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(iii) Estimated cost of administration of all social security benefits in Wales for 1992-93 is £55.3 million.
(iv) Estimated cost of income tax allowances on personal taxation in Wales for 1990-91 is £6,250 million.
(v) Estimated cost of tax relief on earnings and investments (excluding MIRAS) in Wales for 1990-91 is £485 million.
(vi) Expenditure on mandatory and discretionary student grants awarded by local authorities in Wales to students normally resident in their area in 1990-91 was £109 million.
Additional statistical information for Wales can be found in Welsh Economic Trends, No. 13', published by the Welsh Office in 1992, a copy of which is in the Library.
Note :
Figures underlying Table of the Departmental Report (Cm. 2213). Table 8.7 of CSO Regional Trends 27 (1992).
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Children in Hospital
Mr. McMaster : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list all additional benefits which are potentially available to allow parents (a) entitled and (b) not entitled to income support to visit children who are detained in hospital (i) in the short term and (ii) in the long term ; if he will describe the eligibility criteria for each ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Scott : Those entitled to income support may be able to receive a community care grant or a budgeting loan from the social fund for expenses to visit someone who is in hospital. Payments are discretionary but are normally given high priority. Those not in receipt of income support will normally be better placed to meet these costs because they will have higher levels of income. Even so, a crisis loan from the social fund may be payable if the payment is the only way to prevent serious damage or risk to the health or safety of the applicant. Payments from the social fund can be made in one lump sum or at regular intervals if the visits are to continue for some time.
Pension Payments
Mr. Dewar : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) what percentages of respondents opted for automated credit transfer and post office order book payment in each group of 8,000 recipients applying for pension payments involved in the test marketing of forms which took place in March of this year ;
(2) what was the total cost of the test marketing of revised forms for retirement pension payments which were issued to 24,000 recipients in March this year ;
(3) when a decision will be taken on revised forms giving those eligible for the state retirement pension a choice of payment method ; and when such forms will be introduced.
Miss Widdecombe : Retirement pension claim forms are issued four months before potential entitlement begins and, so far, only a minority of the piloted claim forms have been returned. It is not possible to draw any statistically valid conclusions at this stage. Decisions on any revision of the current claim form, including when any resultant new form might be introduced, will not be made until after the results of the trial are known.
The cost of the test is estimated to be around £22,000.
Quarry House
Ms Primarolo : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, pursuant to his answer of 13 May, Official Report, column 569, what part of the £55.5 million of the cost of building Quarry house was spent on landscaping.
Miss Widdecombe : It is not possible to put a precise figure on the landscaping costs because of the nature of the contract with the builders.
Earnings and Expenses
Mr. Riddick : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what plans he has to reduce burdens on business caused by the different definitions of earnings and expenses used for national insurance and tax purposes.
Mr. Lilley : I have today announced the setting up of a working group to identify the options for reducing the
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administrative difficulties for business caused by differences in the rules for national insurance and income tax. The membership of the working group will include representatives of business as well as officials from my Department and the Inland Revenue. They will be encouraged to take a fresh look at the problems and will come forward with recommendations.Mr. Barry Field : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people will benefit from the 100 per cent. rebates under the council tax.
Mr. Burt : It is estimated that in 1993-94 some 3.19 million households will receive 100 per cent. rebates under council tax benefit, out of a total council tax benefit caseload of 5.3 million. Source : Figures rounded to the nearest 5,000 and based on actual council tax levels and data drawn from the 1989-90-91 Family Expenditure Surveys modelled at 1993-94 prices and benefit levels.
Rent Deposits
Mr. Milburn : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many grants for rent deposits under the single payments system were not returned by landlords in the three years prior to its replacement by the social fund ; and what was the annual cost of the non-returned deposits.
Mr. Scott : The information requested is not available.
Mr. Milburn : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many grants for rent deposits were made under the single payments system in the three years prior to its replacement by the social fund ; what was the annual cost ; and what were unit costs as a proportion of the total single payment spending.
Mr. Scott : The available information is in the table.
Year |Estimated |Estimated claims|Single payment
|expenditure (£ |(Thousands)<1> |expenditure (£
|million) |million)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1985-86 |3 |30,000 |335
1986-87 |7 |49,000 |330
1987-88 |10 |<2>- |294
<1> To the nearest thousand.
