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Mr. Hague : The information is not available in the form requested. Figures are not available in relation to Southwark and London. Figures are available for England and Great Britain. Information relating to Northern Ireland is a matter for my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. The figures relate to the numbers of pensioners receiving individual benefits : they do not represent the total number of pensioners receiving benefit--subject to the exceptions shown in the footnotes a pensioner may receive any combination of the benefits listed.
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Benefit |Number<1> of |Number<1> of |Date of
|pensioners<2> |pensioners<2> |statistical sample
|England |Great Britain
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Attendance allowance<3> |760,000 |890,000 |31 March 1993
Community charge benefit |2,216,000 |2,621,000 |May 1992
Disability living allowance<4> |283,000 |354,000 |30 November 1993
Disability working allowance |17 |19 |31 August 1993
Family credit |280 |320 |31 July 1993
Housing benefit |1,387,000 |1,675,000 |May 1992
Income support |1,289,000 |1,524,000 |February 1993
Industrial injuries disablement benefit<5> |62,000 |79,000 |4 April 1992
Invalidity benefit |198,000 |264,000 |4 April 1992
Invalid care allowance |n/a |11,000 |31 December 1993
Reduced earnings allowance<5> |47,000 |62,000 |4 April 1992
Retirement pension |8,141,000 |9,476,000 |31 March 1993
Graduated retirement benefit only |116,660 |134,130 |31 March 1993
Sickness benefit |1,000 |1,000 |4 April 1992
Severe disablement allowance |31,000 |40,000 |4 April 1992
Unemployment benefit |60 |60 |13 May 1992
Widows' benefit |40,000 |48,000 |31 March 1993
<1> Figures shown are rounded to the nearest thousand except in relation to disability working allowance, family
credit and unemployment benefit where
exact figures have been shown.
<2> A pensioner is defined as any person over state pension age-ie a man aged 65 or over and a women aged 60 and over.
<3> Attendance Allowance is for persons aged 65 and over.
<4> Disability Living Allowance was introduced in April 1992 to replace attendance allowance for the under 65s and
mobility allowance.
<5> Figures for industrial injuries disablement benefit and reduced earnings allowance are provisional and relate to
pensions/assessments in payment
not recipients.
n/a=Not available.
Note:-A benefit listed may be payable to a pensioner with any other benefit or benefits listed (subject to offsetting
where appropriate) except in the cases of the following combinations:-
Family credit or disability working allowance and income support, invalidity benefit, severe disablement allowance,
sickness benefit or unemployment
benefit.
Retirement pension or graduated retirement and invalidity benefit, sickness benefit, unemployment benefit or widows'
benefit.
Mr. Bradley : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is his estimate of the cost of extending the linking rule for incapacity benefits to two years.
Mr. Scott : The expenditure consequences of extending the linking rule would depend on the extent to which claimants subsequently gave up incapacity benefit to attempt work, training or other activities. There is no reliable information on which to base an assessment of these possible behavioural changes.
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Invalidity Benefit
Mr. Ron Davies : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, pursuant to his reply of 11 February, Official Report, columns 499-500, concerning children in families in receipt of invalidity benefit, what is the earliest year for which such information is available.
Mr. Scott : The earliest date for which information is available is 31 March 1984. The information is as follows :
Number of child dependency increases in payment to invalidity benefit recipients in Wales 23,000.
Source : 1 per cent. sample of claimants in Great Britain, rounded to the nearest thousand.
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will ensure that any appellants against having their invalidity benefit terminated should, if they so wish,
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be entitled to a professional advocate to speak on their behalf at any hearing, without the cost of such representation falling on the appellants or their families.Mr. Scott : Appeals against decisions on invalidity benefit are heard by a social security appeal tribunal. The hearings are intended to be informal, with the tribunal and the presenting officer assisting the appellant to make his or her case. In these circumstances the provision of an advocate would be inappropriate.
Severe Disablement Allowance
Mr. Bradley : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the estimated saving to his Department from applying the new incapacity test to severe disablement allowance.
