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SOCIAL SECURITY
Incapacity Benefit
Ms Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what proportion of people claiming incapacity benefit (a) are currently subject to the age ruling and (b) have had income support withdrawn as a result of the age ruling. [16281]
Mr. Burt: Entitlement to incapacity benefit ceases when a person reaches state pension age, that is, age 65 for men and age 60 for women, with the exception that a person who had attained SPA and was in receipt of invalidity benefit on 13 April 1995 has the right to retain entitlement for up to five years beyond SPA.
In the current year, 1995-96, to the end of February, approximately 23,000 claimants, around 1 per cent. of the incapacity benefit case load, had transferred to retirement pension. Information on the income support entitlement of this group is not available. However, the benefit structure is such that a person would not become disentitled to income support solely because of transfer from incapacity benefit to retirement pension.
One-parent Benefit
Mr. Chisholm: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people in Scotland currently receive (a) one-parent benefit plus family credit and (b) one-parent benefit plus disability working allowance. [21575]
Mr. Andrew Mitchell: As I explained in my written answer of 11 March, Official Report, column 476, it is estimated that the vast majority of the 34,000 lone parents receiving family credit in Scotland are also receiving one-parent benefit.
It is estimated that there are fewer than 500 recipients of disability working allowance in Scotland who are also receiving one-parent benefit.
Attendance Allowance
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if his Department will undertake research to establish how many people have had their attendance allowance withdrawn because they were in residential care temporarily paid for by the local authority pending the sale of their houses since the allowance first came into operation. [22015]
Mr. Andrew Mitchell: We have no plans to undertake such research. Information is collected about the overall number of cases where payment of attendance allowance has been suspended. It includes cases where payment has been suspended following admission to hospital as well as admission to residential care or nursing homes. The detailed reasons for such suspensions are not recorded.
Office Equipment and Furniture
Mr. Chris Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list (a) the number and (b) the value of items of equipment and furniture that have been (i) stolen and (ii) are otherwise unaccounted for from (1) DSS offices and (2) executive agency offices in each region, for each of the last five years; and if he will list by name those items valued at £5,000 or more. [13088]
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Mr. Burt [pursuant to his reply, 12 February 1996, c. 467]: Further information is as follows.
| Financial year | Number of individual cases | Total value £ |
|---|---|---|
| 1990-91 | 364 | 89,799 |
| 1991-92 | 411 | 72,315 |
| 1992-93 | 94 | 84,500 |
| 1993-94 | 192 | 222,382 |
| 1994-95 | 192 | 192,020 |
Since 1992-93 the Information Technology Services Agency has conducted annual certification exercises to confirm the value of its fixed asset register. Following the 1992-93 exercise, a total of £5,845,000 was noted on the Department's appropriation account for 1992-93 as being
The estimated gross value of the Department's tangible fixed assets, excluding land and buildings, is approximately £780 million for 1994-95.
Mr. Frank Field:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will make an estimate of the annual benefit savings from providing travel grants to families from the former Yugoslavia living on benefit in the United Kingdom to enable them to return home. [21764]
Mr. Roger Evans:
Information upon which to base an estimate is not available and could be obtained only at disproportion cost.
Mr. Mudie:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what was the (a) basic salary and (b) bonus paid to the Benefits Agency chief executives in (a) 1993-94 and (b) 1994-95. [22680]
Mr. Roger Evans:
The basic salary of the Benefits Agency chief executive was paid at £82,012 for the period 1993-94 and £86,475 for 1994-95. The chief executive's total remuneration is set out in the 1993-94 and 1994-95 Benefits Agency annual report and accounts, copies of which are available in the Library.
25 Mar 1996 : Column: 432
Mr. Nicholas Winterton:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what plans he has for further changes in the administration of the Child Support Agency. [23067]
Mr. Andrew Mitchell:
I am able to report changes to two significant areas within the administration of the agency.
First, an independent complaints examiner will be recruited for the Child Support Agency later this year. The agency will be running a pilot scheme during the summer in order to inform the guidelines within which the examiner will operate. My intention is that a full independent complaints service will be in operation shortly after that.
Secondly, I am pleased to announce the following improvements to the Child Support Agency's compensation scheme, which are to take effect from 1 April 1996.
The rules under which the agency makes compensation payments for delays in issuing maintenance application forms--which are issued to the parent with care--and maintenance enquiry forms--which are issued to the absent parent--will be changed. Currently, compensation is considered only for delays exceeding three months, where the Child Support Agency is culpable for the delay, which leads to a loss of opportunity to receive child maintenance which would have otherwise been received. For claims where the full maintenance assessment is completed on or after 1 April 1996, however, payments will be made if the delay exceeds one month, unless the agency needs to make further inquiries before issuing a MEF, when the delay period will be two months.
Additionally, a new type of consolatory payment will be introduced. In cases were the Child Support Agency is culpable of sending a MEF to a person who is not the parent of the child, or children, in question, that person will be entitled to a consolatory payment of £100 to compensate for the upset and inconvenience caused by this error, This new payment will also be introduced on 1 April 1996.
These changes build on the existing compensation arrangements in the Child Support Agency which cover other losses incurred as a result of maladministration. They should ensure that compensation reaches those who do not receive an acceptable level of service in this area from the Child Support Agency. The changes to the scheme mean the Child Support Agency now has a compensation scheme which has been designed in the light of experience to meet the special circumstances of Child Support Agency responsibilities.
These improvements, together with the announcement I made last week, Official Report, column 165, on the introduction of interest payments on maintenance that the Child Support Agency has not transferred quickly enough, are a further significant step in securing the kind of service that Parliament intended.
Mr. Bradley:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people whose homes were damaged as a result of the Canary wharf bomb and who have been rehoused as a consequence have applied for a social fund
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(a) grant and (b) loan and how many of these in each category have had the application (i) granted and (ii) refused. [22415]
Mr. Roger Evans:
The administration of the social fund is a matter for Peter Mathison, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member.
Letter from Peter Mathison to Mr. Keith Bradley, dated 22 March 1996:
Following the 1994-95 exercise, a total of £695,000 was so identified. The fact that the certification exercises in 1993-94 and 1994-95 revealed surplus equipment of over £6 million valued on a comparable basis suggests that these "losses" are not permanent. However, in Government accounting terms the discrepancies identified are categorised as losses.
"loss arising from discrepancies between the ITSA Asset Register and actual equipment identified".
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