<2> Unavailable.
The table indicates that deposits accounted for an estimated 2.1 per cent. of the total single payment expenditure over this period.
Benefits (Automated Credit Transfer)
Mr. Salmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the level of public expenditure by (a) his Department and (b) the Benefits Agency to encourage benefit claimants to have their benefits paid by automated credit transfer.
Miss Widdecombe : I refer the hon. Member to my reply to the hon. Member for Rossendale and Darwen (Ms Anderson) on 26 April at columns 313- 14.
Information on methods of payment of social security benefits, includis trial was estimated to be around £22,000.
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Mr. Salmond : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list each of the organisations which have written to him on the subject of automated credit transfer and the implications for the viability of sub post offices ; and if he will indicate which have been (a) favourable and (b) unfavourable.
Miss Widdecombe : We have recently received a substantial number of representations about automated credit transfer, including letters from a wide variety of organisations, from right hon. and hon. Members and from a number of individuals, arguing in favour of the continuing availability of post offices for the payment of benefits. We have also received correspondence in favour of ACT being available for a greater range of benefits.
Occupational Pensions
Mr. Jim Cunningham : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) what plans he has to strengthen the role of employees in the administration of occupational pension scheme funds ; (2) if he will bring forward proposals to prohibit employers from having a controlling decision on (a) how occupational pension funds are used, (b) what the pension levels should be and (c) the use of these funds to pay off company debts.
Miss Widdecombe : The rights and interests of scheme members, pensioners and employers in occupational pension scheme are among the issues being considered by the Pension Law Review Committee. The committee was established, in June last year under the chairmanship of Professor Goode QC, to review the whole framework of law and regulation within which occupational pension schemes operate. It would be premature for the Government to comment on possible changes before the committee reports at the end of September.
Mr. Jim Cunningham : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what proposals he has to improve the position of those whose occupational pension rights have been lessened by periods of unemployment ; and what age group he estimates is most affected.
Miss Widdecombe : Members of occupational pension schemes who become unemployed are entitled to a preserved pension which is revalued in line with rises in prices of up to 5 per cent. a year until they reach the scheme's normal retirement age. On starting work again they can either leave their preserved pension where it is, or transfer their rights into their new employer's pension scheme or into a personal pension. Information on the ages of those involved is not available. We have no plans to change these provisions.
Mr. Jim Cunningham : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what proposals he has to improve the position of those whose occupational pensions are abated because they left early.
Miss Widdecombe : I refer the hon. Member to my reply to the hon. Member for Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Central (Mr. Cousins) on 9 November 1992 at column 563.
Column 638
WALES
Trawsfynydd
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what weight of plutonium has been created in the Trawsfynydd nuclear plant since it opened ; and what information his Department has received from Nuclear Electric and its predecessor company in regard to movements of plutonium from the plant.
Mr. Eggar : I have been asked to reply.
Since 1986-87, estimates of the plutonium contained in the reactor discharges at Trawsfynydd power station have been published as part of the annual plutonium figures. Copies have been placed in the Library of the House. Estimates for earlier years could be produced only at disproportionate cost. For the information supplied by operators on shipments, I refer the hon. Member to my reply of 3 December 1992, Official Report, column 346.
Manufacturing Output
Mr. Morgan : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will give manufacturing output figures for Wales in 1976, 1981, 1986, 1991 and 1992 in constant prices, the percentage change from 1976 to 1992 and taking 1976 as 100, the United Kingdom manufacturing output change figures for the same intervening years.
Mr. David Hunt : The information requested is given in the following table.
Index of manufacturing output, annual averages
1985=100 Percentage change
since 1976
|Wales |United Kingdom|Wales |United Kingdom
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1976 |100.7 |103.5 |0.0 |0.0
1981 |93.0 |91.0 |-7.6 |-12.1
1986 |104.5 |101.3 |3.8 |-2.1
1991 |125.7 |112.2 |24.8 |8.4
1992 |127.2 |111.4 |26.3 |7.6
Source: Welsh Office, CSO.
Council Tax
Mr. Richards : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what proportion of the 1993-94 council tax for Wales is to be paid for by (a) single-person households, (b) two-person households and (c) three or more person households.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : The information required is not held centrally.