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Mr. Scott : The new incapacity test will not be applied to existing severe disablement allowance recipients and the majority of new beneficiaries. Savings, if any, are therefore expected to be negligible.
Pension Increases
Mr. Bowden : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will publish a table showing (a) the percentage increase in the state pension each year from 1970 to 1993, (b) whether the pension was uprated in line with earnings or the retail prices index in each year from 1970 to 1980 and (c) whether the percentage increase in the pension each April 1970 to 1993 was higher or lower than the year-on-year April to April retail prices index rise for the relevant year.
Mr. Hague : The information is in the table.
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Standard rate of |Rate (£) |percentage |Increased by |Year-on-year category A |increase over |earnings or RPI |percentage retirement pension |previous rate |RPI increase man or woman on |April to April own insurance ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ November 1969 |5.00 |11.1 |- |5.5 1970 |5.00 |- |- |5.6 September 1971 |6.00 |20.0 |- |9.4 October 1972 |6.75 |12.5 |- |6.3 October 1973 |7.75 |14.8 |- |9.2 22 July 1974 |10.00 |29.0 |- |15.2 7 April 1975 |11.60 |16.0 |Earnings |21.7 17 November 1975 |13.30 |14.7 |Earnings |21.7 15 November 1976 |15.30 |15.0 |RPI |18.9 14 November 1977 |17.50 |14.4 |RPI |17.5 13 November 1978 |19.50 |11.4 |Earnings |7.9 12 November 1979 |23.30 |19.5 |RPI |10.1 24 November 1980 |27.15 |16.5 |RPI |21.8 23 November 1981 |29.60 |9.0 |- |12.0 22 November 1982 |32.85 |11.0 |- |9.4 21 November 1983 |34.05 |3.7 |- |4.0 26 November 1984 |35.80 |5.1 |- |5.2 25 November 1985 |38.30 |7.0 |- |6.9 28 July 1986 |38.70 |1.0 |- |3.0 6 April 1987 |39.50 |2.1 |- |4.2 11 April 1988 |41.15 |4.2 |- |3.9 10 April 1989 |43.60 |6.0 |- |8.0 9 April 1990 |46.90 |7.6 |- |9.4 8 April 1991 |52.00 |10.9 |- |6.4 6 April 1992 |54.15 |4.1 |- |4.3 12 April 1993 |56.10 |3.6 |- |1.3 Source: The Abstract of Statistics for Social Security Benefits and Contributions and the Indices of Retail Prices and Average Earnings. Notes: 1. Prior to 1975 pensions were increased by an Act of Parliament rather than by an annual up-rating order. 2. Retirement pension was not increased in 1970. 3. April to April uprating introduced in 1987.
Benefit Statistics
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people, and what percentage of the population in England, Wales and Scotland, receive (a)
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income support, (b) unemployment benefit, (c)sickness--invalidity benefit, (d) industrial disablement benefit and (e) housing/council tax benefit.
Mr. Burt : The information is in the table.
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Benefit |England |Percentage of |Scotland |Percentage of |Wales |Percentage of (April/May 1992) |population |population |population -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Sickness benefit |109,000 |0.28 |17,000 |0.42 |12,000 |0.52 Invalidity benefit |1,072,000 |2.78 |200,000 |4.90 |159,000 |6.91 Industrial injuries disablement benefit<1> |163,000 |0.42 |18,000 |0.44 |18,000 |0.78 Income support<2> |4,282,000 |11.10 |519,000 |12.70 |287,000 |12.47 Unemployment benefit |582,000 |1.51 |58,000 |1.42 |28,000 |1.23 Housing benefit<2> |3,572,000 |9.26 |539,000 |13.19 |217,000 |9.43 Community charge benefit |7,116,000 |18.45 |861.000 |21.07 |437,000 |18.98 <1> More than one pension may be in payment. <2> Numbers represent benefit units. Notes: 1. Recipients may be in receipt of more than one benefit. 2. Benefit figures are rounded to nearest thousand. 3. Population figures represented by those aged 16 and over.
Learning Disabilities
Mr. Hinchliffe : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what proportion of income support payments to people with learning disabilities covers the cost of meeting day care charges.
