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Ilisu Dam
Mr. Alan Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions he has had with the Governments of Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey about the regional implications of building the Ilisu Dam; and what regional support there is for the project beyond that of the Turkish Government. [145071]
Mr. Caborn: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry has not yet had any discussions with the Governments of Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey about the regional implications of building the Ilisu Dam.
We are of course aware that the Governments of Syria and Iraq (via the Jordanian Embassy) and the Arab League have expressed concern about the dam. When my
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right hon. Friend published the two reports which we commissioned on this project in December 1999, he also made it clear that before a decision is made on the availability of ECGD support, we will need to be satisfied on a number of conditions, including that of the downstream flow of the Tigris. My officials are in touch with the Turkish authorities regarding these conditions.
A4E
Mr. McNamara: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if the Hull Area Advice Centre Ltd. and its equivalent in Grimsby and Scunthorpe, the Hull Branch of the Federation of Small Businesses and the Humberside District Society of Chartered Accountants were among those organisations approached by A4E when applying for the small business links franchise for Humberside. [146429]
Ms Hewitt [holding answer 22 January 2001]: The award of contracts for local delivery of Business Link services is an operational matter for the Chief Executive of the Small Business Service. I have asked him to write to my hon. Friend with his response.
Letter from David Irwin to Mr. Kevin McNamara:
- I have been asked by Stephen Byers to respond to the Parliamentary Question you have tabled concerning the Small Business Service's decision to make Action for Employment (A4E) the preferred bidder to deliver the new Business Link service in Humberside.
- In the Action for Employment bid to run the SBS Business Link in Humberside, there was no mention of contact with the Hull Area Advice Centre and its equivalent in Grimsby and Scunthorpe, the Hull branch of the Federation of Small Businesses or the Humberside District Society of Chartered Accountants.
CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT
Treasure Annual Report
Helen Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when he will publish the Treasure Annual report 1998-99. [147199]
Mr. Chris Smith: The Annual Report covering the operation of the Treasure Act 1996 for the period from 24 September 1998 to 31 December 1999 was laid before Parliament earlier today.
The Report is being launched tomorrow morning.
SOCIAL SECURITY
Benefits (Scotland)
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how much was paid by each of his Department's administrative areas to (a) the elderly, (b) people with long-term illness or disability, (c) families, (d) unemployed people, (e) children and (f) others in Scotland in each of the last 10 years, indicating in each case the percentage of the budget spent on each group. [145674]
Mr. Rooker: The information is not available.
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Benefit Fraud
Mr. Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will estimate, for each local authority, the total amount saved in benefit expenditure in the most recent year arising from anti-fraud initiatives; what this figure was as a percentage of the total expenditure on social security benefits administered by each local authority; and what his aggregate estimate is for Great Britain. [146318]
Mr. Rooker: We aim to ensure that all our anti-fraud initiatives are effective in combating fraud and error. It is not always possible to quantify the precise savings of some measures as they are often designed to prevent fraud occurring in the first place rather than detecting fraud after the event.
However, the weekly benefit savings scheme provides a partial measure of benefit fraud based on what local authorities have detected. A table providing the information requested expressed in terms of weekly benefit savings for the most recent year available, 1998-99, was placed in the Library as part of my answer to the hon. Member on 9 June 2000, Official Report, column 409W.
Winter Fuel Payments
Mr. Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when Ms Williams of Tate and Mrs. Gosling of Chipping Sodbury, whose national insurance numbers have been supplied, will receive their Winter Fuel Payments for winter 2000. [146479]
Mr. Rooker: This is a matter for Alexis Cleveland, the Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency. She will write to the hon. Member.
Letter from Alexis Cleveland to Mr. Steve Webb, dated 22 January 2001:
- The Parliamentary Secretary of State for Social Security has asked me to respond to your recent Parliamentary Question asking when Ms Williams of Tate and Mrs Gosling of Chipping Sodbury, whose national insurance numbers have been supplied, will receive their Winter Fuel Payments (WFP) for winter 2000.
