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Tariff Income Schedule
Mr. Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many claimants of income support over the age of 60 years are affected by the tariff income schedule regime; and what reduction of expenditure on income support is achieved by the schedule. [80505]
Angela Eagle: The information is in the table.
Notes:
1. The estimate represents a four quarter total taken from the Income Support Statistics Quarterly Inquiries for May 1997 to February 1998. The quarterly inquiries are based on a 5 per cent. sample of all Income Support cases and as such are subject to a degree of sampling error.
2. Figures have been rounded to the nearest thousand and may not sum owing to rounding.
3. Reduced expenditure arising from the tariff income schedule regime has been estimated by using the average amount taken into account for tariff income cases during each quarter.
Source:
Income Support Statistics Quarterly Inquiries, May 1997-February 1998.
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Mr. Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will estimate the numbers of potential claimants of income support who are prevented from qualifying for income support as a result of the tariff income schedule regime. [80506]
Angela Eagle: This information is not currently available. Estimates of the number of potential claimants prevented from qualifying for Income Support as a result of the tariff income regime are based on the data used to produce the published estimates of take-up of income related benefits. These estimates are currently being revised following the discovery in December of an error, the effect of which was to understate income brought to account, and will be republished in May.
Savings Threshold
Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what plans he has to review the level of savings which requires his Department to assume an income of £1 for every £250 above that limit, when calculating benefits; and if he will make a statement. [80666]
Angela Eagle: The assumption of notional (tariff) income of £1 for every £250 of capital above £3,000 reflects an expectation that people with more substantial savings can make some contribution towards their living expenses from those savings. This formula, which does not represent any assumed rate of interest, avoids the many practical difficulties that would arise if actual income were taken into account. However, we continue to review the benefit rules as part of our commitment to modernise the Social Security system.
In particular, we are determined to help the poorest pensioners and are concerned about those who miss out on the Minimum Income Guarantee because of modest savings. We have made it clear in the Pensions Green Paper (cm 4179) that we want to look at options for changing the rules on the treatment of voluntary saving to
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better reward those who have saved for their retirement, and intend to bring forward proposals later in this Parliament.
Mr. Cousins:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will estimate the size and cost of the rebates required to implement the Partnership for Pensions proposals. [80509]
Mr. Timms:
The proposals for Stakeholder Pensions and the State Second Pension will impact on the National Insurance rebate payable to those contracted-out of the State scheme. For Stakeholder Pensions, we will first need to look at the charging structure before determining the appropriate levels of National Insurance rebates. We expect to consult with the Government Actuary's Department later in the year and would aim to lay any Rebate Orders before 6 April 2000, a year before the planned introduction of Stakeholder Pensions in April 2001.
The scheduled introduction of the State Second Pension in April 2002 will coincide with the introduction of any new rebates arising from the next full review that will take place during the 2000-01 tax year. The review will include full consultation, and will set out the level of rebate considered appropriate to compensate for the new State benefits forgone.
Mr. Cousins:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) if he plans to require providers of stakeholder pensions to have a duty to offer advice with utmost good faith to potential customers; [80507]
Mr. Timms:
The arrangements for the provision of information and advice to those considering joining stakeholder pension schemes are subject to further consultation. Further details will be set out in due course.
Mr. Webb:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will estimate the proportion of (i) pensioner couples, (ii) single male pensioners, (iii) single female pensioners and (iv) pensioners in total aged (a) 65 to 69, (b) 70 to 74, (c) 75 to 79 and (d) 80 years or above who are in receipt of income from an occupational pension; and if he will list for each group the mean and median amounts received. [80422]
Mr. Timms:
The information is in the tables.
The methodology used is consistent with The Pensioners' Incomes Series 1996-97. Estimates of the proportions in receipt of occupational pension income should be regarded as provisional. This is because they are based partly on data extrapolated from the Government Actuary's Department Surveys of Occupational Pensions, which are published approximately every five years, with the most recent surveys relating to 1991. Estimates are likely to be revised when the latest survey is published.
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Estimates of mean and median amounts can be regarded as final.
