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9 Jul 2003 : Column 846W—continued
Lone Parents
Andy King: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the two pieces of analysis were that underlay the statement on minimum income for a lone parent on page 44, paragraph 17 of Preliminary Conclusions-Measuring Child Poverty, published on 13 May 1003. [119152]
Mr. Pond: Page 44 of the document "Measuring Child Poverty—Preliminary Conclusions" for example, two pieces of analysis can produce different figures for a minimum income necessary for a lone parent with one child aged 5 was not referring to two actual pieces of analysis, but using an example to illustrate a specific point. The point being made is that different methodologies can be used to calculate a minimum income, and as there are a number of subjective decisions in these research methods, two pieces of analysis can conceivably produce different answers for the same family type.
National Partnership Accord
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on how the National Partnership Accord will work alongside other national and area based initiatives tackling poverty and exclusion. [118168]
Mr. Browne: In May, the Partnership Accord was launched as a joint initiative between the Department for Work and Pensions, Jobcentre Plus and the Local Government Association.
One of the primary aims of the partnership is to demonstrate that an effective multi-agency approach can contribute to economic prosperity and the well being of workless people. The Accord will complement other initiatives designed to tackle poverty and social exclusion by, for example, working with the Neighbourhood Renewal Unit and Learning and Skills Council to improve the quality of local neighbourhood renewal strategies.
Through the sponsorship of economic regeneration and employment initiatives, local authorities will also help increase local employment rates and help to remove
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barriers to work. They will also offer their vacancies to local Jobcentre Plus clients, and, through the efficient administration of Housing Benefit, will support the aim of increasing sustained employment rates amongst disadvantaged groups.
Pension Credit
John Thurso: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people he estimates are eligible to receive pension credit, broken down by region. [124532]
Malcolm Wicks: The information is in the table.
| Region | Pensioner households entitled to pension credit |
|---|---|
| North East | 250,000 |
| North West and Merseyside | 500,000 |
| Yorkshire and Humber | 350,000 |
| East Midlands | 300,000 |
| West Midlands | 350,000 |
| Eastern | 300,000 |
| London | 450,000 |
| South East | 350,000 |
| South West | 300,000 |
| Wales | 250,000 |
| Scotland | 400,000 |
| Total (GB) | 3,800,000 |
Notes:
Estimates are done on a benefit unit basis (single pensioner or pensioner couple).
Figures include care home cases.
Figures are rounded to the nearest 50,000.
Source:
Policy simulation model 2003–04, based on data from the Family Resources Survey 2000–01
Mr. Paul Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners he estimates will be the subject of means-testing when the pension credit is introduced in (a) Shrewsbury and Atcham and (b) Shropshire. [121740]
Malcolm Wicks: Estimates of pension credit entitlement are not available at an individual constituency or county level due to insufficient sample cases in the survey data used. However, around half of all pensioner households across Great Britain will be eligible for pension credit. They stand to gain, on average, £400 a year.
Pension credit, unlike the means tested benefits of the past, is simple to apply for, involving a straightforward phone call. Once awarded the majority of pensioners, aged 65 and over, will not have to notify changes in their financial circumstances for a period of five years. Pension credit rewards, not penalises saving, ensuring that those who have worked hard to save modest amounts gain from having done so. By ignoring any income from savings below £6,000, 85 per cent. of pensioners getting pension credit will see any income they receive from their savings ignored completely.
Nationally around 1.8 million minimum income guarantee (MIG) claims will be automatically transferred to pension credit. As at February 2003 there
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were 2,600 people receiving MIG in the parliamentary constituency of Shrewsbury and Atcham and 8,100 in Shropshire county.
- Source
- Income Support Quarterly Statistical Enquiry, February 2003.
Sir Archy Kirkwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what percentage of working age (a) adults, (b) men and (c) women in each region of the UK are contributing to (i) occupational and (ii) personal pensions. [123937]
Malcolm Wicks: The information for regions of Great Britain is in the table.
| Male | Female | Adults | |
|---|---|---|---|
| North East | 36 | 28 | 33 |
| North West | 32 | 31 | 32 |
| Yorkshire and Humberside | 29 | 32 | 31 |
| East Midlands | 31 | 26 | 28 |
| West Midlands | 33 | 31 | 32 |
| Eastern | 37 | 31 | 34 |
| London | 31 | 29 | 30 |
| South East | 37 | 33 | 35 |
| South West | 34 | 31 | 33 |
| Wales | 31 | 32 | 31 |
| Scotland | 34 | 35 | 35 |
Source:
Family Resources Survey 2001–02.
| Male | Female | Adults | |
|---|---|---|---|
| North East | 12 | 4 | 8 |
| North West | 13 | 7 | 10 |
| Yorkshire and Humberside | 16 | 6 | 11 |
| East Midlands | 17 | 8 | 13 |
| West Midlands | 17 | 8 | 13 |
| Eastern | 21 | 10 | 16 |
| London | 15 | 8 | 12 |
| South East | 19 | 9 | 15 |
| South West | 20 | 11 | 16 |
| Wales | 12 | 5 | 9 |
| Scotland | 15 | 7 | 11 |
Notes:
1. All figures are estimates and are taken from the Family Resources Survey (FRS). 2001–02 is the latest year for which data are available. The coverage of the Survey is Great Britain.
