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25 May 2004 : Column 1579W—continued
WORK AND PENSIONS
Age-Related Payments Bill
Colin Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners in the Elmet constituency receive £100 help towards the payment of council tax. [174875]
Malcolm Wicks: The information requested is not available. The latest available data shows 8,270 households in the parliamentary constituency of Elmet with at least one resident aged 70 or over. We therefore expect a similar number to benefit from the one-off 70 plus payment announced by the Chancellor in his recent Budget.
The intention is for the payments to be made automatically with the 2004–05 Winter Fuel Payment, to those who are eligible and who do not need to claim it, before the end of the year. People who do not get a Winter Fuel Payment will need to claim the one-off payment from the Department for Work and Pensions before 31 March 2005.
Notes:
1. Numbers are rounded to the nearest five.
2. Any residence found to have four or more occupants is not included in these figures as it is assumed to be a Residential Care Nursing Home.
Source:
IAD Information Centre, 100 per cent. sample of Winter Fuel Payments data for Winter 2003–04.
Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what discussions he has had with his colleagues in the Northern Ireland Office in relation to the extension of the Age-Related Payments Bill to Northern Ireland. [175144]
Malcolm Wicks: Officials in the Department for Work and Pensions are working closely with officials in the Department for Social Development. The intention is to provide for age-related payments in Northern Ireland by Order in Council.
Pension Credit
Colin Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners in the Elmet constituency (a) have claimed the minimum income guarantee and (b) are claiming pension credit. [174873]
Malcolm Wicks:
The information available is given in the following table. The Minimum Income Guarantee (MIG) was replaced by Pension Credit on 6 October
25 May 2004 : Column 1580W
2003. Those who were receiving MIG immediately prior to that date were transferred automatically to Pension Credit.
| Number | |
|---|---|
| Minimum Income Guarantee (3 October 2003) | |
| Households | 2,330 |
| Individuals | 2,645 |
| Pension Credit (30 April 2004) | |
| Households | 3,255 |
| Individuals | 3,865 |
Notes:
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest five.
2. Figures for individuals include a small number of partners under age 60
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in (a) London and (b) Brent have claimed pension credit since it was introduced; and how many people in (i) London and (ii) Brent are entitled to claim pension credit. [172815]
Malcolm Wicks: At 30 April 2004 there were (a) 260,510 households (309,275 individuals) in London and (b) 10,565 households (12,775 individuals) in Brent receiving Pension Credit. 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 450,000 pensioner households in the London region are eligible for Pension Credit. This estimate is based on data from the Family Resources Survey for 2001–02. A revised estimate, based on data from the Family Resources Survey for 2002–03, will be available later this month.
Notes:
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest five.
2. Individual recipients include a small number of partners under age 60.
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many recipients of pension credit are receiving (a) less than 10p per week, (b) 10p to 19p per week, (c) 20p to 29p per week, (d) 30p to 39p per week, (e) 40p to 49p per week, (f) 50p to 59p per week, (g) 60p to 69p per week, (h) 70p to 79p per week, (i) 80p to 89p per week and (j) 90p to 99p per week in each Greater London borough. [173334]
Malcolm Wicks: The figures in question for individual London boroughs are too small to be reliable. The information for inner and outer London areas is in the table. An award of pension credit of less than 10p per week is not payable unless the person is receiving another benefit payable with pension credit.
| Less than 10p | 10p to 19p | 20p to 29p | 30p to 39p | 40p to 49p | 50p to 59p | 60p to 69p | 70p to 79p | 80p to 89p | 90p to 99p | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| London GOR | 60 | 85 | 85 | 75 | 100 | 115 | 90 | 105 | 120 | 125 | 960 |
| Inner London-West | 5 | 15 | 5 | 5 | 15 | 15 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 15 | 105 |
| Inner London-East | 10 | 15 | 20 | 15 | 30 | 30 | 25 | 30 | 25 | 30 | 230 |
| Outer London-East and North East | 15 | 20 | 35 | 25 | 30 | 20 | 20 | 25 | 40 | 30 | 260 |
| Outer London-South | 15 | 20 | 15 | 15 | 10 | 25 | 20 | 20 | 25 | 25 | 190 |
| Outer London-West and North West | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 20 | 25 | 20 | 25 | 20 | 25 | 195 |
Notes:
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest five.