Mr. Burt : Particular items of expenditure are not identified in income support, although people with learning difficulties may be entitled to receive a disability premium. Social services authorities have discretionary powers to make charges for day care services for adults. Charges are not uniform.
Christmas Bonus
Mr. Flynn : To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what would be the value of the Christmas bonus in the next financial year if it had increased in line with (a) prices and (b) earnings since 1979.
Mr. Hague [pursuant to his reply 14 February 1994, c. 599] : The information contained a typographical error. The value of the Christmas bonus in 1994-95 if increased in line with prices should read £24.50.
OVERSEAS DEVELOPMENT
Angola
Mr. Parry : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans Her Majesty's Government have to assist Angola in emergency aid during 1994.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : We expect to maintain a substantial programme of humanitarian aid to Angola this year. A mission will visit in mid-March to assess the situation.
Mr. Parry : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much bilateral and multilateral aid each EC member state has given to Angola since the outbreak of war in 1992.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : We provided £1.8 million of bilateral aid in 1992-93 and have allocated £10 million of humanitarian aid for Angola in 1993-94. Our share of EC aid to Angola in 1993 was £3.5 million. We do not have figures for other EC member states for 1992 and after.
Dominica
Mr. Foulkes : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has received from the Prime Minister of Dominica, on the discussions within the European Union on bananas ; what action he is taking as a consequence ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : My right hon. and noble Friend, the Minister for Overseas Development and I have discussed the EC banana regime with Dame Eugenia Charles. Dame
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Eugenia gave my right hon. and noble Friend a document on restructuring the Windward Islands banana industry on Saturday in Dominica and this is now being studied.World Bank Group
Mr. Denham : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list for each year since 1988 the amount of (a) United Kingdom subscription to the World bank group in the form of callable shares (b) the amount of United Kingdom subscription to the World bank group consisting of callable shares which have actually been paid in and (c) the above figure as a percentage of the total United Kingdom subscription to the World bank group.
Mr. Lennox-Boyd : In 1988, a general capital increase (GCI) of $74.8 billion, with a 3 per cent. paid-in element, was agreed for the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD). The United Kingdom subscribed to 30,450 shares with a value of $3.67 billion, of which $110.2 million (3 per cent.) was paid-in over the period 1988-93.
In 1985, a capital increase of $650 million was approved for the International Finance Corporation (IFC). The United Kingdom subscribed to 30,500 shares with a value of $30.5 million, all fully paid-in in five equal instalments over the period 1986-89. In 1991, a further capital increase of $1 billion was agreed. The United Kingdom is subscribing to 52,615 shares, fully paid-in, in five equal instalments over the period 1993-96.
The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) was established in 1988 with a capital stock of SDR1 billion ($1.1 billion). The United Kingdom subscribed to 4,860 shares at a value of $52.6 million, of which 10 per cent. was paid in cash in 1988, 10 per cent in the form of a promissory note and the balance callable.
Payments since 1988 associated with these subscriptions to capital stock are shown in the table. The table excludes payments to the International Development Association (IDA) which relies on contributions from donors, not subscriptions to capital stock, to finance its activities.
United Kingdom Payments to World Bank Group
Capital increases 1988-93
£ million
|IBRD |IFC |IFC |MIGA
|1988 GCI|1985 GCI|1991 GCI
------------------------------------------------------
1988 |6.561 |3.558 |- |3.098
1989 |12.646 |3.678 |- |-
1990 |10.209 |- |- |-
1991 |11.741 |- |- |-
1992 |10.219 |- |- |-
1993 |12.887 |- |14.174 |-
Mr. Denham : To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list all contributions made by Her Majesty's Government to the World bank group, excluding those made by the Overseas Development Administration, since 1988.
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Mr. Lennox-Boyd : The Department of Trade and Industry has contributed £570,000 since 1988 to the United Kingdom consultants trust fund administered by the World bank.
EMPLOYMENT
Careers Service
Mr. Wigley : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many bids have been received to run the careers service for each of the 13 pathfinder areas he designated in July 1993 ; and how many in each case and in total were submitted by private employers.
