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Bank and Post Office Card Accounts

Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what advice he has offered to those using Jobcentres in the use of bank accounts and Post Office Card Accounts for their payments. [144289]

Mr. Pond: The purpose of the information campaign supporting the move to Direct Payment is to ensure that customers choose the account option that best meets their needs and circumstances.

In the case of Jobseekers, we believe they will be better prepared for employment if they already have a current or basic bank account into which their employer can pay their wages, which the Post Office card account does not allow.

Benefit and Pensions Payment

Mr. Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether those customers invited to transfer to direct payment who (a) do not reply and (b) reply and decline a direct payment option will be automatically transferred to the exceptions service; and if he will make a statement. [143087]

Mr. Pond: We will be further contacting customers who continue to be paid by order book. Any customers who cannot open or operate a bank account, or fail to respond to our mailing will continue to be paid by their current method of payment.

Our plan is to design an exceptions method of payment to properly meet the needs of those customers who are unable to operate an account. Detailed arrangements for this method of payment are not finalised yet, but it is anticipated that it will be a cheque-based solution. Payment outlets will include Post Office branches. We are in the process of discussing the design of the exceptions method of payment with the representative bodies most directly affected.

Mrs. Helen Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what priorities he has set in relation to increasing direct payment of benefits and pensions. [143208]

Mr. Pond: The Department has a published Public Service Agreement target that by 2005, 85 per cent. of customers will have their benefits paid by Direct Payment.

The move to Direct Payment is progressing well. Key figures on the progress of conversion to Direct Payment are available in the Library updated every four weeks.

Benefit Claims

Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to improve the operation of procedures for claiming (a) incapacity benefit and (b) disability living allowance. [142276]

Maria Eagle: We keep all of our procedures for claiming benefits under review and make changes where appropriate to existing processes and claim forms to ensure that all our customers receive the best possible service.

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The Disability and Carers Service has embarked upon a major programme of process simplification and re-engineering, including substantially modernised information technology, which aims to produce a much improved service to its customers over the next three years. It is presently trialling an improved claim form for disability living allowance customers and expects to introduce an internet based claim form in 2004.

Benefit Payments

Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether individuals are permitted to cash giros at post offices after 2 pm. [144971]

Mr. Pond: Individuals are permitted to cash a valid, uncrossed Girocheque at any time when a post office is open for business.

Mrs. Helen Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what evaluation he has made of the social benefits to (a) individuals and (b) local communities of direct payment of benefits and pensions through (i) Post Office accounts and (ii) bank accounts; [143203]

(2) what assessment he has made of the relative (a) availability and (b) accessibility of (i) banks and (ii) post offices in relation to the payment of benefits and pensions; [143204]

(3) what assessment he has made of the effect on (a) urban and (b) rural regeneration of the policy on direct payment of benefits and pensions. [143205]

Mr. Pond: The move to Direct Payment and the introduction of universal banking services has resulted in a number of benefits for individuals and the communities in which they live, particularly in terms of increasing customer choice, helping to address financial exclusion and improving access to banking for all.

The new arrangements ensure a more modern, efficient and reliable service that increases customer choice, provides better value for the taxpayer, cuts fraud, and boosts financial inclusion. More customers are now paid into an account than by order book or girocheque.

Customers have more choice about where and when they collect their money and there are a range of accounts that people can access at Post Office branches. There are a number of advantages to having a bank or building society account and over 85 per cent. of DWP customers already have access to a suitable account with the figure rising to 90 per cent. for pensioners. But this currently leaves around 3.5 million adults in the UK without access to a bank account and not able to take advantage of, for example, the savings to utility bills that come through making payments by Direct Debit from an account. Direct Payment will help spread financial inclusion by increasing the number of people who have bank accounts and giving them opportunities to benefit—this includes the new easy to operate basic bank accounts.

New banking services, including the introduction of the Post Office card account, are central to the Post Office management's strategy for the network. For example, 20 million bank customers can now access their current accounts electronically in Post Office

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branches. Banking at Post Offices has enabled banking to return to many rural areas where the last bank branch was closed many years ago. It has also introduced banking services into many deprived urban areas for the first time.

The Government are providing significant investment for the Post Office network—some £2 billion in total during the five year period from April 2003, including £450 million to support the rural network until 2006. In addition the Government have instructed the Post Office to prevent avoidable closures in the rural Post Office network.

Bereavement Benefit

Julie Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people were refused bereavement benefit in (a) 2000–01, (b) 2001–02 and (c) 2002–03; and what the reasons given were for refusal, broken down by (i) numbers and (ii) percentages. [145225]

Mr. Pond: The information is not available.

Child Support

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) when the new system for calculating child maintenance will be implemented with regard to existing cases; [144849]

(2) what steps he is taking to remove differences in treatment of child support assessments between existing and new cases. [144857]

Mr. Pond: We will make a decision on the transfer of old scheme cases once we are sure that the new scheme is working well.

Vera Baird: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in what order the process of moving Child Support Agency maintenance cases onto the new system of assessment will be introduced in the regions. [144850]

Mr. Pond: I refer the hon. Member to the Written Answer I gave the hon. Member for Wycombe (Paul Goodman) on 3 December 2003, Official Report, column 83W.

Mr. Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what estimate he has made of the number of people paying child support under the new scheme who will be overpaying for (a) a year, (b) two years, (c) three years, (d) four years and (e) five years as a result of phasing in; [143519]

(2) what estimate he has made of the average amount per year which people paying child support under the new scheme will be overpaying as a result of phasing in. [143522]

Mr. Pond: No one will overpay as a result of phasing. The phasing provisions are set in legislation. They give parents who have existing child support assessments time to adjust to the new amounts.

