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5 Feb 2004 : Column 1058W—continued
Disability Living Allowance
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many complaints per thousand disability living allowance examinations were received by each disability benefit centre in the last 12 months, listed in descending order. [152792]
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Maria Eagle: All complaints relating to disability living allowance medical examinations are recorded and investigated by Medical Services. The numbers of complaints Medical Services received per thousand DLA/AA examinations for the period December 2002 to November 2003, carried out for the disability benefit centres listed, are set out in the table.
| Location | Number of examinations(29) | Number of complaints | Complaintsper thousand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Leeds | 26,904 | 244 | 9.1 |
| Birmingham | 30,770 | 274 | 8.9 |
| Manchester | 17,478 | 148 | 8.5 |
| Newcastle | 13,657 | 106 | 7.8 |
| Sutton | 17,209 | 134 | 7.8 |
| Bootle | 16,384 | 125 | 7.6 |
| Bristol | 12,442 | 88 | 7.1 |
| Glasgow | 13,969 | 96 | 6.9 |
| Wembley | 29,532 | 144 | 4.9 |
| Edinburgh | 11,366 | 49 | 4.3 |
| Cardiff | 15,302 | 65 | 4.2 |
(29) The numbers of examinations include examinations carried out for both DLA and AA. Figures are not available which differentiate between the two benefits.
Source:
Medical Services report to Medical Procurement and Contracting Team
Incapacity Benefit Appeals
Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in how many incapacity benefit appeal cases processed by the social security office in Dundee in the last year it has taken more than three weeks to obtain a full statement of reasons from the Appeals Service, Glasgow; and what percentage of the total cases dealt with in that period this represents. [148748]
Maria Eagle: This is a matter for Christina Townsend, Chief Executive of the Appeals Service. She will reply to the hon. Member.
Letter from Christina Townsend to Annabelle Ewing, dated 5 February 2004:
- The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking in how many incapacity benefit appeal cases processed by the social security office in Dundee in the last year has it taken more than 3 weeks to obtain a full statement of reasons from the Appeals Service, Glasgow; and what percentage of the total cases dealt within that period this represents
- The information is not available in the requested format. However in respect of the period 1 December 2002 to 30 November 2003, out of a total of 955 statement of reasons issued by the Appeals Service office in Glasgow in respect of Incapacity Benefit appeals, 740 were issued after 15 working days, which is 77.5 per cent. of the total. In respect of the Dundee tribunal venue out of a total of 72 statement of reasons issued over the same period, 51 were issued after 15 working days, which is 71 per cent. of the total.
- I hope this reply is helpful.
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| Less than15 days | Between 15 and 20 days | Between 20 and 25 days | Between 25 and 30 days | Greater than30 days | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dundee | 21 | 12 | 11 | 5 | 23 | 72 |
| Glasgow | 215 | 101 | 87 | 97 | 455 | 955 |
Invalid Care Allowance
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many carers aged 65 years and over are receiving invalid care allowance. [152758]
Maria Eagle: As at 31 August 2003, an estimated 8,000 carers aged 65 and over were receiving Carer's Allowance, and over 33,000 carers aged 65 and over had a carer premium included in their Income Support.
- Note:
- Figures based on a 5 per cent. sample of IAD Information Centre data rounded to nearest 1,000.
Pension Credit
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what percentage of pensioners in each London borough are (a) entitled to the pension credit and (b) claiming the pension credit. [153089]
Malcolm Wicks: Information on the number of people who are eligible for Pension Credit is not available in respect of individual local authority areas. However, we estimate that approximately 500,000 pensioners in the London region (rounded to the nearest 50,000) are eligible for Pension Credit, which represents approximately 41 per cent. of the number of people in London aged 60 or over. Information on numbers of Pension Credit recipients in the London boroughs is given in the table.
Notes:
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest five.
2. Percentages have been calculated using the ONS population estimates for mid-2002.
3. Figures for recipients include a small number of partners under age 60.
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Privatised File Stores
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how he will ensure (a) that privatised filestores in the South East Region remain open and (b) that the files remain secure. [151528]
Mr. Browne: The Department expects to announce soon the outcome of the competition to manage the Departments storage and retrieval services.
Future delivery will involve operating from a single site. Modern recording and transmission systems will ensure that documents are available to local offices in South East Region and elsewhere, within 24 hours where necessary as now, to meet operational requirements.
The contract for record storage and retrieval will place, as it does now, specific requirements on suppliers regarding security of records. All bidding organisations have experience of operating security procedures and have offered assurances as to how this important aspect of the service will be managed.
HEALTH
Alcohol Advertising
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research (a) his Department and (b) the Food Standards Agency has commissioned into the relationship between alcohol consumption and alcohol advertising. [152811]
Miss Melanie Johnson: The most recent review of the research on alcohol consumption and advertising was undertaken by my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister's strategy unit as part of its work on developing the Government's Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy for England. Its Interim Analytical Report, published on 19 September 2003, indicated that the evidence on the relationship between alcohol advertising and alcohol consumption was complex—certain studies suggested that there was a link between advertising and consumption, while other studies suggested that there was no such link.
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Avian Influenza
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health under what circumstances avian influenza in poultry can be contracted by humans; what strains of avian influenza can be contracted by humans; and if he will make a statement. [151961]
Miss Melanie Johnson [holding answer 30 January 2004]: Avian flu infection occurs rarely in humans and is usually caught through direct contact with infected chickens or contaminated objects, via the respiratory route or hand/face contact.
Since 1996, the H7N7, H5N1 and H9N2 avian strains have been found in humans.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what work is being undertaken to develop a vaccine for the protection of susceptible persons from infection by the avian influenza virus. [152176]
Miss Melanie Johnson: Prototype viruses for vaccine production are being prepared by laboratories in the World Health Organisation (WHO) Global Influenza Network. Once these prototype viruses are available they will be supplied to manufacturers as the "seed stock" for vaccine production.
The United Kingdom is an active participant in the WHO network through the Health Protection Agency National Influenza Reference Laboratory, the National Institute for Biological Standards and Control and the WHO Influenza Collaborating Laboratory at the National Institute of Medical Research.
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