2. Stakeholder pensions are included as personal pensions in the estimates.
3. Working age has been defined as 16–59 for women and 16–64 for men.
4. Some individuals may contribute to both an occupational and a personal pension scheme.
Source:
Family Resources Survey 2001–02.
Productivity
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the output per hour worked was in (a) the UK, (b) Germany, (c) France, (d) United States and (e) Japan in each of the past 10 years. [124106]
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John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician. I have asked him to reply.
Letter from Len Cook to Mrs. Curtis-Thomas dated 9 July 2003:
- As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question concerning what the output per hour worked was in (a) the UK, (b) Germany, (c) France, (d) United States and (e) Japan in each of the past 10 years. (124106)
- The Office for National Statistics (ONS) publishes international comparisons of productivity (1CP) on output per hour worked on an experimental basis, with UK=100. The data runs from 1990. Levels of output per hour worked in Germany, France, the US and Japan are expressed as relative to the UK level. The reason why hourly 1CP is experimental is provided in the document available at http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme economy/review of hourly ICP.pdf
- 1CP is a web-only publication and published twice a year, usually in September and February. February 2003 was the latest release http://www.statistics.gov.uk/cci/nugget.asp?id=l60), with the data requested available at: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/experimental/icp.xls.
- It should be noted that these numbers have not incorporated the results of the UK Census 2001. We will update the numbers with revisions reflecting the Census in the next release coming out in September 2003. ONS estimates suggest that this improves UK relative hourly productivity performance by 3 to 5 index points for the most recent year
Standard Local Housing Allowance
Mr. Coleman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what analysis his Department has made of the likely scale of the gap between the actual rent paid and the proposed standard local housing allowance for larger family units of accommodation; [118489]
- (2) what analysis his Department has made of the likely scale of the gap between the relevant average rent and the relevant standard local housing allowance, broken down by local authority area. [118490]
Mr. Andrew Smith: The available information is in the table.
Estimated median differences between rents referred to the rent officer and the standard local housing allowance in Pathfinder areas, based on the latest available local reference rents.
| Pathfinder authority | All properties(12) | Properties with three rooms or more(12) |
|---|---|---|
| Blackpool | 8.20 | 10.90 |
| Brighton and Hove | -5.40 | 2.70 |
| Conwy | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Coventry | -4.90 | -6.30 |
| Edinburgh | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Leeds | 4.10 | 3.80 |
| Lewisham | 0.00 | 5.50 |
| Middlesbrough | -2.20 | -7.10 |
| North East Lincolnshire | 4.90 | 1.60 |
| Teignbridge | 1.90 | 2.50 |
(12) A positive median difference indicates that the rent referred to the rent officer is higher than the relevant standard local housing allowance.
Notes:
1. Properties with three or more rooms (excluding kitchens, bathrooms and toilets) are shown as a proxy for larger family units of accommodation. However, no information is collected on the type or size of household living in each property, so the figures may also include multiple adult households and house-sharers.
2. Referrals where there is under-occupation (where a property is larger than the tenant qualifies for under the size criteria) have been excluded.
3. Median gaps are uprated to 2003–04 prices and rounded to the nearest 10p.
4. The Rent Officer data relate to all referrals made over a year. They will differ from the Housing Benefit caseload in that some claims will not be successful (for example, because the person's income is too high) and because some people may claim more often than others (for example, because they move house, or leave and then return to benefit). The figures will therefore over-represent short duration claims.
5. The estimates do not take account of any effect on behaviour caused by the SLHA scheme. E.g. some people may currently sign up for tenancies which are much more expensive than the local reference rent, since they do not know how the rules work and are unable to find out how much rent HB will pay for. But one of the main objectives of the Pathfinders is to make tenants aware of their budget in advance.
6. Local reference rents can change over time, depending on the rent officer's judgment about the local housing market. Local reference rent figures from 2000–01 (the latest currently available) may not give an accurate prediction of SLHAs in 2003–04.
7. The median differences between actual rents and local reference rents (LRRs) vary across the pathfinders depending on the impact of LRRs. Variations in median differences may be due to the type of area and availability of accommodation and will also depend on the calculation of the LRR and the judgment of Rent Officers as to the relevant local housing market.
Source:
April 2000 to March 2001 Rent Officer data (England and Wales), 2001 Scottish Rent Officer data.
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