Mr. Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what estimate he has made of the loss incurred by each parent each month whose Child Support Agency case is not transferred from the old to the new scheme; [143520]

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(2) whether parents who are incurring losses as a result of Child Support Agency cases not being transferred to the new scheme are entitled to compensation; and if he will make a statement. [143521]

Mr. Pond: Until the new scheme legislation is commenced for the bulk of the old scheme caseload, old scheme cases remain subject to the old rules, and so the question of loss does not arise.

Child Support Agency

Mr. Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, (1) if he will make a statement on the work involved in transferring old Child Support Agency cases to the new scheme; [140878]

(2) what plans he has to change the rules which detect anomalies, inaccuracies and incomplete data in the Child Support Agency's new scheme; and if he will make a statement; [140900]

(3) what percentage of the Child Support Agency cases waiting to be transferred from the old to the new scheme contain anomalies, inaccuracies and incomplete data; [140880]

(4) how many anomalies, inaccuracies and pieces of incomplete data are contained in the Child Support Agency records of the cases waiting to be transferred from the old to the new scheme; [140882]

(5) how long he expects the work needed to bring records of Child Support Agency cases up to a standard acceptable for transfer to the new scheme to take; and if he will make a statement; [140899]

(6) what proportion of the anomalies, inaccuracies and incomplete data contained in the Child Support Agency records of the cases waiting to be transferred from the old to the new scheme require human intervention; and if he will make a statement. [140879]

Mr. Pond: The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the Chief Executive, Mr. Doug Smith. He will write to the hon. Member.

Letter from Doug Smith to Mr Paul Goodman, dated 18 December 2003:

In replying to your recent Parliamentary questions about the Child Support Agency the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Chief Executive.

You asked about the work involved in transferring old Child Support Agency cases to the new scheme. You also asked a number of related questions as follows:

What proportion of the anomalies, inaccuracies or incomplete data contained in the Child Support Agency records of cases waiting to be transferred from the old to the new scheme require human intervention.

What percentage of the Child Support Agency cases waiting to be transferred from the old to the new scheme contain anomalies, inaccuracies or incomplete data.

How many anomalies, inaccuracies or incomplete data are contained in the Child Support Agency records of the cases waiting to be transferred from the old to the new scheme.

How long will it take to do the work needed to bring records of Child Support Agency cases up to a standard acceptable for transfer to the new scheme.

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and

What plans the Secretary of State has to change the rules which detect anomalies, inaccuracies or incomplete data in the Child Support Agency's new scheme; and if he will make a statement.

The existing computer system contains little validation around data entry and we have been progressively working through certain fields to ensure that apparent anomalies, inaccuracies or incomplete data are corrected. In designing and developing computer support for the new Child Support arrangements we created a series of 'business rules' designed to ensure the accuracy of data flowing from one system to the other. We have not yet finalised our data migration strategy or the timetable for that work. In doing so we will need to establish what business rules are applied at the point of migration and what data cleanse activity might sensibly be deferred until later in the process. In making this judgement our prime aim will be to ensure that clients gain the most accurate possible calculation and have a clear and responsive channel open to them to challenge and/or correct any errors. It is not possible to provide the further detail you require in advance of finalising our migration plans.

Mr. Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether it is the policy of his Department that officials of the Child Support Agency should seek to discourage their dissatisfied customers from seeking redress through their hon. Member; and if he will make a statement. [141516]

Mr. Pond: The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the Chief Executive, Mr. Doug Smith. He will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.

Letter from Doug Smith to Mr. Christopher Chope:

In replying to your recent Parliamentary question about the Child Support Agency the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Chief Executive.

You asked whether it is the policy of the Department for Work and Pensions that officials of the Child Support Agency seek to discourage their dissatisfied customers from seeking redress through their honourable Member.

The Child Support Agency certainly does not have a policy of seeking to discourage their dissatisfied customers from seeking redress through their Member of Parliament. Instead it has a policy of providing customers with the necessary information to enable them to make a complaint effectively. To this end the Agency has published a leaflet "How to complain about the Child Support Agency" advising customers of their rights and procedure to follow if they have a complaint about the service it provides. This leaflet is freely available from any local office of the Department or by contacting the National Enquiry Line; it is also available via the Agency's web site on the Internet.

The leaflet includes guidance about contacting Members of Parliament for advice. It also describes the circumstances under which the Agency would consider making a special payment and signposts the customer to the "Financial Redress for Maladministration" booklet published by the Department.

Mr. Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to transfer the old CSA caseload to the new system; and if a new application will be required. [143089]

Mr. Pond: We will make a decision on the transfer of old scheme cases once we are sure that the new scheme is working well. A new application will not be required.

Mr. John Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement about the performance of the Child Support Agency; and if he will cause replies to be made to Mrs. Samantha Mucklow of Solihull. [143491]

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Mr. Pond: The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the Chief Executive, Mr. Doug Smith. He will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.

Letter from Doug Smith to Mr. John Taylor:

In replying to your recent Parliamentary question about the Child Support Agency the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Chief Executive.

You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make a statement about the performance of the Child Support Agency; and if he will cause replies to be made to Mrs Samantha Mucklow of Solihull.

A report on the performance of the Child Support Agency was placed in the Library on the 18th November 2003.

As individual cases are confidential I will write to you privately concerning Mrs Mucklow, when I reply to your letter of 28th November 2003.

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he estimates that Child Support Agency cases existing prior to 3 March will be transferred to the new scheme. [145159]

Mr. Pond: We will make a decision on the transfer of old scheme cases once we are sure that the new scheme is working well.

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