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WORK AND PENSIONS
Departmental Expenditure Limits
Mrs. Humble: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to change the departmental expenditure limit and administration costs limit for 2001–02. [36753]
Mr. Nicholas Brown: Subject to parliamentary approval of the necessary supplementary estimate, the Department for Work and Pensions departmental expenditure limit will be increased by £40,052,000 from £7,302,415,000 to £7,342,467,000 and the administration cost limit by £56,142,000 from £4,902,843,000 to £4,958,985,000. Within the DEL change the impact on resources and capital are set out in the table:
| £ | |
|---|---|
| Resources | |
| Change | 19,855 |
| New DEL | 7,111,469 |
| Of which: | |
| Voted | 6,084,747 |
| Non voted | 1,026,722 |
| Capital | |
| Change | 20,197 |
| New DEL | 230,998 |
| Of which: | |
| Voted | 148,071 |
| Non voted | 82,927 |
The change in the resource element of the DEL arises from:
(i) a reduction of £53,000 (administration costs) due to a transfer to the Home Office for costs in connection with the evaluation of withdrawal of benefits for offenders in breach of community penalties.
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(ii) take up of end year flexibility entitlements (£7,100,000 of which £6,000,000 are administration costs) announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury in Table 6 of the 2000–01 Public Expenditure Outturn Paper (Cm 5243).
(iii) a reduction of £220,000 (administration costs) due to a transfer to Lord Chancellor's Departments for costs associated with housing benefit and council tax benefit appeals.
(iv) a reduction of £50,000 (administration costs) due to a transfer to Department of Social Development (Northern Ireland) towards the administration costs associated with winter fuel payments.
(v) an increase in provision of £1,568,000 (administration costs) for the costs of administering allowance payments for work-based learning for adults in Scotland and Wales.
(vi) a net increase of £1,691,000 (administration costs) due to a transfer from Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, for expenditure on New Deal for Communities (£1,631,000), reimbursement of salary costs of Department for Work and Pensions staff performing work on behalf of the Housing Corporation (£150,000) and a transfer £90,000 to Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions for implementation costs at the Rent Service.
(vii) an increase of £16,548,000 (of which £8,548,000 are administration costs) due to a transfer from Department for Education and Skills for expenditure within the Disability Rights Commission (£1,000,000), the cost of the Labour Force Survey (£1,050,000), the cost of accommodation where they are the minor occupier (£963,000), costs associated with Basic Skills (£7,000,000), a contribution towards the administrative costs of procurement (£24,000), a call on the Restructuring Fund (£6,000,000) and a transfer for costs associated with hardship payments to young people who would normally be receiving bridging allowance (£511,000).
(viii) an increase of £158,000 (other current) for the expenditure on EU Twinning funded projects.
(ix) a reduction of £20,000 (administration costs) due to a transfer to the Scottish Executive for costs associated with European Social Fund Verification and Audit Team.
(x) an increase of £9,517,000 (administration costs) from the Employment Development Fund for JobCentre Plus and New Deal for Disabled People.
(xi) an increase of £1,000,000 (administration costs) as a result of a transfer from Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in connection with costs relating to the foot and mouth disease outbreak.
(xii) a reduction in provision of £32,000 (other current) as a result of a transfer to the Scottish Executive for the Glasgow Coalition.
(xiii) an increase of £1,095,000 as result of a transfer from Department of Health for the cost of collecting expenses associated with Road Traffic Accidents in England.
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(xiv) an increase of £13,704,000 (of which £12,991,000 are administration costs and £713,000 grants) for expenditure associated with services supplied by Department for Work and Pensions to other Government Departments on a repayment basis.
(xv) an increase of £454,000 (of which £351,000 is administration costs and £103,000 other current) to correct an earlier transfer.
(xvi) an increase of £28,242,000 (administration costs) as result of virement from other current/grants and an increase of £13,797,000 (capital) arising from virement from other current.
(xvii) an increase in appropriation in aid of £26,202,000 (of which £14,518,000 are administration cost limit related).
(xviii) an increase of £10,294,000 (other current) to reflect an increase in the number of secondments.
(xix) a reduction of £2,900,000 (other current) as a result of a transfer to Annually Managed Expenditure.
The change in the capital element of the DEL arises from:
(i) an increase of £6,400,000 (administration costs) from the Employment Development Fund for JobCentre Plus.
(ii) An increase of £13,797,000 as a result of virement.
All of these changes will either be offset by transfers or charged to the Reserve and will not therefore add to the planned total of public expenditure.
Occupational Pensions Regulatory Authority
Lawrie Quinn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the quinquennial review of the Occupational Pensions Regulatory Authority. [36752]
Mr. McCartney: I am pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Brian Davis, formerly Chief Executive of the Nationwide Building Society, to lead this review. He will assist the internal DWP team in undertaking a detailed examination of all OPRA's functions and management structures and will draw on the views and comments of key stakeholders.
The review will also draw on the findings of the Simplification Review, being undertaken by Alan Pickering, which is looking at ways of simplifying the legislation underpinning the private pensions regulatory system.
Pensions
Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many cases have been recorded since April 2001 of employers' (a) failure to set up a record of when they were due to pay contributions to personal pension schemes and (b) failure to pay such contributions on time; how many cases have been completed; and how much has been raised in fines. [33719]
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Mr. McCartney [holding answer 6 February 2002]: The Occupational Pensions Regulatory Authority (Opra) has received reports as follows:
- 71,117 voluntary reports of employers who have failed to set up a record of payment contributions
128,965 reports of late payments. Many of these reports will relate to the same employer.
Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will list for (a) each age after 60 and (b) each sex the number claiming state basic retirement pension in the last year for which figures are available. [35576]
Mr. McCartney: The information requested is not available. Such information as is available is set out in the table:
Note:
Figures have been rounded to the nearest hundred.
Source:
Figures are taken from a 5 per cent. sample of the Pensions Strategy
Computer System as at 31 March 2001.
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Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many members of occupational pensions schemes were (a) contracted out and (b) contracted in to the state pension scheme in each of the last five years. [35574]
Mr. McCartney: Information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the table.
| 1991 | 1995 | |
|---|---|---|
| Contracted out | 9.7 | 9.0 |
| Contracted in | 1.0 | 1.3 |
| Total | 10.7 | 10.3 |
Note:
All numbers are in millions
Source:
Government Actuary's Department "Occupational Pension Schemes 1991 and 1995".
Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to his statement of 4 February 2002, Official Report, column 665, on pensions and benefits, if he will make a statement on his assessment of the reasons for the decline in the number of (a) defined benefit and (b) defined contribution occupational pension schemes since the mid 1960s. [35584]
Mr. McCartney: The main factors contributing to the long-term decline in both the membership and number of occupational schemes are complex, as my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions told the House on 4 February 2002, Official Report, column 665. Because of that last year the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions asked Alan Pickering to conduct a wide-ranging review of the regulatory burden that is placed on pensions schemes. The review is due to report in the summer.
Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what publicity he plans in order to advise the general public of the implications of the equalisation of state retirement pension ages from 2010. [35573]
Mr. McCartney: Changes to the state pension age for women affect all women born after 5 April 1950, and the Government are committed to informing women about the changes.
The changes continue to be publicised as part of the Department for Work and Pensions' marketing campaign on pensions education for people of working age. Information is also included in relevant pensions leaflets (including a specific leaflet on pensions for women) and on the Department's website. The website also features an interactive calculator where women can type in their date
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of birth to find out their state pension age and the date they will reach that. The Department's state pension forecast letters and the accompanying leaflet also show the recipient's state pension age and explain who is affected by the changes to the state pension age for women.
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