- Ms Williams' WFP for 2000 was automatically sent to her home address and would have been delivered before Christmas 2000. If she has not received this payment she should contact the local Benefits Agency office who will take the necessary replacement action.
- Technical problems prevented Mrs Gosling from receiving her WFP for 2000 automatically, therefore, the payment has been issued clerically and will be delivered by 27 January 2001. Corrective action will be taken to ensure payment for 2001 will be sent on time.
- I hope this is helpful.
Mr. Swinney: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what his reasons are choosing 12 December 2000 as the qualifying date for the winter fuel allowance. [146992]
Mr. Rooker: The date of 12 December 2000 has no relevance to the payment of the Winter Fuel Payment.
To enable the right payments to be made before Christmas and avoid the Christmas post various processes need to be completed. These require a qualifying week of 18-24 September 2000.
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Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what complaints he has received regarding the clarity of Part 2 of the claim form for Winter Fuel Payment; and if he will make a statement. [146611]
Mr. Rooker: The helpline dealt with a number of people requiring help, but details are not recorded separately. We are currently designing a new set of forms for 2001. If the hon. Member has a particular aspect in mind perhaps he will write to me.
NIRS2 (Stakeholder Pensions)
Mr. Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what assessment he has made of the implications of the continuing NIRS2 problems for the implementation of stakeholder pensions. [146349]
Mr. Rooker: Stakeholder pensions are on target for introduction in April 2001. We do not anticipate that this will be affected by the NIRS2 computer system.
Pensioner Incomes
Mr. Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, pursuant to his answer of 18 December 2000, Official Report, columns 78-79W, what the average incomes of pensioner households for the United Kingdom were in each of the last four years for which figures are available. [146339]
Mr. Rooker: The information requested is not available for the United Kingdom. Information for Great Britain is shown in the table.
| 1995-96 | 1996-97 | 1997-98 | 1998-99 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All Pensioners: Mean | 174 | 184 | 186 | 192 |
| All Pensioners: Median | 136 | 145 | 146 | 148 |
| Pensioner Couples: Mean | 246 | 265 | 267 | 272 |
| Pensioner Couples: Median | 194 | 209 | 209 | 214 |
| Single Pensioners: Mean | 129 | 133 | 136 | 141 |
| Single Pensioners: Medians | 111 | 115 | 117 | 118 |
Notes:
1. All incomes are in £ per week and are at July 1998 prices.
2. Pensioners are defined as single people over State Pension age (65 and over for men, 60 and over for women) and couples (married or cohabiting) where the man is over State Pension age.
3. Estimates are based on survey data and therefore subject to sampling error. In particular, comparisons over short periods of time should be treated with caution, and regarded as only a broad indication of the trend.
Source:
Family Resources Surveys.
Mr. Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for Knowsley, South (Mr. O'Hara) of 15 January 2001, Official Report, column 80W, on pensioner incomes, if he will reproduce the table disaggregated by age group for (a) pensioners aged 70 and under, (b) pensioners aged 71 to 75, (c) pensioners aged 76 to 80 and (d) pensioners aged over 80 years. [146889]
Mr. Rooker: The information is in the table.
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| All ages | Aged 70 and under | Aged 71 to 75 | Aged 76 to 80 | Aged over 80 years | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single pensioners | 60 | 51 | 57 | 62 | 71 |
| Pensioner couples | 35 | 28 | 34 | 47 | 49 |
| All pensioners | 50 | 40 | 47 | 57 | 67 |
Notes:
1. Income is defined as gross (pre-tax) income.
2. Pensioners are defined as single people over state pension age (65 for men and 60 for women) and couples (married or co-habiting) where the man is over state pension age.
3. Pensioner couples are allocated to age category based on the age of the man.
4. Estimates should be treated with caution since they are based on small sample sizes and are subject to sampling error.
Source:
Family Resources Survey 1998-99.
Mr. Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security on the state pension, how many (a) single pensioners in receipt of the basic state pension and (b) pensioner couples in receipt of the basic state pension are not entitled to the full value of the appropriate basic state pension. [146890]
Mr. Rooker: The information is not available.
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