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Incapacity Benefit
Ms Jowell: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people who have applied for incapacity benefit but failed the all work test were formerly receiving invalidity benefit. [23729]
Mr. Burt: Up to the end of November 1995, approximately 34,000 1 former recipients of invalidity benefit had been found capable of work following the all work test of incapacity.
1 Source: 5 per cent. extract from the incapacity benefit computer system.
Mr. Burt: The introduction of incapacity benefit was a major undertaking. In the light of practical experience so far, we are looking at ways of improving the administration of the benefit. Any changes will be tested and evaluated before they are adopted nationally. Three projects to test variations in detailed administrative procedures have been established based in Glasgow, Leeds and the south-east of England, to take this work forward.
Unclaimed Benefits (Wales)
Mr. Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what estimate he has made of the total amount of unclaimed benefits in Wales; and if he will make a statement. [23527]
Mr. Roger Evans: A reliable estimate could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
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Actors
Ms Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will take steps to ensure that actors can continue to pay the higher class 1 national insurance; and if he will make a statement. [24011]
Sir David Steel: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what plans he has to remove actors from class 1 national insurance contributions and stop them claiming unemployment benefit between roles; what cost-benefit analysis he has conducted in respect of such plans; and if he will make a statement. [24075]
Mr. Heald: I refer the right hon. and hon. Member to the replies I gave to the hon. Members for Birkenhead (Mr. Field) and for Birmingham, Northfield (Mr. Burden) on 1 April.
National Insurance
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will estimate the annual yield from employers' national insurance levied on salaries subsequently used by employees to make personal pension contributions. [23981]
Mr. Heald: Such estimates as are available are in the table.
| Year | Amount of Employers' NICs | |
|---|---|---|
| Annual total | Cumulative total | |
| 1987-88 | 2.1 | 2.1 |
| 1988-89 | 2.6 | 4.7 |
| 1989-90 | 3.5 | 8.2 |
| 1990-91 | 4.1 | 12.3 |
| 1991-92 | 4.4 | 16.7 |
| 1992-93 | 4.7 | 21.4 |
| 1993-94 | 4.8 | 26.2 |
Notes:
1. There are no data available on that part of the earnings of personal pension holders which falls above the upper earnings limit. The calculations have therefore been made on the assumption that those with earnings above the UEL earned the same amount on average as all employees with earnings above the UEL in each year. They also assume that earnings are constant on a weekly or monthly basis throughout the year.
2. Employers' NICs are not payable where total earnings are below the annual lower earnings limit.
Source:
Government Actuary's Department.
Disability Discrimination Act 1985
Sir Nicholas Scott: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security which sections of the Disability Discrimination Act 1985 are now in effect; and what plans he has for bringing further sections into effect. [24376]
Mr. Burt: The Disability Discrimination Act received Royal Assent on 8 November 1995. The National Disability Council was established in January 1996 to advise the Government on the implementation of the Act. It has already prepared its proposals for a code of practice which are currently the subject of public consultation. The Government plan to implement the new employment rights and the initial rights of access to goods, facilities
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and services around the end of this year. The remaining rights will be implemented over a period of time, the length of which is subject to public consultation.
The education provisions are to be introduced over the next 18 months, with the first provisions coming into force in July 1996. The Department of Transport will be consulting in the near future on the transport provisions in the Act.
Regulations
Mr. Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security which of the 1,000 regulations identified for repeal or amendment by the Prime Minister are the responsibility of his Department; of those which (a) have been repealed or amended, and (b) are planned to have been repealed or amended by the end of the 1995-96 parliamentary Session; and if he will list those whose repeal has saved business more than £1 million per annum. [23654]
Mr. Burt: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to him by my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster today.
Housing Benefit
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many (a) landlords and (b) agents in the last available year received housing benefit payments of more than £1 million from local authorities. [23779]
Mr. Roger Evans: This information is not available.
Child Support Agency
Mr. Hawkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when he expects to reply to the second report of the Social Security Committee of Session 1995-96 on the performance and operation of the Child Support Agency, HC 50. [24700]
Mr. Andrew Mitchell: The Government's reply is published today. The Committee's report is a useful and thorough examination of the work of the Child Support Agency. As the Committee commented, considerable progress has been made in increasing the quality of administration and there is now a growing acceptance that the CSA will be a permanent feature of British life.
The Committee makes 20 detailed recommendations aimed at further improving the quality of administration in the agency. The Government welcome these recommendations and respond to each in their reply. The reply indicates what action it will take to implement them, or for those recommendations which cannot be accepted in full, explains what other action will be taken to achieve the intended objectives.
At the same time, the agency will be sending the Committee a report of its investigation of the operation of the good cause provisions in child support. This thorough investigation, which was conducted at the request of the Committee, has shown that while the agency is operating a policy satisfactorily and as intended, providing protection to those parents with care who need it, the
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report has also identified potential abuses of the provisions, and suggests a number of ways in which good cause procedures can be improved. I have asked the agency to implement these improvements straight away where possible.
For the future, the report indicates that there may be a need to enhance the incentives to co-operate with the agency. I am determined to respond to indications that some parents may be abusing benefit and child support provisions and I am seeking the Committee's views on ways to tackle this problem.
We remain committed to a child support system that ensures that all parents meet their responsibilities to their children. To this end, we welcome all constructive suggestions for improving the service that the CSA offers to its clients. The Government look forward to further discussions with the Social Security Committee.
Ms Lynne:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what was the time taken by the Child Support Agency to clear (a) 25 per cent., (b) 50 per cent. and (c) 75 per cent. of requests for reviews of child maintenance. [23328]
Mr. Mitchell:
The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the chief executive, Miss Ann Chant. She will write to the hon. Member.
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