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Severe Disablement Allowance
Mr. Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people currently claiming severe disablement allowance are (a) single, (b) in a couple, (c) in a couple with children and (d) single with children. [10143]
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Mr. Heald: The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the table.
| Number | |
|---|---|
| All beneficiaries | 324,000 |
| No dependency increases | 317,000 |
| Adult dependency increase only | 2,000 |
| Child dependency increase only | 4,000 |
| Both adult and child dependency increase | 2,000 |
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.
Mr. Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what estimate he has made of the numbers of appeals currently lodged against a decision that the claimant is capable of work; what is the average waiting time for appeals to be heard; and in how many appeals the claimant has been represented. [10132]
Mr. Heald: The information requested is not currently available. However, provisional figures show that there are currently 17,649 appeals outstanding against the incapacity benefit all-work test.
Disability Working Allowance
Mr. Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people are currently claiming disability working allowance; and what are (a) the total administration costs and (b) the average weekly administration cost per beneficiary. [10174]
Mr. Heald: The number of people in receipt of disability working allowance at the end of December 1995 was 7,388.
The latest information on administration costs is for the year 1994-95. In 1994-95, the average number of people claiming disability working allowance was 5,000 and the total administration costs were £5.7 million. This gives an average weekly cost per beneficiary of £23.08.
Mr. Bradley:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many recipients of disability working allowance receive housing benefit; and what is the average amount payable. [10131]
Mr. Heald:
On 31 May 1994, 1,000 housing benefit recipients declared disability working allowance as income. The average weekly amount of housing benefit payable was £30.19.
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Notes:
1. Figures refer to benefit units which may be a single person or a couple. In the case of a couple, either the claimant or partner was in receipt of disability working allowance.
2. Recipients have been rounded to the nearest thousand and the average amount to the nearest penny.
3. The information given is based on a very small number of sample cases and is therefore subject to a high degree of variance.
Source:
Housing Benefit Management Information System, annual 1 per cent. sample enquiries taken at the end of May 1994.
Mr. Bradley:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the average gross weekly earnings received by claimants of disability working allowance who also receive (a) invalidity benefit, (c) incapacity benefit, (c) disability living allowance, (d) disability premium in income support, (e) disability premium in housing benefit, (f) disability premium in council tax benefit and (g) severe disablement allowance. [10135]
Mr. Heald: A person in work cannot be in receipt of invalidity benefit, incapacity benefit, income support 1 or severe disablement allowance while in receipt of disability working allowance.
| Numbers in receipt of benefit on 31 July 1995 | Average gross weekly earnings £ | |
|---|---|---|
| All cases | 6,544 | 82.12 |
| Main qualifying benefit | ||
| Invalidity benefit | 1,052 | 71.72 |
| Incapacity benefit | 132 | 78.33 |
| Disability living allowance | 4,210 | 88.72 |
| Disability premium in income support | 668 | 66.85 |
| Disability premium in housing benefit | 19 | 90.87 |
| Disability premium in council tax benefit | 18 | 61.35 |
| Severe disablement allowance | 445 | 68.76 |
Notes:
1. There are some infrequent circumstances in which income support and disability working allowance may be paid together.
2. Claimants can be in receipt of more than one qualifying benefit and therefore actual numbers in receipt of each qualifying benefit may be higher.
Source:
Disability working allowance computer system (100 per cent. of all awards).
Mr. Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) how many claims for the disability living allowance mobility component in (a) 1992-93, (b) 1993-94, (c) 1994-95 and (d) 1995-96, were accompanied by (i) both supporting statements, (ii) only statement 1, (iii) only statement 2 and (iv) neither statement; [10455]
- (2) what was the number and percentage of decisions for the disability living allowance mobility component where the adjudication officer (a) required an examining medical officer's report, (b) required a general practitioner's factual report, (c) required any other evidence and (d) relied on the claim pack alone, in (i) 1992-93, (ii) 1993-94, (iii) 1994-95 and (iv) 1995-96. [10456]
Mr. Heald: The information is not available in the format requested. Claims for disability living allowance are for the benefit as a whole and not for individual components. Statistics are not routinely kept on the number of supporting statements supplied with claims.
