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Swimming Lessons
Mr. Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment (1) what studies his Department has made on the effect on small schools of the new funding arrangements for swimming lessons; and if he will make a statement; [85141]
- (2) what representations he has received from within the County of Lancashire about the effect on small schools of his Departments' new proposals for the funding of swimming lessons. [85142]
Mr. Charles Clarke: Under the Financing of Maintained Schools Regulations 1999, the cost of providing swimming lessons must be met from schools' delegated budgets. The Regulations allow local education authorities to include factors in their funding formulae to compensate schools for the cost of hiring "off-site" facilities (including swimming pools); formulae may also take account of the need for transport to and from such facilities. LEAs may also compensate small schools more generally for their diseconomies of scale. Within this framework, LEAs can enable small schools to maintain the provision of swimming lessons, at least on a scale sufficient to meet the needs of the National Curriculum.
Representations on the funding of swimming were made by Lancashire LEA in its response to the May 1998 consultation paper, "Fair Funding" and, subsequently, in the course of consultation on the Financing of Maintained Schools Regulations. The Department has been unable to trace any more recent representations on the subject from within Lancashire, with the exception of a letter from the hon. Member, a letter from my hon. Friend the Member for Morecambe and Lunesdale (Miss Smith) about the future of certain specific swimming pools in her constituency, and a letter on the same subject from a member of the public in Heysham.
Appraisals Handbook
Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment when he expects the Appraisals Handbook to be completed; and what action the Department will take to distribute it. [85373]
Mr. Charles Clarke: Consultation on the Green Paper proposals ended on 31 March. We plan to publish a Performance Management Framework later this year.
Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will set out the tender specification for the contract to prepare the Appraisals Handbook, and the criteria used to determine the winning bid. [85374]
Mr. Charles Clarke:
The tender specification for the contract to prepare the Appraisal Handbook was detailed in an advertisement in the Times Education Supplement on 6 February 1998. I am placing a copy of the advertisement and the tender specifications in Library.
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Bids were assessed on the following criteria:
Mrs. May:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment when the contract for the Appraisals Handbook was set; who were the bidders for the contract; who won the contract; and what is the cost of the contract. [85375]
Mr. Charles Clarke:
The tender specification for the contract to prepare the Appraisal Handbook was set out in an advertisement in the Times Education Supplement on 6 February 1998. There were nine bidders, whom we are not able to name under the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.
No bid was deemed to fully meet the tender specifications. Following further examination it was agreed to combine the best aspects of two bids. The resulting consortium consisted of Coopers and Lybrand/ Salter Baker & Associates (Education) Ltd. and Nottinghamshire LEA.
The information on the cost of the contract is commercial in confidence.
Mr. Webb:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will estimate the balance in the National Insurance Fund at the end of each of the next 10 years assuming (a) unchanged policies, (b) an increase in the basic state pension to £75 per week, (c) the implementation of his proposed reforms to SERPS, the state second pension and the stakeholder pension and (d) both (b) and (c) above. [84635]
Dawn Primarolo:
I have been asked to reply.
Responsibility for the National Insurance Fund was transferred to the Treasury from 1 April 1999. In each tax year the Treasury is required to carry out a review of the general level of the National Insurance Fund with a view to determining whether a Treasury Grant is required or whether an order should be made varying the contribution rates for the following tax year. The aim is to ensure that a reasonable working balance is maintained in the Fund at the end of the year. The Government Actuary recommends that the minimum level of the National Insurance Fund at the end of the year should be equivalent to one-sixth of annual benefit payments for the year. The future balances in the National Insurance Fund will be subject to these annual reviews and the information requested could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
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Mr. Webb:
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will estimate the proportion of pensioner households headed by a person aged (a) 65 to 69, (b) 70 to 74, (c) 75 to 79 and (d) 80 years or more who are (i) in receipt of income support and (ii) in receipt of any means-tested benefit, on a basis consistent with his estimate that one in four of all pensioner households are in receipt of income support. [84756]
Mr. Timms:
The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the table.
