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20 Dec 2004 : Column 1429W—continued
Benefit Payments (Newcastle)
Mr. Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many (a) men and (b) women receiving (i) incapacity benefit and (ii) severe disablement allowance there were in each ward of the City of Newcastle upon Tyne. [204617]
Maria Eagle:
The information is not available in the format requested. The available information is in the table.
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Notes:
1. Wards are based on 2003 ward boundaries.
2. All ward level benefit data is the latest currently available, August 2003.
3. For data protection reasons we cannot give the gender breakdown for incapacity benefit and severe disablement allowance separately.
4. All benefit counts have been rounded to a multiple of five to protect the confidentiality of individual claimants.
Source:
IAD Information Centre, DWP
Cellulose Fibres
Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what studies he has carried out in conjunction with Health and Safety Research into the safety of materials containing cellulose fibres. [206159]
Jane Kennedy: In 1998, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) asked the Institute of Environmental Health to carry out a study into the relative risks of chrysotile asbestos and commonly used substitutes including cellulose. Later in the same year HSE also asked the Committee on the Carcinogenicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment (COC) to advise on the relative carcinogenic risks of three chrysotile asbestos substitutes including cellulose taking into account the report produced by the Institute. The COC advice was that the carcinogenic risk posed by cellulose fibres is likely to be less than that posed by chrysotile. A copy of that advice is available at http://www.advisorybodies.doh.gov.uk/coc/chrys.pdf.
Child Support Agency
Mr. Lyons:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many Child Support Agency cases
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concerning constituents in Strathkelvin and Bearsden were being investigated on the latest date for which figures are available. [204202]
Mr. Pond: The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the Chief Executive, Mr Doug Smith. He will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
Letter from Doug Smith to Mr. John Lyons dated 20 December 2004:
In reply to your recent parliamentary Question about the Child Support Agency the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Chief Executive.
You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many Child Support Agency cases concerning constituents of Strathkelvin and Bearsden were being investigated on the latest date for which figures are available.
I am not able to supply this information. I can say that at 30 November 2004 around 870 criminal investigations are under way nationally.
Child Support Applications
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent representations he has received on the processing of child support applications; and if he will make a statement. [204160]
Mr. Pond: The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the Chief Executive, Mr. Doug Smith. He will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
Letter from Doug Smith to Miss Anne McIntosh, dated 20 December 2004:
In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the Child Support Agency the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Chief Executive.
You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent representations he has received on the processing of child support applications; and if he will make a statement.
In my evidence to the Work and Pensions Select Committee on 17 November 2004 I outlined the current position in relation to the processing of Child Support applications. I accepted that the current position was not satisfactory. I outlined the steps we were taking in conjunction with EDS, our provider for computer and telephony services, to remedy the position.
Council Tax Benefit
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average reduction in council tax bills for (a) an average household and (b) an average pensioner household in England due to council tax benefit was in the most recent year for which figures are available. [202288]
Mr. Pond: The available information is in the table.
| £ | |
|---|---|
| All cases | 653.00 |
| Recipients aged 60 and over | 649.00 |
Notes:
1. Figures are estimates based on administrative data from local authorities.
2. The estimates are consistent with PBR 2004 forecasts
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Departmental Advertising
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in which Muslim newspapers the Department advertises; and what kinds of advertising the Department places in Muslim newspapers. [201694]
Maria Eagle: The Department has conducted campaign advertising in the following newspapers which have a substantial Muslim readership.
The Department has also advertised in several ethnic language publications, which have a smaller Muslim readership, these are:
Additional Muslim publications, which are not newspapers in which advertisements have been placed are:
With respect to recruitment advertising no specific Muslim titles are used. The selection of titles is based on an understanding of the labour market, recruitment issues, the readership of titles and their reach within a guaranteed circulation. The reach of the title i.e. the number of people receiving it will be checked to ensure it includes all members of the community, including Muslims.
The type of advertising placed is campaign related. It will be designed to support specific marketing campaigns and will be display advertisements.
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Departmental Establishments
Sir Archy Kirkwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many (a) full-time, (b) part-time and (c) temporary jobs his Department and its Executive agencies have had in (i) the Scottish Borders and (ii) Scotland since 1997. [199594]
Maria Eagle: Information on the numbers of staff employed in the Department and its agencies in Scotland at specified points in time is in the following table. It is not possible to identify staff in the Scottish Borders separately. Information is not available prior to April 2002.
Note:
Figures are full-time equivalents and are consistent with Cabinet Office definitions.
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