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12 Feb 2004 : Column 1601W—continued
Jobcentre Plus
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what definition of the term "merger dividend" he uses in relation to the setting up of Jobcentre Plus, with particular regard to the Hampshire and Isle of Wight district; [151608]
- (2) what merger dividend is to be gained from the organisational changes to his Department in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. [152148]
Mr. Browne: The Department for Work and Pensions was created in April 2001 from a merger of the former Department of Social Security and parts of the Department for Education and Employment. One of our key priorities is to make the best possible use of taxpayers' money. Around 1,100 Jobcentres and 400 social security offices inherited from the former Benefits Agency and Employment Service are being replaced with a network of around 1,000 integrated Jobcentre Plus offices. By bringing together two organisations we can derive a merger dividend because it is possible to upgrade services and teams such as HR, Finance and Management Support.
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Moreover, The Jobcentre Plus service brings job-finding and benefit services together under one roof. These new integrated offices will eventually replace all the existing Jobcentres and social security offices and this process will enable us to rationalise our estate by closing offices that are unsuitable for delivering the new service or where there are two offices covering the same area. For example in Hampshire, Liphook Office has been closed and a new office opened in Bordon. Hon. Members in Hampshire were consulted in the service delivery plans for the district in September 2002.
The Pension Service is delivering a centralised service to pensioners supported by a local service and is closing its presence within sites shared with other parts of the organisation as work is migrated to pension centres.
Jobcentre Plus/Pension Service (Relocation)
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what account was taken of the Rural Plan in making decisions about the relocation of (a) Jobcentre Plus and (b) Pension Service offices. [151532]
Mr. Browne: Jobcentre Plus and The Pension Service are modernising the services we provide to our customers. Increased accessibility is one of our key objectives in modernising welfare delivery. Modernisation is helping us to deliver the commitment made in the Rural White paper to ensure access to 'high quality public services—services often delivered in new ways, and through new outlets'. We are committed to ensuring that everyone is able to access our services, whether they live in urban or rural areas. We are providing improved customer access through telephone centres, the internet and new, dedicated caller offices.
Decisions about where services are delivered by the Department are based upon consultation with our partners such as local authorities and Regional Development Agencies, and reflect local circumstances and most importantly, the needs of the local community. The consideration of rural issues is an integral part of the consultation process. The Rural Proofing checklist produced by the Countryside Agency forms part of the initial planning process and, where appropriate, the Countryside Agency itself is consulted as a stakeholder.
DWP produce an internal annual Rural Proofing Report for the Countryside Agency; this includes examples of how the Department has addressed service delivery issues in rural areas. DWP also regularly discusses policy development and implementation with DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) and the Countryside Agency. For example, DWP provided detailed information about development and delivery of our services for last year's rural-proofing report by the Countryside Agency. A copy of the Countryside Agency's Rural Proofing Report for 2002–3 can be found in the Library.
New Deal
Mr. Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much was spent by his Department on the New Deal for Young People in (a) 2002 and (b) 2003. [153388]
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Mr. Browne: The information is in the table.
| Financial year | Spend (£ million)(6) |
|---|---|
| 2001–02 | 308 |
| 2002–03(7) | 339 |
(6) Includes programme and administrative spend.
(7) Estimated outturn.
Note:
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest million.
Source:
Department for Work and Pensions Departmental Report 2003.
Mr. Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much was spent by his Department on the New Deal for Disabled People in (a) 2002 and (b) 2003. [153389]
Mr. Browne: Expenditure on New Deal for Disabled People for 2001–02 was £10 million; for 2002–03, the estimated expenditure was £27 million.
- Source:
- Departmental report and the DWP Annual Report and Accounts.
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what research has been carried out into the wage levels of New Deal leavers; and if he will make a statement. [153459]
Mr. Browne: Information on the wage levels of New Deal leavers is not collected.
Information on the hourly take home pay of people who had left New Deal for Young People (NDYP) to go into employment was included in a national survey of participants on NDYP in 1999.
The report of this survey (ESR44:March 2001) New Deal for Young People: National Survey of Participants: Stage 1 by Alex Bryson, Genevieve Knight and Michael White of the Policy Studies Institute, is available in the Library.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many lone parents are benefiting from the New Deal in (a) Lancashire and (b) Chorley. [154744]
Mr. Browne: By the end of September 2003, 480 lone parents in the Chorley constituency and 6,480 in Lancashire 1 had found work through the New Deal for Lone Parents.
New Deal for Lone Parents is just one of a raft of measures that we have introduced to help lone parents gain independence through moving into work. These measures have together helped to reduce the number of lone parents on income support by over 16 per cent. since May 1997.
- 1 Figures are East Lancashire and West Lancashire Jobcentre Plus Districts.
Part-time Workers (Pensions)
Shona McIsaac: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what measures have been introduced since 1997 to improve pension rights for part-time workers. [153602]
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Malcolm Wicks: We have introduced the state second pension (S2P) which reformed the state earnings-related pension scheme (SERPS) in April 2002. Compared to SERPS, S2P gives more help to employees on low or moderate earnings (£4,004 to £25,600 in 2003–04 terms). It also helps certain carers and disabled people whose annual earnings are below £4,004, or have no earnings at all. So it will provide extra income in retirement for some part-time workers.
Since 1997, we have also made it possible for part-timers to make pension contributions at a relatively low cost, and on a flexible basis, with the introduction of stakeholder pensions.
We have also taken steps to improve access to occupational pension schemes for part-time workers. We have implemented the EU Directive 97/81/EC (the Part-time Work Directive) by introducing the Part-time Workers (Prevention of Less Favourable Treatment) Regulations 2000 (SI No. 1551/2000) which came into force on 1 July 2000. Under these regulations part-time workers have the right in principle not to be treated less favourably than full-time workers of the same employer who work under the same type of employment contract.
In addition, as a result of rulings by the courts, part time workers can claim backdated access to occupational pension schemes where their previous exclusion from the relevant scheme amounted to indirect sex discrimination. Claims can be backdated to 1 April 1976 or the start of employment, if later, subject to paying relevant contributions.
Pension Credit
Mr. Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what (a) state basic pension and (b) state second pension entitlement credits are available for carers (i) below the age of 50, (ii) above the age of 50 and (iii) above the age of 60. [154557]
Malcolm Wicks: People in receipt of Carer's Allowance are credited with National Insurance contributions each week which protect their entitlement to basic State Pension and other contributory benefits. Carers for the sick and severely disabled who are unable to get Carer's Allowance may get Home Responsibilities Protection (HRP) which helps to protect entitlement to basic State Pension. Carers who are getting Child Benefit for a child under 16 may also be helped by HRP.
For State Second Pension purposes, qualifying carers who earn less than £11,200 in 2003–04 and including those with no earnings at all, are treated as if they had earned this amount and will accrue entitlement to State Second Pension.
No distinction is made by age although people over State Pension Age cannot benefit from credits or HRP.
- Note:
- Qualifying carers for State Second Pension purposes are those who receive Child Benefit for a child under six, or are below State Pension age and entitled to Carer's Allowance or Home Responsibilities Protection for caring for a severely ill or disabled person.
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