Miss Widdecombe : Information on organisations which submitted bids to provide careers on services is commercial-in-confidence while negotiations on business plans continue.
Race Discrimination
Mrs. Fyfe : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will review the limit on awards available to tribunals in racial discrimination cases.
Miss Widdecombe : The Government announced on 1 November 1993 that they would seek a suitable opportunity to remove the limit on compensation which may be awarded by industrial tribunals in racial discrimination cases, and to allow interest to be included in compensation awards.
The Government are supporting a Private Members' Bill, the Race Relations (Remedies) Bill, introduced by the hon. Member for Leicester, East (Mr. Vaz) on 16 December 1993, which offers an early opportunity to pursue the Government's own objective in this area. The Bill had its Second Reading, Committee and Report stages on Friday 18 February. If it is passed by Parliament, commencement will be by the autumn of this year.
At present, the limit on compensatory awards is reviewed each year, although there is no compulsion to do so.
Education Allowance
Mr. Patchett : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many people are currently on full-time vocational courses within the Barnsley, East constituency as a consequence of the education allowance introduced in the budget statement in March 1993.
Miss Widdecombe : In November 1993 there were 34 people participating in the learning for work programme in the Barnsley and Doncaster training and enterprise council area. The information requested is not collected at constituency level.
Unemployment Costs
Mr. Alex Carlile : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what is the average estimated yearly cost to the Treasury of an unemployed person ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Michael Forsyth : The latest available estimate of gross benefit payments to the unemployed is £9.3 billion for the 1992-93 financial year. If the assumption of 2.8 million unemployed is used, this gives an average benefit cost of £3,300 per unemployed person per year.
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Long-term Unemployment
Mr. Rendel : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many persons have benefited since 1992 from back-to-work bonus schemes in inner city areas for the long-term unemployed.
Mr. Michael Forsyth [holding answer 18 February 1994] : 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 Mr. M. Fogden to Mr. David Rendel, dated 21 February 1994 :
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question about Back to Work Bonus schemes.
The Government launched two pilots of a back to work bonus scheme called the Jobfinder's Grant on 7 February this year in my East Midlands and Eastern and West Midlands Regions. Up to 15 February, 65 grants has been issued in the East Midlands where 2,000 grants of £200 are available to people previously unemployed for more than two years who find work. Thirty three grants has been issued in the West Midlands where 1,000 grants of £100 are available to people, previously unemployed for more than two years and who live within the areas of Birmingham, Sandwell, Dudley, Wolverhampton or Walsall. I hope this is helpful.
Health and Safety (Children)
Mrs. Clwyd : To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what information is collected by the Health and Safety Executive on the incidence of accidents at work involving school-age children.
Mr. Michael Forsyth [holding answer 18 February 1994] : The Reporting of Incidents, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1985 (RIDDOR) gathers information on accidents to employees, including those aged under 16. Under regulation 3 of RIDDOR, incidents involving people who are not themselves at work--including school children--must also be reported to the Health and Safety Executive if the person sustains an injury
"arising out of or in connection with work activity".
SCOTLAND
Scottish Grand Committee
Mr. Wallace : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland by what date he expects all the measures put forward in the Scottish Office document "A Partnership for Good" to be fully implemented, with particular reference to the proposed changes in the procedures of the Scottish Grand Committee.
Mr. Lang : The majority of proposals have already been implemented. Some others will take effect from April and the remainder are either in hand or are on-going. As regards the procedures of the Scottish Grand Committee on 10 February, I placed in the Library of the House proposed amendments to Standing Orders which will implement our commitment to expand the role of the Committee.
The amendments will be tabled in due course.
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Public Bodies
Mr. Kilfoyle : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland who are the members currently appointed to the Extra Parliamentary panel.
