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Cold Weather Payments
Mr. Wicks: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will make a statement on (a) the operation of and (b) the forecasting procedures for cold weather payments. [9624]
Mr. Heald: The cold weather payments scheme, which runs from 1 November to 31 March each year, works very well: payments are made automatically; current arrangements are sensible, responsive, and are based on the best scientific information from the Meteorological Office. Extra help is focused on the most vulnerable groups receiving income support, when there is a sustained period of very cold weather in their area. So far this winter, 3.8 million payments worth almost £32 million have been made. In 1991, when the cold weather payment scheme was reviewed, we built into its operation the facility for the Meteorological Office to forecast periods of cold weather in advance. This enables the payment process to start more quickly as payments can be decided on the basis of forecasts without having to wait for seven days of recorded data. If the recorded data which follows do not confirm the forecast, the payments are not recalled. All forecasts used so far this winter have been confirmed by recorded data.
Reduced Earnings Allowance
Mr. Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) what are the principal prescribed diseases for which reduced earnings allowance is currently claimed; [10120]
- (2) what were the principal prescribed diseases for which reduced earnings allowance was claimed for the first time including back-dating claims in 1994 and 1995; [10121]
(3) how many (a) men and (b) women over pensionable age in receipt of reduced earnings allowance at the end of (i) 1994 and (ii) 1995 were in paid employment in each region; [10125]
(4) how many people were awarded, and how much money was paid in, claims, backdated more than 12 months, of reduced earnings allowance in 1994 and 1995, in each region; [10126]
19 Jan 1996 : Column: 824
(5) what was the average backdating of those claims backdated more than 12 months for reduced earnings allowance in 1994 and 1995. [10127]
Mr. Heald: The information requested is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people were awarded reduced earnings allowance for the first time in each of the months in (a) 1994 and (b) 1995. [10122]
Mr. Heald: The available information is in the table:
| Number | |
|---|---|
| All months(19) | 2,953 |
| April 1993 | 623 |
| May 1993 | 382 |
| June 1993 | 376 |
| July 1993 | 282 |
| August 1993 | 141 |
| September 1993 | 268 |
| October 1993 | 423 |
| November 1993 | 141 |
| December 1993 | 80 |
| January 1994 | 94 |
| February 1994 | 94 |
| March 1994 | 47 |
(18) A customer may be in receipt of more than one award.
(19) Figures may not sum due to calculation of allowance for late returns.
Mr. Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many (a) men and (b) women are currently in receipt of reduced earnings allowance in each region. [10123]
Mr. Heald: The latest available information is in the table.
| Men | Women | |
|---|---|---|
| Great Britain(21) | 115,367 | 27,428 |
| England | 92,313 | 23,415 |
| Northern | 20,871 | 2,886 |
| Yorkshire and Humberside | 12,430 | 2,066 |
| East Midlands | 10,540 | 1,987 |
| East Anglia | 2,317 | 1,177 |
| South-East | 15,704 | 5,282 |
| South-West | 5,548 | 1,625 |
| West Midlands | 9,291 | 3,012 |
| North-West | 15,613 | 5,381 |
| Scotland | 9,412 | 1,710 |
| Wales | 12,922 | 2,095 |
| Overseas | 721 | 208 |
(20) A customer may be in receipt of more than one award.
(21) Figures may not sum due to calculation of allowance for late returns.
Figures include frozen reduced earnings allowance.
Mr. Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many (a) men and (b) women in receipt of reduced earnings allowance were over pensionable age, in each region, at the end of (i) 1994, and (ii) 1995. [10124]
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Mr. Heald: The information requested is not available. The latest available information is in the table.
| Men(24) | Women(25) | |
|---|---|---|
| Great Britain(26) | 42,744 | 12,089 |
| England | 32,538 | 10,013 |
| Northern | 7,352 | 1,166 |
| Yorkshire and Humberside | 5,148 | 920 |
| East Midlands | 3,922 | 751 |
| East Anglia | 810 | 416 |
| South East | 4,629 | 2,303 |
| South West | 1,966 | 633 |
| West Midlands | 3,456 | 1,087 |
| North West | 5,254 | 2,738 |
| Scotland | 3,360 | 771 |
| Wales | 6,660 | 1,186 |
| Overseas | 188 | 119 |
Note:
(22) Age at 31 March 1994
Includes frozen or restricted reduced earnings allowance.
(23) A customer may be in receipt of more than one award.
(24) Age 65 and over.
(25) Age 60 and over.
(26) Figures may not sum due to calculation for late returns.
Mr. Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the total amount currently paid in reduced earnings allowance each (a) week, (b) month, and (c) year to people over pensionable age. [10128]
Mr. Heald: The table gives current estimates of the amount paid.
| Estimated amount currently paid to reduced earnings allowance recipients over pensionable age | Total |
|---|---|
| (a) each week | 2 |
| (b) each month | 8 |
| (c) each year | 85 |
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest £1 million, but are not accurate to that degree.
2. The figures for each month are based on a standard month of 4.33 weeks.
3. Figures are given at 1995-96 prices.
4. Includes frozen or restricted reduced earnings allowance payable to those who had retired before 10 April 1989.
Housing Benefit
Mr. Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what estimate he has made of (a) the numbers of people who would be affected by, and (b) the cost of, extending the four-week extended payments of housing benefit to people who start work having been on (i) incapacity benefit, (ii) severe disablement allowance, (iii) income support disability premium and (iv) in receipt of incapacity benefit within 26 weeks of starting a job. [10141]
Mr. Heald: It is not possible to estimate the number of people who would be affected by, or the cost of extending, the four-week extended payments of housing benefit to those moving directly into work from incapacity benefit, severe disablement allowance or income support disability
19 Jan 1996 : Column: 826
premium. In 1996-97, the cost of extending the scheme to people in receipt of incapacity benefit within 26 weeks of starting a job is estimated to be £2 million 1 with around 15,000 people affected.
Note:
1 Estimate applies only to people registering as unemployed after leaving the short term higher or long term rate of incapacity benefit.
Income Support Disability Premium
Mr. Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what estimate he has made of (a) the costs of and (b) the number of people who would benefit from increasing the £15 earnings disregard for claimants of the income support disability premium to £24.50 per week. [10136]
Mr. Heald: The information is in the table:
| Effect of increasing the earnings disregard for those with the IS disability premium, from £15 to £24.50 per week. | |
|---|---|
| Total cost | £5 million |
| Gainers | 10,000 |
1. The estimate assumes an increase in the earnings disregard in Income Support only. Costs include increased costs of housing benefit and council tax benefit due to increased entitlements to those benefits.
2. Modelled using the 1991-1992 and 1993 Family Expenditure Surveys, and the May 1994 Quarterly Statistical Enquiry, uprated to 1996-97 levels. Costs rounded to the nearest £5 million, gainers to the nearest 5,000.
Incapacity Benefit
Mr. Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people currently claiming incapacity benefit are (a) single, (b) in a couple, (c) in a couple with children and (d) single with children. [10138]
Mr. Heald: The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the table.
| Number | |
|---|---|
| All beneficiaries | 1,846,000 |
| No dependency increases | 1,373,000 |
| Adult dependency increase only | 345,000 |
| Child dependency increase only | 54,000 |
| Both adult and child dependency increase | 72,000 |
Figures taken from a 5 per cent. sample of the incapacity benefit computer system, rounded to the nearest thousand, and excludes a small number of cases paid clerically. Totals may not sum due to rounding.
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