| Year | Claim pack alone | GP's factual report | Examining medical practitioner report | Any other evidence | Total(28) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992-93(29)(30) | 157,000 | 64,000 | 56,000 | 9,000 | 287,000 |
| (Per cent.) | (55) | (22) | (20) | (3) | (100) |
| 1993-94(29) | 72,000 | 55,000 | 39,000 | 7,000 | 173,000 |
| (Per cent.) | (42) | (32) | (22) | (4) | (100) |
| 1994-95 | 70,000 | 69,000 | 36,000 | 10,000 | 185,000 |
| (Per cent.) | (38) | (37) | (19) | (5) | (100) |
| 1995-96(31) | 48,000 | 58,000 | 33,000 | 8,000 | 148,000 |
| (Per cent.) | (33) | (39) | (22) | (6) | (100) |
Notes:
(27) Omits decisions made on review or appeal.
(28) Figures may not sum due to rounding.
(29) Omits decisions where evidence type not known.
(30) 1992-93 data includes decisions made from February 1992.
(31) 1995-96 includes data upto and including December 1995.
Source:
Analytical Services Division 100 per cent. data.
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19 Jan 1996 : Column: 829
Mr. Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is his estimate of (a) the cost of and (b) the numbers of claimants who would be entitled to disability working allowance by (i) raising the applicable amounts by 5 per cent., (ii) increasing the maximum disability working allowance by 5 per cent., (iii) disregarding in full any income from a spouse or partner and (iv) reducing the hours of work from 16 to 10. [10137]
Mr. Heald: The information is in the table.
| 1995-96 | Net cost £ million | Gainers |
|---|---|---|
| (i) Raising applicable amounts by 5 per cent. | 1 | 8,000 |
| (ii) Raising maximum DWA by 5 per cent. | 2 | 8,000 |
| (iii) Disregarding spouse earnings | 40 | 10,000 |
| (iv) Reducing hours rule | 2 | 1,000 |
Notes:
Estimates for (i), (ii) and (iv) are given at 1995-96 prices rounded to the nearest £1m and 1,000 gainers, (iii) is rounded to nearest £5 million and 5,000 gainers.
1. Information from the Family Expenditure Survey 1991, 1992 and 1993 is used to estimate the effects of these changes. The data contains insufficient disability working allowance cases to allow direct modelling, therefore the changes have been modelled using proxy groups. These have been calibrated to the 1995-96 disability working allowance forecast caseload.
2. The use of proxy groups means that these estimates are subject to wide margins of error and should be treated with considerable caution.
Source:
Family Expenditure Survey.
Mr. Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is his estimate of (a) the cost of raising the £3,000 lower capital threshold for disability working allowance to (i) £4,000, (ii) £5,000, (iii) £6,000, (iv) £7,000 and (v) £8,000 and (b) the numbers of claimants who would become entitled to increased benefit in each case. [10175]
Mr. Heald: The estimated effects are given in the table. Costs are given at 1995-96 prices rounded to the nearest £1 million, and are net of housing benefit/council tax benefit offsets. Gainers are rounded to the nearest 1,000 and include people who would float on to the benefit.
19 Jan 1996 : Column: 830
| Increase capital limits to: | Net cost £ million | Gainers |
|---|---|---|
| £4,000 | 1 | 8,000 |
| £5,000 | 1 | 8,000 |
| £6,000 | 2 | 9,000 |
| £7,000 | 2 | 9,000 |
| £8,000 | 3 | 9,000 |
Note:
1. Information from the Family Expenditure Survey 1991, 1992 and 1993 is used to estimate the effects of these changes. The data contains insufficient disability working allowance cases to allow direct modelling, therefore the changes have been modelled using proxy groups. These have been calibrated to the 1995-96 disability working allowance forecast caseload.
2. The use of proxy groups means that these estimates are subject to wide margins of error.
Source:
Family Expenditure Survey.
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