Mr. Lang : The current membership of the panel appointed for 1991-95 is shown in the table :
Professor Hugh Begg
Professor Christopher Blake
Mrs. Ruth Blackie
Mr. William Cook
Mr. Alexander Hamilton, CBE
Professor J. Ross Harper, CBE
Miss Ethel Houston, OBE
Mr. John Langan
Professor Brian Loasby
Mr. Duncan Macleod, CBE
Mr. E. Lowson, MBE
Mr. Donald MacGregor
Mr. James McPherson, CBE
Mrs. Jean Morris, CBE
Mr. David Myles, CBE
Mr. David Patterson
Mrs. Kathleen Rennie
Mr. James Stobo, OBE
Professor Urlan Wannop
Mr. Bruce Weatherstone.
Homosexual Offences
Dr. Godman : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many alleged cases of consensual homosexual acts have been reported since December 1991 by procurators fiscal to the Crown Office for Crown Counsel's consideration ; and if he will make a statement.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton : Only two such cases have been reported to the Crown Office for Crown Counsel's consideration since December 1991.
Consultancies
Mr. Meacher : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the value of consultancy contracts awarded by his Department each year since 1979, both in current prices and at constant 1994 prices.
Mr. Lang [holding answer 10 February 1994] : The following information on annual expenditure on management consultancy is readily available :
Year |Current price |Constant Price
|(£) |December 1993 (£)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1984-85 |47,512 |74,594
1985-86 |491,864 |732,877
1986-87 |569,038 |819,415
1987-88 |193,338 |275,690
1988-89 |1,162,108 |1,522,361
1989-90 |374,620 |457,036
1990-91 |806,343 |888,077
1991-92 |1,028,000 |1,079,400
1992-93 |3,510,000 |3,580,200
Old Royal High School
Mr. Raymond S. Robertson : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, when he plans to put for former Crown Office building, the Old Royal high school in Edinburgh, on the market.
Mr. Baldry [pursuant to my reply, 14 February 1994, c. 593] : In accordance with the guidance set out in the
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Scottish Office Circular 38/1992 "Disposal of Surplus Government Land--The Crichel Down Rules", Property Holdings in my Department has today written to the City of Edinbrugh district council, the former owners, to offer to sell to them at market value the Old Royal high school Edinburgh which is now surplus to Government requirements. The district council has two months to exercise the option to purchase and if it declines or fails to respond within this period then the property will be offered for sale on the open market.Prison Officers
Mr Raymond S. Robertson : To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he has any plans to alter the status of prison officers in Scotland.
Mr. Lang [pursuant to his reply, 3 December 1993, c. 733] : I intend to table a clause for inclusion in the Criminal Justice and Public Order Bill which will give prison officers and governors in Scotland, and prisoner custody officers performing custodial duties, the power to detain in any place in the prison, on reasonable suspicion, any person suspected of bringing in prohibited artricles--for example, drugs or weapons--on to prison property, until police officers arrive and have the opportunity to question the person. The clause will permit searching of any person by prison officers and governors on reasonable suspicion that the person was bringing in a prohibited article. Searching will not include intimate searching and will be restricted to "rub-down" searching in relation to prohibited articles other than controlled drugs, firearms and ammunition. It will also permit any prohibited article so found to be seized and detained. These measures will assist prison officers in the fight against the smuggling of drugs into prisons, and will in substance give them the same powers as their counterparts in the rest of the United Kingdom.
NORTHERN IRELAND
NHS Waiting Lists
Mr. McGrady : To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of NHS waiting lists ; and if he will make a statement.
Mr. Ancram : Additional funding to reduce waiting lists and times has been made available in the last two years and significant progress has been made over this period.
In March 1991 a total of 27,086 people were waiting for inpatient treatment, 8,600--32 per cent.--of whom were waiting more than one year, and 5,071--19 per cent.--more than two years. By the end of September 1993, the number waiting was down to 25,420, of whom 4,675--18 per cent.--were on the list for more than one year, while 1,041--4 per cent.--were on it for more than two years. I am confident that the charter guarantee of 18 months will be reached by the end of this year for most, if not all patients.
Although these figures represent a considerable achievement, the Government wish to see further progress as soon as possible. The chief executive of the HPSS management executive has written recently to boards urging continued and positive action on waiting lists and the position will be closely monitored at all times.
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