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WORK AND PENSIONS

Pensions

5. Mr. Viggers: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the comparative pension provision for those in the 10-year age bands (a) 30–39, (b) 40–49, (c) 50–59 and (d) 60–69. [181891]

Malcolm Wicks: In 2002–03, 51 per cent., 56 per cent., 55 per cent. and 55 per cent. of those in the four age bands stated in the question were either contributing to a non-state pension, or were in receipt of one based on their own prior provision for retirement.

Mr. Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the current average time is that a new widow over state pension age has to wait for her new rate of retirement pension to be calculated; and if he will make a statement. [182064]

Malcolm Wicks: I can confirm that the current clearance time for these cases is just over 93 per cent. within 15 days.

If the customer is in financial hardship, interim payments may be made whilethe new pension rate is calculated.

Mr. Denham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what action he plans to take to reduce the number of people retiring on to means-tested pensions in future years. [181911]

Malcolm Wicks: We are taking action in the pensions bill to promote future pension saving. The creation of the new Pensions Regulator and the Pensions Protection Fund will enhance protection for pension scheme members and improve confidence in pension provision in general. We are also introducing incentives to extend working lives through more generous rewards for deferring state pension. Other initiatives include the introduction of low cost saving products and the provision of more information so that people can make informed decisions about planning for their retirement.

Our reform of SERPS into state second pension has allowed around 20 million people the prospect of building bigger entitlements than they would have had
 
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under the old scheme. In addition state second pension will provide much more generous pensions for low and moderate earners and, for the first time, carers and long-term disabled people with broken work records will be able to build up a significant state second pension.

Child Support

17. Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many child support cases are calculated according to the (a) new and (b) old formula. [181904]

Mr. Pond: By the end of May over 180,000 new scheme cases had been dealt with.

As at the end of March, the old scheme caseload was around 1,080,000.

Mr. Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will amend child support legislation so that child care and nursery costs are treated as protected expenditure when maintenance is calculated. [180574]

Mr. Pond: No. It would not be right for the child support formula to make an allowance for the child care and nursery costs of any working parent. To do so would provide an element of double provision for these costs, as help with child care costs is given in other schemes.

Mr. Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will amend child support legislation to introduce a more flexible requirement for meeting the condition of shared care. [180575]

Mr. Pond: We have no plans to make further amendments to child support legislation for shared care.

In the new scheme the level at which a reduction in child support liability begins is 52 nights a year. This is a reduction from 104 nights a year in the old child support scheme.

This strikes a balance between recognising the additional costs to the non-resident parent of looking after a child while not being so generous as to discourage the parent with care from allowing care to be shared.

Mr. Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a further statement on when the new system for calculating child maintenance will be extended to existing cases. [180576]

Mr. Pond: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave the hon. Member for Castle Point (Bob Spink) on 18 December 2003, Official Report, column 1092W.

Working at Height Regulations

20. Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent representations he has received from the outdoor activities industry in relation to the proposed working at height regulations. [181907]

Jane Kennedy: In addition to correspondence from hon. members of this House, on 23 June, I met with the hon. Member for Bedfordshire, North East, other hon. Members and noble peers and representatives from the
 
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outdoor activities sector to listen to their views about how they believe these proposed regulations might affect this sector.

Jobcentre Plus

22. Mr. Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the roll-out of Jobcentre Plus. [181909]

Jane Kennedy: The development of Jobcentre Plus is building on the high quality service already provided by social security offices and Jobcentres by delivering a single, integrated service to all people of working age. We recently opened Jobcentre Plus's 500th new office, in Middlesbrough.

This is only the half way point. Transforming the second half of the Jobcentre Plus network will be just as challenging. But by 2006, we will have a service for people of working age that will be unrivalled across the world.

New Deal

23. Mr. Mike Hall: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people he estimates have been helped into work as a result of the New Deal. [181910]

Jane Kennedy: The New Deals have been a tremendous success in helping to achieve record levels of employment, with more than one million people helped into work through the programme, including over 1,900 people in the Weaver Vale constituency.

Last month we announced our plans to build on the success of the New Deals by removing the many different rules for different groups. We will bring all our support together under one single New Deal, which will give Jobcentre Plus Advisers more flexibility to tailor help to the needs of people facing the greatest problems in finding work.

Asbestos

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will extend the Health and Safety at Work (etc.) Act 1979, the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 and the Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations 2002 to cover the management of asbestos in domestic premises. [175371]

Jane Kennedy: Following the introduction of the new duty to manage asbestos in non-domestic premises (regulation 4 of the Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations), HSE is looking into the case for extending the duty to certain domestic premises, for example, rented properties.

Any proposal to make or amend health and safety legislation would be subject to full public consultation.

Attendance Allowance

Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the (a) average and (b) maximum time taken by his Department to reinstate attendance allowance following suspension for the duration of a hospital stay in the latest year for which figures are available. [181185]

 
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Maria Eagle: The information requested is not available.

Benefit Appeals

Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many presenting officers in Scotland are available to attend (a) disability living allowance and (b) attendance allowance appeal tribunals. [182316]

Maria Eagle: There are four presenting officers available, who present complex appeal cases at the appeal tribunals for both Disability Living Allowance and Attendance Allowance appeals in Scotland; two are based in Glasgow and two in Edinburgh.

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