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Benefits
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what are the estimated savings of increasing the level of deductions made to claimants of housing benefit and council tax benefit.
Mr. Burt : The estimated savings for 1994-95 across income-related benefits--housing benefit, council tax benefit and income support--are £60 million .
Source :
1989-90-91 family expenditure survey. At 1993-94 levels of prices, incomes and benefit rates.
Mr. Bradley : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what are the numbers of former supplementary benefit claimants who are expected to continue to receive transitional additions in 1994-95; and if he will break the figure down by pensioners, couples with children, lone parents and disabled people.
Mr. Burt [holding answer 21 January 1994] : Due to the small numbers currently in receipt of transitional additions, it is difficult to give accurate forecasts of those likely to be in receipt of them in 1994- 95. Our best estimate is that there will be fewer than 6,000 in receipt in 1994-95. The small number involved makes it impossible to provide a reliable forecast of the numbers in the various groups.
The latest information available is for February 1993 and is set out in the table.
Column 20
|Number of
|cases
------------------------------------------
Pensioners |500
Couples with children |*-
Lone parents |500
Disabled |1,000
Others |4,000
|-------
Total |6,500
Notes:
1. Source: Income support statistics
quarterly inquiry, February 1993.
2. The figures have been rounded to the
nearest 500. "*" indicates fewer
than 250 cases.
3. As some people appear in more than
one group, the figures will not
necessarily sum to the total given.
Dr. Godman : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will make a statement concerning the implications of the decision of the European Court of Justice, in case C-338/91
Steenhorst-Neerings, 27 October 1993, for the claims for back payment of benefits.
Mr. Scott : This case concerned a claim for Dutch invalidity benefit which was made in 1988 at a time when the Dutch Government had not properly implemented their obligations under directive 79/7/EEC on equal treatment in social security. Benefit was awarded under domestic law from one year before the date of claim but was not backdated to December 1984, the date by which the directive had to be implemented.
The court held that, where claims are made in such circumstances a member state is not prevented from applying national rules which limit the retroactive effect of a claim.
The United Kingdom's time limits on claims for benefit are consistent with this ruling. There will, therefore, be no implications for claims for arrears of benefit.
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what are the estimated savings to his Department in 1994-95 of freezing (a) the earnings disregards for income-related benefits and (b) the savings limit for income-related benefits.
Mr. Burt : None. The level of earnings disregards and the capital limits are kept under review but are not uprated annually. There are no plans to increase them at the present time.
Statutory Sick Pay
Mr. Ingram : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, pursuant to his answer of 17 January, Official Report, column 424, what are the additional costs, net of any reduction in employer's national insurance contributions, to his Departmental budget for the financial year 1994-95 as a result of the changes in statutory sick pay provision.
Mr. Scott : There is no net cost. The additional costs to this Department resulting from the changes in statutory sick pay provision are fully offset by the savings from the reduction in employers' national insurance contributions.
Column 21
Age-related Benefits
Mr. Ingram : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, pursuant to his answer of 17 January, Official Report, columns 424-25, if he will list the organisations and individuals which have been issued with a copy of the consultation document on age-related benefits.
Mr. Hague : The organisations which have received copies of the consultation document on age-related rebates direct, either through the initial distribution or as a result of requesting a copy, are as follows :
Abundance Management Services
Association of Pensions Lawyers
Association of Corporate Trustees
Association of British Chambers of Commerce
Bacon and Woodrow
Bain Clarkson Financial Services
Bank of England
Bar Council
British Payroll Managers Association
British Coal Corporation
Charter for Pension Fund Democracy
Chessington Computer Centre
CIS Ltd.
Clay and Partners
Confederation Life
CONNECTION
Conservative Trade Unionist
Consumers Association
Council on Tribunals
Cyborg Systems
Engineering Employers' Federation
Equal Opportunities Commission
Federation of Small Businesses
FIMBRA
Forum for Private Business
Godwins Ltd.
Hoare Govett Ltd.
Hundred Group of Finance Directors
IMRO
Independent Pensions Research group
Institute of Directors
Institute of Actuaries
Institute of Chartered Accountants
Institutional Fund Managers Association
J Sainsbury plc
Joint Working Group on Occupational Pensions--National Association of Pension Funds, Association of Consulting Actuaries, Association of British Insurers, Society of Pensions Consultants
Lane Clark Peacock
LAUTRO
Law Debenture Trust Corporation
Law Society
Legal and General
Lovell White Durrant
Ludgate Laud
Maxwell Pensioners Action Group
Metal Colours Ltd.
National Westminster Life Assurance
Noble Lowndes
Northern Pensions Resource Group
Occupational Pensions Advisory Service
Occupational Pensions Board
Over Fifties Association
Payroll Alliance
Pearl Assurance
Pension Trustee Forum
Pension Research Accountants Group
Pensions Management Institute
Peterborough Software
Provident Life
Prudential Corporation
R. Watson and Sons
Randolph Parliamentary Service
Royal London Insurance
Securities and Investments Board
Shannda Life
Column 22
Smith New CourtSocial Security Advisory Committee
Soterlou Banerji Chartered Accountants
Sun Life Assurance
Towers Perrin
Trades Union Congress
United Distillers
William M. Mercer Ltd.
The document has also been issued to a number of private individuals.
Child Care Costs
Mr. Chisholm : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what percentage of families currently on family credit could receive the maximum amount for child care costs as announced in the Budget, assuming that their income remained the same and their child care costs were £40 or more a week.
Mr. Burt [holding answer 21 January 1994] : Families who could receive the maximum amount of help with child care costs in family credit are those with earnings of £109 or more. Lone parents and two- earner couples with a child under 11 who have earnings of £109 or more represent 10 per cent. of the family credit case load--May 1993. Figures for couples where one partner works and the other is incapacitated are not available.
The number of people currently receiving family credit is not a good guide to the number of people who will gain from the disregard of earnings which will extend the range of families eligible for the benefit. The projected numbers receiving the benefit for future years are also higher.
The estimates from the Department's policy simulation model are that 150,000 families will benefit from the child care disregard. Those families who do not benefit from the full value of the child care disregard in family credit may get extra help through the parallel disregard in housing benefit-council tax benefit.
PRIME MINISTER
Life-supporting Treatment
Mrs. Ann Winterton : To ask the Prime Minister if the letter of 22 December from the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State on the withdrawal of life-supporting treatment following receipt of an advance directive from a patient represents the policy of Her Majesty's Government ; and if he will make a statement.
The Prime Minister : My hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under- Secretary for Health sought to explain the current legal position on advance directives.
Her Majesty's Government acknowledge the right of individuals to draw up advance directives. People have a right, emphasised in the patients charter, to consent, or withhold consent, to treatment. Advance directives assist patients in the exercise of their legal rights and so ensure their lawful treatment.
The House of Lords Select Committee on Medical Ethics is examining this area, and is due to report soon. The Government will consider the Committee's findings very carefully.
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