance appeals have been heard by disability appeal tribunals ; and in how many cases the appeal succeeded wholly or in part.
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. Paul Flynn, dated 24 May 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 Disability Living Allowance (DLA) appeals have been heard by Disability Appeal Tribunals (DATS) and in how many cases the appeal succeeded wholly or in part.
For the period February 1992 to 30 April 1993 there have been a total of 319 appeals heard by the DATs. Of these some 133 succeeded in their appeal either wholly or in part.
I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report. A copy will also be placed in the Library.
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what action he intends to take to reduce waiting times for attendance allowance, mobility allowance and disability living allowance from application to appeal hearing.
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. David Hinchliffe, dated 24 May 1993 :
As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency it is my responsibility to answer questions about relevant operational matters. I am therefore replying to your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security asking
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what action he intends to take to reduce waiting time for Attendance Allowance (AA), Mobility Allowance (Mob A) and Disability Living Allowance (DLA) from application for appeal to appeal hearing.There are a number of current initiatives that have been instigated with a view to speeding up the throughput of appeal hearings. These include :--
The establishment of a centralised Appeals Unit to process all applications for appeal relating to DLA, MoB A, AA (under 65) and transitional AA.
The availability of additional resources to improve the speed with which an appeal submission is prepared.
The setting of aggressive internal targets to ensure that external performance indicators are achieved.
The improvement of courier arrangements to ensure next day delivery to the Independent Tribunal Service (ITS)--Disability Appeal Tribunal Central Office (DATCO) of all submissions despatched from the Fylde. The arrangement of monthly liaison meetings with ITS to identify any problem areas and introduce operational improvements. The planning of a pilot scheme with the aim of streamlining the current style of submission.
It should be noted that once appeals have been prepared and submitted by BA the actual scheduling and subsequent hearing of them falls wholly within the remit of ITS. This is an area over which BA does not have absolute control.
I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report. A copy will also be placed in the Library.
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what lessons have been learned from the introduction of disability living allowance which could be applied to the introduction of new benefits in the future ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Scott : Changes to the social security scheme are always formally evaluated against both their policy and operational objectives. Some valuable points have already emerged which will help to inform future developments.
Pensions
Mr. Michael Brown : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, when he intends to establish an executive agency for war pensioners.
Mr. Lilley [pursuant to his reply, 9 February 1993, col. 602] : I am pleased to be able to announce that Mr. Peter Mathison has been appointed as the new chief executive for the War Pensions agency. He will take up appointment as chief executive designate on 1 June 1993 pending the launch of the Agency in April 1994. The appointment is for an initial three -year term.
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