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Pensioners

Mr. Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many (a) male and (b) female pensioner recipients of (i) income support, (ii) the minimum income guarantee and (iii) pension credit there have been in each year since 1979. [203169]

Malcolm Wicks: The information is shown in the following three tables.
 
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Table 1: Pensioners in receipt of income support, Great Britain, 1979–98 Number

	Total individual beneficiaries	Male individual beneficiaries	Female individual beneficiaries
1979	2,039,000	488,000	1,551,000
1980	1,974,000	466,000	1,508,000
1981	2,034,000	482,000	1,553,000
1982	2,089,000	501,000	1,587,000
1983	1,920,000	434,000	1,486,000
1984	1,944,000	442,000	1,502,000
1985	n/a	n/a	n/a
1986	1,973,000	437,000	1,536,000
1987	1,988,000	450,000	1,538,000
1988	2,002,000	534,000	1,468,000
1989	1,843,000	464,000	1,379,000
1990	1,925,000	502,000	1,423,000
1991	1,788,000	448,000	1,340,000
1992	1,872,000	484,000	1,388,000
1993	2,048,000	552,000	1,496,000
1994	2,082,000	575,000	1,507,000
1995	2,067,000	584,900	1,482,100
1996	2,045,100	584,300	1,460,800
1997	1,985,400	565,700	1,419,700
1998	1,911,800	546,500	1,365,300

n/a = Signifies data are unavailable.
Notes:
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred.
2. Totals may not sum due to rounding.
3. Income support replaced supplementary benefit in April 1988.
4. Up to and including 1987, pensioners are defined as claimants of pensionable age. From 1988 pensioners are defined as benefit units where either the claimant and/or partner are aged 60 or over.
5. Unemployed claimants are included in the figures up to and including August 1996. Income support for the unemployed was replaced by income-based jobseeker's allowance in October 1996.
6. Figures are based on sample data and are therefore subject to a degree of sampling error.
7. All figures relate to a point in time. For 1979 the month of the enquiry was November, for 1980 to 1984 the month was December, for 1986 the month was February and for 1987 to 2004 the month was May.
8. From 1999 income support for pensioners became the minimum income guarantee.




Table 2: Minimum income guarantee recipients, Great Britain, 1999–2003 Number

	Total individual beneficiaries	Male individual beneficiaries	Female individual beneficiaries
May 1999	1,869,600	541,000	1,328,600
November 1999	1,873,700	547,000	1,326,800
November 2000	1,940,400	574,400	1,366,000
November 2001	2,021,700	606,100	1,415,600
November 2002	2,065,600	634,700	1,430,900
October 2003	2,109,200	662,100	1,447,100

Notes:
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred and totals may not sum due to rounding.
2. Figures from May 1999—November 2002 are taken from a 5 per cent. sample and are subject to a high degree of sampling variation.
3. Figures from October 2003 are from a 100 per cent. sample.
4. Individual beneficiaries include claimants and partners and may contain a small number of partners aged under 60.
5. Minimum income guarantee was introduced in April 1999.
6. Pension credit replaced minimum income guarantee from 6 October 2003.




 
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Table 3: Pension credit recipients, Great Britain, 2003–04 Number

As at October	Total individual beneficiaries	Male individual beneficiaries	Female individual beneficiaries
2003	2,247,605	712,105	1,535,500
2004	3,199,040	1,073,170	2,125,870

Notes:
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest five.
2. Figures for October 2003 relate to 17 October 2003. Figures for October 2004 relate to the end of the month.
3. Individual beneficiaries include claimants and partners and may contain a small number of partners aged under 60.
4. Pension credit replaced minimum income guarantee from 6 October 2003.

Stephen Hesford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many recipients of (a) the minimum income guarantee and (b) pension credit there have been in Wirral, west constituency in each year since the inception of each; and what the average value to recipients of each was in each year. [202025]

Malcolm Wicks: The information is given in the following two tables.
Table 1: Minimum income guarantee recipients, Wirral West, 1999–2003

	Households	Individuals	Average amount (£)
May 1999	2,300	2,500	47.06
November 1999	2,300	2,500	50.37
November 2000	2,400	2,700	52.04
November 2001	2,500	2,800	52.88
November 2002	2,400	2,800	49.32
October 2003	2,500	2,900	48.34

Notes:
1. Figures from May 1999—November 2002 are taken from a five per cent. sample and are subject to a high degree of sampling variation.
2. The October figures relate to 3 October and are from a 100 per cent. sample.
3. Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred.
4. Individual recipients include claimants and partners only and may contain a small number of partners aged under 60.
5. Minimum income guarantee was introduced in April 1999
6. Minimum income guarantee was replaced by pension credit from 6 October 2003.
7. Average amounts of minimum income guarantee fell in April 2002 because of the transfer of residential care and nursing homes reserved rights funding to local authorities.




Table 2: Pension credit recipients, Wirral West, 2003–04

As at October	Households	Individuals	Average amount (£)
2003	2,805	3,315	44.29
2004	3,825	4,600	40.63

Notes:
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest five.
2. Figures are available for 31 October 2004 as the final output of processes that were put in place to deliver special monthly reporting during the first year of the roll-out of pension credit. As Parliament was told in the statement accompanying the last such report, data will in future be available on a quarterly basis, in line with standard departmental practice. The next report, covering data as at 31 December 2004, should be laid in the House in January 2005.
3. The October 2003 figure is at 17 October 2003. The October 2004 figure is for the end of the month.
4. Pension credit replaced minimum income guarantee from 6 October 2003.
5. Individual recipients include claimants and partners only and may contain a small number of partners aged under 60.
6. Pension credit average amounts are lower than minimum income guarantee average amounts for three main reasons:
(a) Some recipients of pension credit receive the savings element only, for which there was no equivalent in minimum income guarantee. The maximum award of the savings element is £15.51 for single pensioners and £20.22 for couples.
(b) Funding of child allowances was transferred to the child tax credit on 6 October 2003.
(c) Residential allowance funding was transferred to local authorities on 6 October 2003.




 
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Unemployment (Lewisham)

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what action he has taken to reduce unemployment in the Lewisham, Deptford constituency since 2001 among (a) young people, (b) disabled people, (c) lone parents and (d) the long-term unemployed. [201108]

Jane Kennedy: As a result of a combination of economic stability and our radical labour market policies unemployment in Lewisham Deptford has reduced by 12 per cent. since 2001 and now stands at 2,949, with long-term unemployment reduced by 35 per cent. to 585.

Our New Deal programmes administered by Jobcentre Plus have been a great success helping over 600 young people, over 600 long-term unemployed and 200 disabled people in Lewisham Deptford into work.

Lewisham Deptford also benefits from the Government's Welfare to Work 'Action Team initiative' that provides tailored support to disadvantaged customers within the community through an outreach advisory approach.

There have been ongoing activities specific to Lewisham Deptford to help local people into work. Local initiatives have included a Disability Jobsfair at Charlton Athletic Football ground in September 2004 and there is a weekly attendance by Deptford Disability Employment Adviser at Speedwell Mental Health Centre.

Lone Parent Advisers and Childcare Partnership Managers offer additional help to people in Lewisham via a variety of pilots and partnerships, in particular the TryChildcare team. Recent events have been held with New Deal for Communities, Opening Doors, Inland Revenue, the Lewisham Action Team and the North Lewisham Children's Centre.

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