(2) if he plans to require his Department (a) to offer advice, (b) to pay for independent advice and (c) to provide a channel to authorised independent advice, on the switch between the state second pension and the stakeholder pension proposed in his Partnership for Pensions. [80508]
| Percentage | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age band | ||||
| 65 to 69 | 70 to 74 | 75 to 79 | 80 or above | |
| Pensioner couples | 77 | 78 | 75 | 65 |
| Single male pensioners | 54 | 58 | 61 | 56 |
| Single female pensioners | 69 | 65 | 61 | 51 |
| All pensioner units | 70 | 70 | 66 | 55 |
| £ per week | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age band | ||||
| 65 to 69 | 70 to 74 | 75 to 79 | 80 or above | |
| Pensioner couples | 132 | 112 | 98 | 87 |
| Single male pensioners | 88 | 96 | 63 | 63 |
| Single female pensioners | 63 | 58 | 51 | 44 |
| All pensioner units | 109 | 92 | 74 | 61 |
| £ per week | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age band | ||||
| 65 to 69 | 70 to 74 | 75 to 79 | 80 or above | |
| Pensioner couples | 87 | 67 | 52 | 50 |
| Single male pensioners | 59 | 55 | 37 | 39 |
| Single female pensioners | 37 | 34 | 29 | 27 |
| All pensioner units | 66 | 52 | 39 | 32 |
Notes:
1. Estimates of the proportion of pensioner units in receipt of occupational pension income are based upon data from the Family Resources Survey 1996-97, controlled to a number of individual recipients which is extrapolated from the Surveys of Occupational Pensions of the Government Actuary's Department.
2. Estimates of the proportions with occupational pension income should be treated as provisional.
3. Pensioner units are defined as single people above State pension age (60 and over for women, 65 and over for men) and couples (married or cohabiting) where the man is over State pension age.
4. Pensioner couples have been allocated to age bands according to the age of the man.
5. The occupational pension income category includes income received by widows on the basis of their late spouse's contributions to an occupational pension scheme.
Sources:
Family Resources Survey 1996-97, Government Actuary's Department Surveys of Occupational Pensions 1991.
Bereavement Allowance
Mr. Rendel: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many (a) widowers and (b) widows he expects to be entitled to the bereavement payment in (i) the first full year of implementation and (ii) 2020. [80656]
Angela Eagle
[holding answer 13 April 1999]: It is estimated that around 20,000 widowers and around 40,000 widows will be entitled to the Bereavement Payment in the first full year of implementation and in 2020, following equalisation of State Pension age at 65.
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It is not possible to provide exact long-term estimates and therefore estimates for 2020 should be regarded as illustrative.
Mr. Rendel:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the estimated increase in the number of income support claimants as a result of the replacement of the widows pension by the bereavement allowance in (i) the first full year of implementation and (ii) 2020. [80658]
Angela Eagle
[holding answer 13 April 1999]: Information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is as follows.
In order to provide some idea of the scale of the likely effect, the following figures provide indicative estimates of the average increase in the number of Income Support claimants as a result of the proposed changes to Widows Pension. Estimates for 2020 should be regarded as illustrative.
In the first full year, the increase in the number of Income Support recipients is estimated to be less than 5,000. It is estimated that this could rise to around 30,000 3 by 2020.
Mr. Rendel:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many (a) widowers and (b) widows he expects to be entitled to bereavement allowance in (i) the first full year of implementation and (ii) 2020. [80655]
Angela Eagle
[holding answer 13 April 1999]: It is estimated that around 10,000 widowers will be entitled to Bereavement Allowance from the first full year of implementation up to 2020. It is estimated that around 10,000 widows will be entitled to Bereavement Allowance in the first full year of implementation, increasing to around 20,000 by 2020 following equalisation of State Pension age at 65.
Note:
Figures have been supplied by the Government Actuary's Department. They are rounded to the nearest 10,000 and are subject to a wide range of uncertainty.
Notes:
1. Estimates assume that a constant proportion of those affected by the proposed changes to Bereavement Benefits move on or off Income Support. Therefore the estimates for 2020 should be regarded as illustrative.
2. Estimates use information from the 1995-6 Family Resources Survey, the May 1996 Income Support Quarterly Statistical Enquiry and forecasts from the Government Actuary's Department concerning the number of men and women affected by the proposed changes.
3. Figure rounded to the nearest 10,000.
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