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Public Guardianship Office

Mrs. Calton: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what complaints procedure is in place in the event of the Public Guardianship Office breaching its charter. [100930]

Ms Rosie Winterton: The Public Guardianship Office (PGO) will shortly be publishing a new guide to complaint handling entitled ''Putting Things Right''. Copies of this booklet will be made available to customers of the PGO who ask for guidance on how to complain. The information contained within the booklet will be available on the PGO Website and the booklet will be capable of being downloaded from the website.

I will write to all MPs providing a copy of the booklet, and place copies in the Libraries of both Houses.

Court of Protection

Mrs. Calton: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department what steps are being taken to monitor the quality of judicial decisions, with particular reference to those of the Court of Protection. [100929]

Ms Rosie Winterton: Judicial decisions of the Court of Protection are subject to appeal in the ordinary way. There is a system for internal review under Rule 54 of the Court of Protection Rules 2001 of judicial decisions made (whether by the Master, Assistant Masters or Nominated Officers) without an attended hearing, and for appeal to the High Court and beyond under Rule 55 and section 105 of the Mental Health Act 1983.

The rules on appeals apply equally to appeals against decisions made under the Enduring Powers of Attorney Act 1985.

There are some schemes to appraise part-time judges. However, independence of the judiciary is paramount and the aim of any appraisal is not to question judicial decisions but to observe the judges approach to, and handling of, the case.

Financial Penalties

Mr. Ben Chapman: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Lord Chancellor's Department if she will make a statement on the (a) maximum and (b) minimum penalties for non-payment of financial penalties imposed by magistrates' courts. [99874]

Yvette Cooper: When a defaulter is brought before the court, the magistrates will have a number of enforcement options available to them. The sanctions to

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ensure the payment of fines include an attachment of earnings order if the defendant is in employment or deductions from social security benefits if they are not working. The maximum amount that can be deducted from an unemployed person is £2.70 per week. Other options include the issue of a distress warrant, (which empowers the person executing it to seize a person's goods or money to the value of the sum owed), or as a last resort, the court may decide to commit the defaulter to prison. The Courts Bill currently before Parliament proposes a number of new arrangements to facilitate the enforcement of fines, including new penalties such as clamping vehicles and entering the fine in the Register of County Court judgments.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Housing Benefit

Sir Archy Kirkwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether he plans to change the capital limits in housing benefit. [100751]

Malcolm Wicks: We have no plans to change the capital limits in Housing Benefit.

However, with the introduction of the Pension Credit from October 2003, the upper capital limit will be abolished for those pensioners receiving the guarantee credit, and savings below £6,000 (£10,000 for care home residents) will have no effect on entitlement.

Sir Archy Kirkwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the expected changes to the IT that local authorities use following introduction of the housing benefit allowance pilots. [100748]

Malcolm Wicks: We are working with the pathfinder authorities and their software providers to identify the IT changes needed to introduce the new scheme and to collect the information required to evaluate it.

Sir Archy Kirkwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the new combined housing benefit/council tax benefit claim form to be introduced from April 2003; and whether it will be used for all claimants. [100753]

Malcolm Wicks: We are launching a new combined Housing Benefit (HB) and Council Tax Benefit (CTB) claim form from April 2003. The new form, called the HCTB1, will replace the NHB1(HB) and NHB1(CTB) forms currently issued to customers who claim Income Support, income-related Jobseeker's Allowance or the Minimum Income Guarantee, and the new Pension Credit from October.

The new form has been developed in consultation with local authorities and is designed to collect all the information needed by authorities to decide on a claim, thus removing the need for them to issue their own claim forms and for customers to complete three different forms to claim HB and CTB.

Local Authorities are responsible for administering HB and CTB, and remain responsible for designing and issuing their own claim forms to people who are not claiming another income-related benefit.

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Sir Archy Kirkwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what additional training is planned for rent officers in preparation for the housing benefit allowance pilots. [100749]

Malcolm Wicks: The Standard Local Housing Allowances will be based on Local Reference Rents, which are currently determined by Rent Officers. Rent Officers therefore already have the necessary expertise to calculate the standard allowances. Detailed guidance will be issued to Rent Officers in the pathfinder areas before the pilot starts.

Sir Archy Kirkwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will introduce the housing benefit allowance reforms to the social rented sector using different timetables for Scotland, Wales and England. [100750]

Malcolm Wicks: We are considering developing a system of standard housing allowances for tenants in the social rented sector to be tested in a suitable pathfinder area. A timetable for introducing this scheme has not yet been decided.

Health and Safety

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment has been made of the potential health impact to employees of industries and businesses, with specific reference to dry cleaners, resulting from the use of perchloroethylene in day to day operations. [99267]

Mr. Nicholas Brown: The Health and Safety Executive has undertaken a comprehensive human health risk assessment of perchloroethylene (perc) under the EU Existing Substances Regulation (ESR). HSE acts jointly with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to form the UK Competent Authority for ESR activities. The assessment, European Union Risk Assessment Report: Tetrachloroethylene. Draft ESR Risk Assessment Report, August 1996, includes workers exposed as a result of dry cleaning, copies of which have been placed in the Library.

In the workplace, perc is subject to the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002. Employers are required to ensure that exposure to perc is reduced to at least the level of the Occupational Exposure Standard assigned to it (50ppm averaged over an 8 hour reference period, and 100ppm for a short-term exposure averaged over 15 minutes).

Winter Fuel Payments

Mr. Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much money was spent last year on winter fuel payments. [101616]

Mr. McCartney: Latest estimated figures for Winter 2001–02 show that expenditure on Winter Fuel Payments was £1.7 billion.

Benefit Payments

Mr. Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for what reason people must obtain a personal invitation document before requesting a Post

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Office card account application form; and why the application form is not sent out alongside the personal invitation document. [100792]

Malcolm Wicks: The Post Office card account is only available to benefit, state pension and tax credit recipients. A Personal Invitation Document from one of the Paying Departments is the means by which the Post Office can identify such people and will be used by the Post Office as one form of identification for opening an account.

The Post Office card account is only one of three options available to customers wishing to access their money at the Post Office. The other options are a basic bank account or certain standard accounts.

The Post Office card account is a service provided by Post Office Limited and not the Government. It is, therefore, the role of the Post Office, like any other account provider, to issue application forms for its own products.

Mr. Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to his answer of 10 February, Official Report, column 522W, on the Direct Credit Scheme (Pensions) what methods of payment will be available under the exceptions service. [98115]

Malcolm Wicks: Progress is being made towards an alternative method for paying those customers who we are unable to pay by Direct Payment. This is expected to be available from October 2004. The options for this service are still being developed and it will be available at a range of outlets which will include Post Office branches.

Mr. McLoughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners in Derbyshire have migrated from over-the-counter benefit payments to direct bank transfers. [98892]

Malcolm Wicks: The number of pensioners in Derbyshire that have migrated from payments collectable over the counter at post offices to payment into a bank or building society account is 293 as at 28 December 2002 compared with the same records from data available 4 weeks earlier.

Some customers who are paid direct into an account can also collect their benefit in cash at post offices through network banking arrangements at the Post Office. There is no data available on the number of benefit claims collected in this way.

Mr. Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether benefit claimants who have agreed to have their benefits paid direct into a bank account under the payment modernisation programme are allowed to change their mind and apply for a Post Office Card Account. [96599]

Malcolm Wicks: Customers will be provided with information to help them make an informed choice as to the type of account, most suited to their needs. Some customers may subsequently decide that their needs have changed and choose another type of account, including a Post Office card account.

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