Contractors' capacity:
to demonstrate an understanding of the policy context;
to ensure outputs which would meet the Secretary of State's specification;
to demonstrate that the scope of their organisation could ensure a credible outcome;
to demonstrate that they had made suitable plans within the timescale to produce results;
recent relevant experience in term of policy and project management.
| Percentage | ||
|---|---|---|
| Age | Proportion of pensioners receipt of Income Support | Proportion of pensioners in receipt of any means-tested benefit |
| 65-69 | 12 | 26 |
| 70-74 | 12 | 31 |
| 75-79 | 16 | 39 |
| 80 and over | 25 | 42 |
Notes:
1. 'Pensioners' refers to pensioner benefit units, which represents a single person, or a couple where one or both partners is in the age group specified.
2. The figures are consistent with the estimate that one in five of all pensioner benefit units are in receipt of Income Support.
3. The estimates of benefit caseloads group pensioner couples according to the age of the oldest member of the couple. Population estimates by benefit unit classify couples according to the age of the male member of the couple. The estimated proportions are therefore based on the assumption that the male partner is the oldest.
4. Figures exclude cases in residential care and nursing homes.
5. Percentages are rounded to the nearest 1 per cent.
6. Means-tested benefits refer to Income Support, Family Credit, Disability Working Allowance, Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit.
7. Overlaps between recipients of more than one of these benefits have been removed.
Sources:
1. Income Support Quarterly Statistical Enquiry May 1998.
2. Disability Working Allowance 100 per cent. count of claims.
3. Family Credit 5 per cent. sample of awards.
4. Housing Benefit Management Information Systems, annual 1 per cent. sample inquiries, May 1998.
5. GAD 1996 population projections by marital status.
Social Security Act 1998
Mr. Gareth R. Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when the decision making and appeals provisions of the Social Security Act 1998 will come into effect; and if he will make a statement. [85653]
Angela Eagle:
In March I laid the main Regulations relating to the new system for handling decisions and appeals in benefits and child support being established under last year's Social Security Act. In addition this week I am making the Social Security Act 1998 (Commencement No 7 and Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Order 1999 which commences the relevant parts of the Act for introducing the new system for child support from 1 June. The Order also makes associated transitional and consequential provisions. Further Commencement Orders relating to benefits will be made in due course.
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The new arrangements are a significant further step to modernise the delivery of Social Security and child support as part of the reform of welfare. The current system has to change. It is confusing for claimants and staff. Correcting mistakes is complicated and frequently claimants have to appeal. Even where they have no reasonable prospect of success, appeals currently take an average of seven months to be cleared.
| Date | |
|---|---|
| 1 June 1999 | Child Support |
| 5 July 1999 | Child Benefit |
| Guardians Allowance | |
| Industrial Injury Scheme Benefits | |
| 6 September 1999 | Retirement Pension |
| Widows Benefit | |
| Incapacity Benefit | |
| Severe Disablement Allowance | |
| Maternity Allowance | |
| 5 October 1999 | Working Families Tax Credit |
| Disabled Persons Tax Credit | |
| 18 October 1999 | Jobseeker's Allowance |
| Disability Living Allowance | |
| Attendance Allowance | |
| Invalid Care Allowance | |
| Vaccine Damage Payments | |
| 29 November 1999 | Income Support |
| Social Fund |
The Chief Executives of the Agencies will be fully accountable to Parliament for the quality of decision making in their Agencies.
In addition, while appeal tribunals will continue to be independent, in April 2000 a new Appeals Service Agency will be established in this Department to be responsible for appeals administration. From 1 June, in a period of shadow working before the agency is launched, responsibility for the administration of appeals will be transferred from the President, Judge Harris, to the Chief Executive designate of the Appeals Service, Neil Ward. Benefit claimants and child support clients will receive information about the new arrangements in notifications and other letters from the Agencies as their cases are handled.
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