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Benefits (Entitlement Rules)
Mr. Swinney: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will make a statement on those changes to benefit entitlement rules he currently proposes, indicating for each proposal the number of people who (a) will lose and (b) will be denied benefits as a result of proposed changes and their average financial loss. [56250]
Mr. Timms: The Government set out their proposals for taking forward the reform of the Welfare State in the document "A new contract for welfare: Principles into Practice" (Cm 4101). These proposals are based on the principles of work for those who can and security for those who cannot. Details of proposals which affect benefit entitlement are as follows:
Severe Disablement Allowance--we propose to reform Severe Disablement Allowance (SDA) to provide more help to young people disabled at birth or early in life who do not have the opportunity to work and to build up entitlement to Incapacity Benefit. In the first year we estimate that there will be around 8,000 new claims from this group of people who will gain from the proposals. In the second year of the scheme almost 20,000 existing SDA recipients will be transferred on to the higher rate of Incapacity Benefit. These people will see increases of up to £25.60 a week at April 1998 rates.
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We estimate that around 16,000 people per year aged 20 or over will no longer be able to claim SDA following the introduction of these changes. However, around 70 per cent. of those currently receiving SDA also receive Income Support (IS) and it is likely that the same proportion will continue to qualify for IS. This group will therefore see no change to their overall level of income. For those whose other income means they do not qualify for IS, the average loss will be in the region of £50 a week.
At the point of change, no one on SDA aged 20 or over will lose the benefit as a result of the changes.
Disability Income Guarantee--we propose to introduce a new Disability Income Guarantee for the poorest severely disabled people who have the highest care needs. We estimate that around 175,000 people under age 60 will benefit from the Guarantee in the first year. For adults, the Guarantee will mean an extra £5.75 a week for a single person and £8.30 for a couple, at April 1998 rates. Families will receive an extra £5.75 a week for each disabled child that qualifies.
Disability Living Allowance--we propose to extend the higher rate mobility component of Disability Living Allowance to severely disabled children aged 3 and 4. We estimate that around 8,000 children will gain from this change during the first year by £35.85 a week at April 1998 rates.
Incapacity Benefit--we propose to modernise the Incapacity Benefit rules to strengthen the link between work and entitlement and to introduce a fairer partnership between State and private provision. These measures will apply only to new claims for benefit. At the point of change, no one already on Incapacity Benefit will lose benefit as a result of these changes.
In the first year following the introduction of the changes, we estimate that around 30,000 claimants will not qualify for Incapacity Benefit as a result of the change to the contribution conditions. Approximately 70 per cent. of them will already be on income-based Jobseeker's Allowance or Income Support when their claim to Incapacity Benefit is made, and their entitlement to these benefits would continue. Over the same period, we estimate that a further 35,000 claimants will have their Incapacity Benefit reduced as a result of taking some account of their occupational and personal pensions.
The average net loss will be around £27 a week at April 1998 rates.
The single gateway--from April 2000, in the pilot areas, new benefit claimants of working age who are out of work will be required to participate in an interview with a personal adviser as a condition of receiving benefit. This will affect approximately 400,000 new claimants per year over the 12 pilot areas.
Mr. Malcolm Bruce:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will make a statement on the contingency plans drawn up by (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) other public bodies in relation to problems arising from millennium compliance including the embedded chip problem after 31 December 1999. [60125]
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Mr. Timms:
The major systems key to the payments of benefits and pensions are designed to hold dates in a format unaffected by the turn of the century. The first part of our contingency is that testing has been built in to allow for a full year's running before 31 December 1999 except for the National Insurance Recording system which is not expected to be confirmed compliant until 31 October 1999, or earlier if possible. Additional testing including business assurance testing will continue to provide further confidence.
The Department expects to complete the programme of work to upgrade or replace business critical desktop computer systems by the end of March 1999. This target allows adequate contingency before the dates these systems might otherwise fail.
We have a range of plans to support the continuity of Social Security operations and are working closely with other Departments, public bodies and Action 2000 to identify and if necessary deal with specific Year 2000 related threats. Our target for having rehearsed Millennium-related business continuity plans is the end of March 1999. However, even beyond this date we will continue to assess the potential impact of residual risks arising from external factors over which we have no direct control, for example, electricity supply. We will continue to update plans and if necessary take action as more and better intelligence becomes available.
Mr. Malcolm Bruce:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) what is his latest estimate of the total cost of tackling the millennium computer problem including the embedded chip problem in (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) other public bodies for which his Department is responsible, separately identifying expenditure to date and future expenditure; and if he will make a statement; [60122]
Mr. Timms:
I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the President of the Council to my hon. Friend the Member for Liverpool, Garston (Maria Eagle) on 21 October 1998, Official Report, column 1109, in which she announced the results of the latest quarterly review of Government Departments' and agencies' progress in tackling the bug. This also covered key organisations within the wider public sector. The information the hon. Member requests will be found in the copies of Departments' plans which have been published in the Library of the House. The results of the next quarterly review will be announced shortly to the House and the updates to quarterly plans will be placed in the Library of the House and on the Internet.
Mr. Malcolm Bruce:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list the problems which have arisen in (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) other public bodies for which his Department is responsible from millennium compliance; if he will make a statement on progress to date in tackling such problems; and what are the priority areas for remedial work. [60123]
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Mr. Timms:
This Department's Year 2000 activity is being progressed on the basis of business critical first. There have been no problems to date arising from Millennium compliance which have affected the Department's operations.
A problem which this Department has encountered in dealing with the Millennium date change concerns reliance on third parties. We have identified those suppliers which pose the greatest risk and where impact of external failure on the business would be greatest. We have successfully identified and contacted 99 per cent. of these business critical suppliers. In common with other organisations, it is proving difficult to obtain from some of our suppliers a precise account of the progress of their Year 2000 compliance work. We are validating risk assessments and ensuring relevant business continuity plans incorporate the necessary contingencies.
We anticipate that initiatives led by Action 2000, such as Pledge 2000 and the National Infrastructure Forum, to which this Department is contributing, will improve the quality of compliance information available.
Mr. Rendel:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what estimates he has made of the number of pensioners contracted out of state earnings related pension scheme who are being underpaid sums of (a) £0.01 to £4.99, (b) £5 to £9.99, (c) £10 to £19.99, (d) £20 to £29.99, (e) £30 to £39.99. (f) £40 to £49.99, (g) £50 to £59.99, (h) £60 to £69.99, (i) £70 to £79.99, (j) £80 to £80.99 and (k) £90 to £100 per week. [59259]
Mr. Timms
[holding answer 11 November 1998]: It is estimated that there are 7,000 cases of people contracted-out of SERPS where the calculation of the amount of SERPS payable has been prevented.
(2) what assessment he has made of the extent to which the computer systems in (a) his Department, (b) its agencies and (c) other public bodies for which his Department is responsible will be modified and tested in relation to the millennium computer problem by January 1999; and if he will make a statement. [60124]
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