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27 Jan 2003 : Column 659W—continued
Occupational Pension Schemes
Mr. Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether the changes to the priority order for winding up occupational pensions proposed in his Pensions Green Paper will apply retrospectively. [93056]
Mr. McCartney: Changing the priority order would increase protection on winding up for some scheme members but others would receive less. This being the case, we do not currently propose to introduce regulations on a retrospective basis because, for some, this would mean reducing pension already promised or in payment.
However, this is a difficult and complex area and we will look very carefully at it during the consultation on the Pensions Green Paper.
Payments Programme
Sir Archy Kirkwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make a statement on the results of the recent review of the modernisation of the payments programme. [86704]
Malcolm Wicks: The gated review process within the Department allows for a number of formal reviews. The Payment Modernisation Programme successfully navigated through the Operational Readiness Review approval gateway during September and October.
This enabled the Programme to commence the first phase in the move towards Direct Payment, including mailings sent to Veterans Agency customers from 7 October and Child Benefit customers from 28 October 2002.
Pensions
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his estimate is of the change as a percentage of gross domestic product in spending on pensions necessary to bring the average pension in the United Kingdom in line with that in (a) the Netherlands, (b) the USA, (c) Australia, (d) Japan, (e) Italy, (f) Germany, (g) France, (h) Sweden and (i) the average in the EU. [90124]
Mr. McCartney: The information is not available in the format requested. Such information that is available is set out in the following table.
Comparable cross-country data on public and private pensions expenditure are available only for European Union countries. According to data produced by Eurostat, the highest rate of old-age pension expenditure per capita is in the UK.
| 1999 | |
|---|---|
| France | 111 |
| Germany | 102 |
| Italy | 113 |
| Netherlands | 108 |
| Sweden | — |
| UK | 134 |
| EU-15 | 114 |
1. Production of comparable cross-country estimates is extremely difficult due to substantially different rules in various countries. Eurostat say about their numbers:
"This indicator is not perfect. Old-age pensions may cover different areas in different countries, and the retirement age differs from country to country (for both the legal age and the effective age)."
However, Eurostat's: "European Social Statistics—Social Protection Expenditure and Receipts" (ESSPROS) is regarded as the best available measure.
2. The definition of pensions in the ESSPROS methodology includes basic and supplementary schemes, sometimes known as first-pillar and second pillar schemes, but excludes third-pillar arrangements, for example personal pensions in the UK. The ESSPROS pensions aggregate comprises of only part of periodic cash benefits under the disability, old-age, survivors and unemployment functions in ESSPROS.
3. In the case of the UK, the pensions aggregate recorded in ESSPROS comprises of benefits payable under the disability, old-age and survivors' functions and occupational pensions. It excludes lump-sum benefits payable on retirement (approximately 0.7 per cent. of GDP in 1999). Personal pensions are also not included in the ESSPROS social protection definition of pensions (approximately 1.5 per cent. of GDP in 1999).
4. Data are not available for Sweden.
Source:
Eurostat-ESSPROS, Statistics in Focus, June 2002, ISSN 1024–4352 www.europa.eu.int
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Post Office Card Accounts
Mr. Robathan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what information the Government's public information campaign on the payment and banking options available for benefit customers has disseminated, with particular reference to the personal invitation documents for the Post Office card account. [91134]
Malcolm Wicks: The Government's information campaign, to support the move to Direct Payment, provides customers with factual information on the banking options available to them, including information on the Post Office card account. The information is presented in a way that enables customers to decide which option is best for their individual circumstances. Customers who want to open a Post Office card account are advised to contact the Department for Work and Pensions, who will issue them with a personal invitation document.
Prosecuting and Charging Standards
Mr. Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will place in the Library the code for prosecutors and charging standards used by his Department when acting as a prosecuting authority. [88472]
Mr. Nicholas Brown: Departmental officials follow the Code for Crown Prosecutors when taking the decision to prosecute and deciding what charges should be brought. The code is issued by the Director of Public Prosecutions under section 10 of the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985, and a copy is available in the Library.
Public-private Partnerships
Mr. Salmond: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many departmental Minutes issued by his Department were outstanding on 30 November 2002 that referred to public-private partnerships, as
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included in Table B14 of the Consolidated Fund and National Loans Fund Accounts; and what their value was. [89417]
Mr. Nicholas Brown [holding answer 13 January 2003]: There were no departmental Minutes outstanding on 30 November 2002 that refer to public-private partnerships, as included in Table B14 of the Consolidated Fund and National Loans Fund Accounts.
Racial Harassment
Chris Grayling : To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what rights victims of alleged racial harassment in the workplace have to paid legal representation in employment tribunals. [91949]
Alan Johnson: I have been asked to reply.
Generally, legal representation in employment tribunal proceedings in England and Wales is excluded from the scope of public funding, though funding for general legal advice falling short of advocacy is available under the Legal Help Scheme. However the Lord Chancellor has the power under Section 6(8)(b) of the Access to Justice Act 1999 to authorise funding in exceptional cases where the Legal Services Commission asks him to do so. In Scotland representation before an employment tribunal is available to anyone who meets the statutory tests for Assistance by Way of Representation (ABWOR). ABWOR allows a solicitor to appear on behalf of a client before the Tribunal.
In addition, under section 66 of the Race Relations Act (RRA) 1976, the Commission for Racial Equality has discretion to provide paid legal representation.
Same-sex Couples
Dr. Evan Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what estimate has been made of the number of same-sex couples in long-term relationships living together who are currently treated as separate households for the purpose of state pension and other benefits; [89697]
- (2) for which benefits heterosexual unmarried couples living together as husband and wife are treated as a couple when same-sex couples are treated as individuals; and for each of these benefits what estimate he has made (a) of the cost of treating same-sex couples as individuals and (b) the savings made by not treating such heterosexual couples as individuals. [89698]
Mr. McCartney [holding answer 16 January 2003]: There is very little information about same-sex couples in this country. The Labour Force Survey suggests that there are about 50,000 cohabiting same-sex couples in the UK. Around one in twenty of the individuals in these couples say they are claiming income related benefits or tax credits. There appear to be very few who are pensioners. Same sex couples are treated as individuals for the purposes of determining entitlement to income related benefits.
We already treat same sex couples as individuals for the purpose of determining entitlement to income related benefits. Any estimate of the savings made from treating unmarried heterosexual couples as couples rather than as individuals would depend on assumptions
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about, for example, the number of individuals who would otherwise choose to claim benefit and about whether benefit would be paid for their children.
- Notes:
- a. Information is taken from the Labour Force Survey, spring 2002 and the Family Resources Survey 2001–02. However, they are very likely to under record the extent of same sex partnerships. In addition they will not necessarily capture all benefit recipients.
- b. Definition of benefits includes all unemployment related benefits, including JSA (IB), IS, family related benefits or tax credits and housing or council tax benefit.
- c. There are very few pensioners recorded in the Family Resources Survey as being in same sex couples.
- d. Estimated costs are based on the information in the Labour Force Survey and assumes that the proportion of working age individuals receiving benefit is the same for those in same-sex couples as in the wider population.
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