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Invalid Care Allowance

17. Mr. Goggins: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what plans he has to reform Invalid Care Allowance. [120956]

Mr. Bayley: We are aware of the need for adequate financial support for carers. Our National Strategy for Carers, published last year, committed us to keep under review the financial support available to carers, including Invalid Care Allowance, and we are continuing to do that.

Basic State Pension

18. Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what estimate he has made of the number of people entitled to, but awaiting, their first payment of basic state pension. [120957]

Mr. Rooker: No estimate has been made of the number of people entitled to but awaiting their first payment of basic state pension.

Most new claims to Retirement Pension each year result from people being invited to claim by the Department some four months before they reach pension age. This enables the majority of claims to be paid by the time the first pension pay day is reached.

The calculation of the various components that can make up a Retirement Pension award is made by the NIRS2 computer. Although there have been problems in NIRS2 calculating the additional pension for some claims, this has not applied to the basic pension calculation.

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Housing Benefit Reform

19. Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will make a statement on the operation of the Housing Benefit system and his proposals for reform. [120958]

24. Mr. Swayne: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what proposals he has to reform Housing Benefit. [120966]

Angela Eagle: We intend to reform Housing Benefit to improve customer service through a modernised streamlined system, to tackle fraud and error, and to reduce the barriers to work. We have already made significant progress; our Housing Green Paper, currently out for consultation, sets out how we can take this further.

We are determined to deal with the weaknesses of the system we inherited from the previous Administration.

Minimum Income Guarantee

21. Mr. Nicholas Winterton: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what impact the minimum income guarantee will have on incentives to save for low earners. [120961]

Mr. Bayley: One of the Government's main objectives is to encourage people to save more for their retirement where they can afford to do so, while at the same time providing extra State support for those who cannot save.

We are introducing new stakeholder pensions and reforming SERPS through the State Second Pension. These reforms will mean that, in future, people with a lifetime of working behind them will get a large enough pension to take them above the MIG, even if they have been on low earnings throughout their life. However, it takes time to build up pension entitlements, so for many, particularly those who have already retired or who are close to retirement age, these reforms come too late. That is why we introduced the MIG to make sure that the poorest pensioners are guaranteed a basic decent income in retirement, even before stakeholder pensions and the Second State Pension mature.

We recently announced an increase in the MIG capital limits to make sure that people with relatively modest savings do not lose out. We want to do more to encourage savers. In the last Budget, the Chancellor announced that we propose to consult on a new Pensioner Credit which will do just that.

Our pensions reforms should be looked at as a package. We believe the package strikes the right balance between encouraging savers, while protecting those who cannot save.

26. Dr. George Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many pensioners in North-West Norfolk he estimates will benefit from the minimum income guarantee for pensioners in (a) 1999-2000 and (b) 2000-01. [12096]

Mr. Bayley: Around 3,500 pensioners in North-West Norfolk benefited from the minimum income guarantee last year.

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For this year we estimate that around 1.5 million pensioners across Great Britain will benefit from the minimum income guarantee. This information is not available at local level.

27. Mr. Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will make a statement about the take-up of the minimum income guarantee for pensioners. [120969]

Mr. Bayley: We have recently announced our plans for an ambitious national take-up campaign for the minimum income guarantee. Starting from the end of this month there will be intense activity on a number of fronts; including television advertising, writing to around 2 million pensioners and a new tele-claim centre which allows pensioners to make a claim over the telephone.

Mr. Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what proportion of pensioners entitled to minimum income guarantee are receiving it. [120947]

Mr. Darling: Estimates on the numbers of pensioners in receipt of the minimum income guarantee (MIG) are to be found in the DSS report "Income Related Benefits: Estimates of Take-Up, 1996/97 and 1997/98". A copy has been placed in the Library.

To encourage pensioners to take up their entitlement we have launched a national helpline which has already received nearly 31,000 calls in the last five weeks, and we are launching a national TV advertising campaign on 30 May. We are determined that as many pensioners as possible get the MIG to which they are entitled.

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how changes in Government spending since 1997 have affected the incomes of (a) poorer pensioners and (b) pensioners with small savings. [120960]

Mr. Rooker: The minimum income guarantee benefits around 1.5 million of the least well off pensioners.

From April the rates increased to £78.45 for a single pensioner this represents an extra £5 a week in real terms since 1998.

By increasing the minimum income guarantee in line with earnings, more and more pensioners with modest pensions and savings are benefiting. With an extra 92,000 cases becoming newly entitled to the MIG since April 1999.

From next April, the planned changes to capital limits will mean that pensioners with savings up to £12,000 will be entitled to the guarantee. Our estimate is that this will benefit a further 500,000 pensioners.

Mr. Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what estimate he has made of the loss of benefits suffered per week by a pensioner who is entitled to minimum income guarantee but is not receiving it. [120955]

Mr. Bayley: The latest estimates were published in the DSS report "Income Related Benefits: Estimates of Take-Up, 1996/97 and 1997/98". A copy has been placed in the Library.

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Paternity Tests

22. Mr. Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what provision is available for a mother to demand a second DNA test to determine the father of her child. [120962]

Angela Eagle: If a man who is named by a parent with care denies that he is the father of a child, the Child Support Agency will normally offer DNA tests to the parties involved.

The DNA testing company has rigorous and secure procedures for carrying out these tests. If a parent with care refuses to accept the outcome of the DNA tests, it is open to her to apply to court for a declaration of parentage which would be binding on the CSA.

Benefit Fraud

23. Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what recent representations he has received regarding fraud in the Social Security system. [120963]

Mr. Rooker: We are determined to combat fraud and error in the Social Security system. We have a comprehensive strategy, to safeguard the system from the first to the final payment. For example, we are insisting claimants produce more evidence before Income Support is paid, which will save £1 billion over the Parliament. This comprehensive strategy will help to strengthen public confidence, and thereby encourage their support.

Pensioner Incomes

25. Mr. Borrow: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what representations he has received on assistance for pensioners with small occupational pensions; and if he will make a statement. [120967]

Mr. Rooker: We have received a considerable number of representations from this group over the years. Following the current success of the Minimum Income Guarantee our concern is to develop initiatives that will reward work and savings. That is why we are starting development work on a new pensioner credit that will better help those pensioners with small second pensions and modest savings who have worked hard to provide for themselves in their retirement.

SERPS

28. Dr. Tony Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what representations he has received about the proposed scheme for providing redress to those who were not informed about the benefit changes to SERPS. [120970]

Mr. Rooker: As the House was informed on the 15 March, we will introduce a scheme to give redress to those who received and relied on wrong or incomplete advice given by this Department in relation to the SERPS additional pension their spouses would inherit. The House was also informed that we would consult widely before bringing forward regulations setting out the detail of the Scheme.

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In addition to the reports from the NAO and the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration, the Department has received representations from Age Concern, NACAB, Help the Aged and the noble Lord Rix, and from a number of members of the public.

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