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Lone Parents
Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the total benefit expenditure on lone parents whose youngest child is over five years old. [41017]
Mr. Burt: Benefit expenditure on lone parents whose youngest child is over five years, for the main benefits paid to lone parents, has been estimated using departmental data and is set out in the table.
| Year | 1995-96 |
|---|---|
| One parent benefit | 209 |
| Family credit | 491 |
| Child benefit | 810 |
| Housing and council tax benefits | 1,950 |
| Income support | 1,881 |
| Total benefit | 5,341 |
Source:
Family Resources Survey and various Analytical Services Division sample data.
Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the benefit bill for (a) income support, (b) family credit, (c) housing benefit, (d) council tax benefit, (e) one parent benefit and (f) lone-parent premium for lone parents by English region. [41027]
Mr. Burt: The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available in the tables.
Information for 1995-96 for (a), (c) and (d) is shown in table 1 and for (b) is shown in table 2.
Expenditure by region for one-parent benefit and lone parent premium is not available.
Components of a benefit award cannot be separately identified. The lone-parent premium is payable with income support, housing benefit and council tax benefit. The income support lone-parent premium was worth £5.20 in April 1995. This would give implied expenditure in England for 1995-96 of £243 million for income support.
16 Oct 1996 : Column: 1019
| Region | Income support | Housing benefit | Council tax benefit |
|---|---|---|---|
| East Anglia | 116 | 65 | 10 |
| East Midlands | 260 | 130 | 25 |
| North | 247 | 126 | 25 |
| North West | 569 | 295 | 58 |
| South East | 1,416 | 983 | 132 |
| South West | 274 | 169 | 26 |
| West Midlands | 381 | 186 | 33 |
| Yorkshire and Humberside | 352 | 166 | 32 |
| All regions | 3,614 | 2,119 | 342 |
| Region | Family credit |
|---|---|
| North Eastern | 143 |
| London North | 78 |
| Wales and South Western | 100 |
| Midlands | 130 |
| North Western | 132 |
| London South | 74 |
| All regions | 657 |
Notes:
1. Information on income support, housing benefit and council tax benefit is provided by standard statistical region. Information on family credit is only available by social security administrative region.
2. Figures are rounded to the nearest £ million.
Sources:
1. Total expenditure figures are consistent with the 1996 Departmental Report.
2. Housing benefit and council tax benefit figures are estimates derived from the annual 1 per cent. housing benefit sample enquiry.
3. Income support figures are estimates derived from the income support statistical enquiry May 1995 (5 per cent. sample). Family credit figures are derived from the family credit statistical sample (5 per cent. sample). Expenditure has been calculated from average weekly payments and Number of claimants.
4. A recent costing suggests that relatively few lone parents receive benefit less than the value of the premium.
Ms Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the definition of availability for work for lone parents. [41015]
Mr. Andrew Mitchell: Lone parents with children aged under 16 may receive income support without being required to be available for work. However, they have full access to Employment Service advice and assistance if they wish to seek work. Lone parents if they choose may claim jobseeker's allowance at any time, rather than income support, but once their youngest child is aged 16 or over they may claim only jobseeker's allowance and must be available for work.
Lone parents who claim JSA must be willing and able to accept a job offer given 48 hours' notice. They may
16 Oct 1996 : Column: 1020
restrict their availability for employment provided that they are available for the maximum hours that their responsibility for the care of their children allows; that they retain reasonable prospects of securing employment despite their restrictions; and that they are available for a minimum of 16 hours a week.
Ms Harman:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what proportion of lone-parent families received income support in each of the last 10 years. [41021]
Mr. Burt:
The information requested is set out in the table:
| Year | Number of cases | Percentage of lone parent population |
|---|---|---|
| 1986 | 575,000 | 62 |
| 1987 | 629,000 | 64 |
| 1988 | 694,000 | 66 |
| 1989 | 756,000 | 67 |
| 1990 | 793,000 | 65 |
| 1991 | 871,000 | 66 |
| 1992 | 957,000 | 68 |
| 1993 | 1,013,000 | 68 |
| 1994 | 1,039,000 | 66 |
| 1995 | 1,056,000 | 64 |
Notes:
1. Lone parents are defined as those receiving the lone parent premium.
2. Figures have been rounded to the nearest thousand.
Sources:
1. Supplementary Benefit/Income Support Statistics Annual Enquiries 1986-93.
2. Income Support Statistics Quarterly Enquiries May 1994 and May 1995.
3. Lone Parent population data are based on DSS estimates from General Household Survey.
Miss Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what was the total benefit expenditure on lone parents in each of the last 10 years; and what it is estimated to be in the current year. [41022]
Mr. Burt: The information is set out in the table.
| Year | Lone parents |
|---|---|
| 1986-87 | 2,659 |
| 1987-88 | 2,972 |
| 1988-89 | 3,542 |
| 1989-90 | 3,961 |
| 1990-91 | 4,680 |
| 1991-92 | 5,728 |
| 1992-93 | 7,107 |
| 1993-94 | 8,124 |
| 1994-95 | 8,884 |
| 1994-95 | 9,510 |
| 1995-96 | 9,871 |
Source:
March 1996 Departmental Report and earlier equivalents.
Notes:
1. Outturn figures from 1986-87 to 1994-95, estimated outturn for 1995-96 and planned figure for 1996-97.
2. Expenditure is classified by beneficiary group according to the main reason a benefit is paid.
3. The benefits included in lone parent expenditure are:
Child Benefit; One Parent Benefit; Family Credit/Family Income Supplement, Housing Benefit and Council Tax/Community Charge Benefit.
16 Oct 1996 : Column: 1021
Habitual Residence Test
Mr. Corbett: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what has been (a) the cost to date to the Benefits Agency of administering the habitual residence test to claimants for income support and (b) the cost to the Benefits Agency of preparing and presenting evidence for social security appeals tribunal hearings on the habitual residence test. [41032]
Mr. Burt: This 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. Robin Corbett, dated 16 October 1996:
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking what has been the cost to the Benefits Agency to date of administering the habitual residence test to claimants for Income Support (IS), and of preparing and presenting evidence at appeals tribunals on the test.
Mr. Roger Evans:
The information is not available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Corbett:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list the number of claimants tested and the number refused income support under the habitual residence test in each office site serving the Birmingham, Erdington constituency grouped according to United Kingdom nationals, European Economic Area nationals, or other nationals, for 1995-96 and for that period of 1996-97 for which figures are available. [41031]
Mr. Burt:
The administration of income support is a matter for Peter Mathison, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member.
Mr. Corbett:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will give the number of appeals heard after claimants have failed to meet the habitual residence test when applying for income support by tribunal centres by name, giving the numbers decided in the claimants' favour. [41033]
The information is not available in the format requested. The cost of administering the habitual residence test in District Offices, including the preparation and presentation of appeals, for the period 1 August 1994 when it was introduced to 31 March 1996, the latest date for which figures are available, is as follows:
1.8.94-31.3.95: £2,558.256
1.4.95-31.3.96: £2,612,051
It is not possible to separate the cost of the work associated with the preparing and presenting of evidence at appeals tribunals. This information could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
I hope you find this information helpful.
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