2. Columns might not sum correctly due to rounding.
25 May 2004 : Column 1581W
Enhanced New Deal
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have entered the Enhanced New Deal 25 plus (a) once, (b) twice, (c) three times and (d) four or more times; and if he will make a statement. [175064]
Jane Kennedy [holding answer 21 May 2004]: The information requested is in the table:
| Number of starts on the programme | Number of people |
|---|---|
| 1 | 157,110 |
| 2 | 35,150 |
| 3 | 18,170 |
| 4(29) Or more | 7,820 |
(29) Or more
Source:
New Deal Evaluation Database
Through a combination of economic stability and radical labour market reforms, more than 1.9 million more people are in work now than in 1997 and unemployment at its lowest level for nearly 30 years.
Active labour market policies ensure people can take advantage of the many job opportunities coming up all the time. With UK unemployment the lowest for a generation, partly due to programmes like New Deal, the Government is extending help and support to other jobless people, especially lone parents and those with disabilities.
Claimant long term (one year plus) unemployment has been virtually eradicated for young people and has fallen by three-quarters for all adults since 1997. New Deal 25 plus has played an important role in this success, so far helping more than 173,000 people into work.
Notes:
1: Data relates to start of ND25 plus Enhanced Programme in April 2001 to December 2003
Incapacity Benefit
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people were receiving incapacity benefit in each of the last 25 years, broken down by constituency within each region. [175124]
Maria Eagle: The available information has been placed in the Library.
Income Statistics
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the trend in (a) average and (b) pensioner incomes as compared with (i) average and (ii) medium earnings, over the last 10 years. [173933]
Malcolm Wicks: Such information as is available is in the following table.
Percentage growth in net equivalised income, both before housing costs have been taken into account
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(BHC) and after housing costs have been taken into account (AHC):
| Change between 1994–1995 and 2002–2003 | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Whole population income BHC | 24 |
| Whole population income AHC | 31 |
| Pensioner income BHC | 22 |
| Pensioner income AHC | 30 |
Pensioners' average income has increased at a rate similar to that of the population as a whole since 1994–95.
The figures in the table allow a valid comparison between pensioners and the population as a whole. They relate to household disposable income and cannot be compared directly with average earnings. A closer comparison is given by the mean net Before Housing Costs income received by pensioner units in their own right, which increased by 25 per cent. between 1994–95 and 2002–03. Over the same period, average earnings have seen a growth of 13 per cent.
Notes:
(a) The income growth figures in the table are estimates taken from the Households Below Average Income (HBAI) series. Data is derived from the Family Resources Survey. The latest date for which data is available is 2002–03. The earliest date for which data is available from the Family Resources Survey is 1994–95. For this reason, it has only been possible to present nine years' worth of data.
(b) The income measure used is mean weekly net (disposable) equivalised household income, consistent with HBAI conventions: income is adjusted to reflect the composition of the household, and is net of income tax, National Insurance contributions and Council Tax. Figures are quoted on both a Before Housing Costs and After Housing Costs basis, in line with HBAI conventions.
(c) Income figures in the table show growth in real terms, deflating by the Retail Prices Index all items excluding Council tax. The earnings figure shows growth in real terms, deflating by the Retail Prices Index all items (RPI) series.
(d) The source for earnings values is the Average Earnings Index, which is based on information obtained from the Office for National Statistics' Monthly Wages and Salary Survey. Average earnings are obtained by dividing the total amount paid by the total number of employees paid, including those employees on strike and temporarily absent. This information is then weighted and formed into an index.
(e) Part (ii) of the question has been interpreted as asking for median earnings, which is a figure that is not available from the Average Earnings Index.
(f) Both the Family Resources Survey and the Average Earnings Index cover Great Britain.
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