River Ebbw
Mr. Llew Smith : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what assessment his Department has made of the levels of chemical pollution in the River Ebbw.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : This is a matter for the National Rivers Authority, which regularly monitors the river on a routine basis. I am advised by the authority that the results of the monitoring show water quality to be generally good and improving.
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Pharmacies
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what plans he has to pay professional allowances to pharmacists dispensing over 2,000 scripts per month.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply given to my hon. Friend the Member for Clwyd, North-West (Mr. Richards) on 20 May at column 314.
Mr. Barry Jones : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what policies he has adopted to assist local pharmacies.
Mr. Gwilym Jones : Local pharmacies may be eligible for a range of assistance to retail businesses which is provided through the enterprise initiative consultancy scheme, through training and enterprise councils, and through local enterprise agencies. Pharmacies in commercial improvement areas or commercial renewal areas may also qualify for assistance for commercial building improvement works under the Welsh Office's urban programme. For those pharmacies who are contracted to provide pharmaceutical services to the NHS, the arrangements for determining their remuneration are intended to give pharmacists a fair return for the level and quality of the services they provide. The essential small pharmacies scheme gives additional payments to improve the financial viability of small isolated pharmacies which provide essential NHS dispensing services to patients.
Managing in the 90s
Mr. Richards : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many firms in Clwyd have been helped by the organisation, Managing in the 90s ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. David Hunt : Clwyd-based companies, in common with their counterparts throughout the country, have benefited in a variety of ways from this extensive management best-practice awareness programme. Initially focusing on four areas of industrial performance--design, production, purchasing and quality--it has recently been extended to include marketing and innovation. The programme reaches its audience through a range of media --publications, videos and events. I understand that literature and invitations to events are regularly dispatched to some 100 companies in the Clwyd area.
The programme was launched in Wales in June 1989 with two successful management action briefings, one of which was held at British Aerospace, Broughton, in Clwyd which attracted a capacity audience of predominantly local industrialists.
The programme acts as an umbrella and inspiration behind a wide range of other activities such as Newtech's Transforum with membership in excess of 50 which exists to help Clwyd and Gwynedd companies take advantage of technology transfer opportunities. Late last year 24 companies attended a "Competing With the Best in Manufacturing" seminar in Holywell arranged under the M90's programme.
The flagship of the programme, the strategy roadshow, has visited Clwyd twice. It was at Deeside industrial estate for a week in September 1991 and more recently in February this year at British Aerospace, Broughton where it attracted 299 visitors over five days from 149 organisations.
Column 640
Support for Products under Research
Mr. Richards : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will name the companies in Clwyd that have received financial assistance from the scheme, support for products under research ; what was the amount of each award ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. David Hunt : SPUR is a valuable scheme designed to enable small and medium size companies to develop new products and processes which are technologically advanced.
In Wales, some 20 companies have been supported under the scheme so far. These include three companies located in Clwyd which have collectively received offers of assistance totalling £360,000. These companies are :
Breger Gibson Ltd. offered up to £150,000
Depac Glideflare Ltd. offered up to £119,100
Sutures Ltd. offered up to £90,000
Environmental Protection
Mr. Dafis : To ask the Secretary of State for Wales if he will list the reed beds of over two hectares in extent in Wales.
Mr. David Hunt : Reed bed sites in Wales covering two hectares or more are as follows :
Clwyd
Shotton Steelworks
Dyfed
Ynys Eidol
Ynys Hir
Cors Fochno
Teifi marshes
Freshwater West, Castle Martin Corse
Freshwater East
Slebech
Goodwick, Fishguard
Newport
Ritec Valley, Tenby Marsh
Kilpaison Marsh, Rhoscrowther
Pembrey Airfield, Banc-y-lord
Pembrey Saltings
Ffrwd
Burry Port West
Burry Port East
Ashpits, Burry Port
Pwll
Techon Marsh
Ffos Fach, Bynea
Llangennech
Kidwelly Castle
Mid Glamorgan
Kenfig Pool
West Glamorgan
Oxwich
Crymlyn Bog
Eglwys Nunydd (site 2)
Crymlyn Burrows
Gwent
Wentlooge Levels
Caldicot Levels
Gwynedd
Ynysmaen gwyn, Broadwater
Arthod (ditches)
Farchynys
Penmaenpool
Ynys
Ystumllyn
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