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Lone Parents
Mr. Duncan Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if she will make a statement on the four schemes operated in the voluntary sector outlined in the New Deal for Lone Parents--October 1997 report, with special reference to (a) the funding which the Department of Social Security will make available to those schemes and (b) the ways in which these schemes will interact with the New Deal for Lone Parents scheme. [14681]
Mr. Keith Bradley: Beta 2000, Instant Muscle, the Sandwell Afro Caribbean Development Agency and, jointly, Gingerbread and Training For Life have been contracted to set up and run innovative schemes to help lone parents on Income Support to take up work. Payments are made to contractors on a monthly basis, dependent on satisfactory performance, with additional amounts payable in respect of each lone parent helped into work. Precise payment details are commercial in confidence. The areas in which these contractors are operating do not overlap with areas covered by the first phase of the New Deal for Lone Parents.
In addition to the four schemes being operated by the organisations listed above, the National Council for One Parent Families were contracted to produce a guide for employers which presents the business case for employing lone parents. This guide is being distributed throughout the country initially through the Opportunity 2000 network and can also be obtained by contacting a national helpline.
All of the contracts concerned were set up in the context of testing different approaches to helping lone parents into work over a three year period. Contracts were initially issued for one year and decisions on their renewal will be made in the context of the national implementation of the New Deal for Lone Parents from October next year. Any lessons learned from the evaluation of both the first phase of the New Deal for Lone Parents and the voluntary sector innovative schemes will inform the design of the national programme.
Mr. Gale:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what plans she has to address the shortfall between the amount paid in housing benefit in respect of mortgage interest payments and the amount charged by building societies at variable interest rates. [14670]
Mr. Keith Bradley:
We have no current plans for shadowing actual interest rates charged to individual borrowers on benefit.
6 Nov 1997 : Column: 301
Mr. Webb:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what proportion of mortgages are covered by those lenders on whose interest rates the standard interest rate for unemployed homebuyers is calculated. [14556]
Mr. Keith Bradley:
The information is not available in the format requested.
The standard interest rate is based on an average of approxiately 30 of the largest Building Societies. Currently 25 per cent. of mortgages for home purchase, by value, are covered by all Building Societies.
Mr. Rooney:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security on what date the entitlement of disability living allowance for Peter Walsh, N.I. No. WM 00 36 58C was disallowed; when the request for a review was made; at what stage a consultant's report was requested; and when the review will be determined. [14277]
Mr. Denham:
One of our key aims is to rebuild integrity in, and public support for, the Social Security system and the way in which public money is spent. We need to focus on those who are properly entitled to benefit.
This is why we have set up the Benefit Integrity Project. The administration of this programme is a matter for Peter Mathison, Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Gentleman with further details.
Letter from Peter Mathison to Mr. Terry Rooney, dated 5 November 1997:
Mr. Hancock:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many personnel in civilian capacities have been awarded war disablement pensions through service in the Gulf war; and to which units they were attached. [13509]
6 Nov 1997 : Column: 302
Mr. Denham:
One of our key aims is that delivery of service should be simpler and more efficient. Queries on operational matters concerning the War Pensions Agency are for its Chief Executive, Mr. Kevin Caldwell. I have asked him to write to the hon. Gentleman.
Letter from K. C. Caldwell to Mr. Michael Hancock, dated 5 November 1997:
Mr. Todd:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will list each of the functions relating to payment for goods or services supplied for which his Department is responsible indicating the management systems purchased, all sub-contractors involved in the work, co-operative arrangements with other departments; and the costs of the systems and processes in the last year for which figures are available. [12571]
Mr. Dewar:
My Department is responsible for the following functions in relation to payment for goods and services:
Payment processing is carried out on my Department's accounting system which utilises cfacs, a package designed by Cedardata plc and supplied to my Department under a contract with International Computers Ltd.
6 Nov 1997 : Column: 303
No sub-contractors are involved in making payments for goods and services.
Apart from two executive agencies and one of the associated departments, all Scottish Office and associated departments, including their respective executive agencies, share this one accounting and payments system.
It is not possible to isolate the costs of setting up and maintaining those parts of the Department's accounting system which deal with payments (which in any event are for a wider range of activities than purchasing goods and services) from the costs of setting up and maintaining the system as a whole. In 1997-98 the sums paid to suppliers in connection with the operation of the accounting system as a whole will be £230,764. The cost, in 1997-98, of employing those staff whose duties related solely to the making of payments was £239,262. Nor is it possible, except at disproportionate cost, to calculate the cost of the time incurred by staff for whom the making of payments is only one of many duties.
Mr. Dalyell:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what was the total cost of external consultancies associated with the specification of the proposed PFI contract at the Western General hospital trust, Edinburgh, and from which budgets these costs were met; what was the estimated cost of the proposed contract at the time the decision was taken not to proceed with the contract; and what is the estimated cost of the publicly financed development at the Western general hospital Edinburgh announced on 23 June. [12750]
Mr. Galbraith
[holding answer 27 October 1997]: The Western General Hospital NHS Trust incurred around £1.6 million in fees for design, financial and legal advice in connection with the proposed PFI project. The costs were met by the trust from its own resources including non-recurring revenue grants from the Scottish Office. Much of the expenditure incurred would be required under both PFI and publicly funded routes.
The Secretary of State for Social Security has asked me to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question concerning Mr Walsh and his entitlement to Disability Living Allowance (DLA).
The Benefit Integrity Project (BIP) was set up in response to the recent Benefit Review of DLA. Over the next two years, specially trained staff will make enquiries by postal questionnaire or home visit in around 425,000 cases to establish whether DLA is being paid correctly. Mr Walsh was contacted through the enquiry work of the BIP.
Following receipt of a completed BIP questionnaire from Mr Walsh and based on the information he provided, Mr Walsh was disallowed DLA from 14 August 1997. A review of this decision was requested on 24 September 1997. After full consideration by an Adjudication Officer, further information was sought in the form of a Consultant's report on 22 October 1997. A decision will be made on Mr Walsh's entitlement on receipt of this report. The Agency aims to complete 60% of review decisions within 55 working days, and 80% within 75 working days.
I hope you find this reply helpful.
The Secretary of State for Social Security has asked me to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about how many personnel in civilian capacities have been awarded War Disablement Pension through service in the Gulf War and to which units they were attached.
No awards of War Pension have been made in respect of service by civilians in the Gulf War.
The only provision for civilians in the War Pensions arena is The Personal Injuries (Civilians) Scheme. This Scheme was introduced at the outbreak of World War II under the Personal Injuries (Emergency Provisions) Act 1939 to provide for civilians who were disabled by war injuries sustained as a result of enemy action during World War II. The Scheme does not cover injuries sustained in any other conflicts.
Personnel employed in a civilian capacity who do not satisfy these provisions, and who wish to claim compensation for disablement due to their employment, should approach their employers direct.
I hope you find my reply helpful.
confirming the receipt of goods and services (done locally);
checking the supplier's invoice (done locally);
authorising payment (done locally by someone other than the person who ordered the goods and checked the supplier's invoice);
Keying payment instructions into the main accounting system (done locally or centrally depending on specific arrangements). In a number of instances involving large numbers of individual payments, paying authorising information is supplied to the accounting system by separate systems which manage the individual schemes (though these tend to be for grant and similar schemes (e.g., student awards) rather than the supply of goods and services);
issuing payment (done centrally, and may be by BACS or by payable order).
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