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4 Feb 2005 : Column 1161W—continued
Legal Aid
Vera Baird: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what plans the Secretary of State has to remove the £100,000 equity disregard for home owners in the assessment of eligibility for legal aid. [212050]
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Mr. Lammy: The Legal Services Commission's consultation "a new focus for civil legal aid" concluded on 15 October 2004. This proposed a number of changes to the eligibility and scope of civil legal aid, including removing the current £100,000 equity disregard for homeowners from the assessment of legal aid eligibility. We are currently considering the way forward in the light of the responses. An announcement will be made in due course.
Newcastle Courts
Mr. Beith: To ask the Parliamentary Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs what changes have been made to sittings of the Law Courts in Newcastle as a consequence of security arrangements for the Labour party spring conference. [213888]
Mr. Leslie: There have been no changes to the sittings at Newcastle Law Courts as a consequence of security arrangements for the Labour party conference. The court is sitting to capacity. There are 10 criminal court rooms and three civil in the Quayside building with an additional two courtrooms in the nearby Moot Hall. There are 15 judges sitting.
CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT
Departmental Publications
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many publications were issued by her Department in each of the last four years. [214327]
Mr. Caborn: The information is as follows:
| Number | |
|---|---|
| 2001–02 | 21 |
| 2002–03 | 15 |
| 2003–04 | 13 |
| 2004–05 | 28 |
Liverpool (Redevelopment)
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions her Department has had with the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister about the proposed plans to redevelop parts of Liverpool. [213511]
Estelle Morris [holding answer 3 February 2005]: As part of the Department's work with Liverpool on its European Capital of Culture programme my officials have had discussions with the Government office north west on the proposal by National Museums Liverpool, one of the national museums and galleries funded by DCMS for a new Museum of Liverpool Life; and also on the proposed redevelopment of Liverpool Central Library and Archive.
Staff Surveys
Mr. George Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the cost of staff surveys in the Department was in each year since 1997. [213679]
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Mr. Caborn: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has conducted three staff surveys since 1997. The contract to run the staff survey was put out to tender in 2000 and the cost in each year since 1997 is set out as follows:
| Cost (£) | |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 17,964 |
| 2001 | 16,800 |
| 2003 | 15,745 |
WORK AND PENSIONS
Benefit Fraud Inspectorate
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the expenditure of the Benefit Fraud Inspectorate and its predecessor was in each year since 1996–97; and what the estimated budget for the next financial year is. [211950]
Mr. Pond: The Benefit Fraud Inspectorate was formed in November 1997. No similar organisation existed prior to this date. The available information is in the table.
(24) Expenditure represents November 1997 to March 1998.
(25) This included recruitment for Comprehensive performance Assessment work and Performance Improvement Action Team (funded by Treasury Invest to Save money).
Benefits
Mr. Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many credits only recipients of incapacity benefit are (a) in receipt of income support, (b) in receipt of other benefits and (c) in receipt of no social security benefits. [214231]
Malcolm Wicks: The information is not available in the format requested. The available information is in the table.
Notes:
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred. Totals may not sum due to rounding.
2. Working age claimants are men aged 16–64 and women aged 16–59.
3. "Key benefits" are jobseeker's allowance, income support, incapacity benefit; severe disablement allowance, and disability living allowance.
4. Recipients of IB credits only are not entitled to jobseekers allowance or severe disability allowance. Therefore those claimants who appear in the "Also in receipt of another key benefit" column are effectively those also in receipt of disability living allowance only.
Source:
Information Directorate, 5 per cent. Working Age Client Group sample.
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Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) how many individuals were in receipt of (a) income support, (b) council tax benefit and (c) housing benefit in Southend-on-Sea in (i) 1980, (ii) 1990, (iii) 2000 and (iv) 2004; [213200]
(2) how many individuals were in receipt of (a) jobseeker's allowance (contribution based) and (b) jobseeker's allowance (income based), or their equivalents, in Southend-on-Sea in (i) 1980, (ii) 1990, (iii) 2000 and (iv) 2004. [213201]
Mr. Pond: Figures broken down by local authority are not available for these benefits prior to 2000.
The available information is in the table.
(26) Numbers based on very few sample cases and are subject to a high degree of sampling variation. These figures should be used as a guide to the current situation only.
Notes:
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred.
2. The data refers to benefit units, which may be a single person or a couple.
3. Income-based JSA figures include claimants who would also be entitled to the
contributory element.
4. From November 2003 income support for customers aged 60 and over was replaced by pension credit. The 2004 figure reflects this.
Source:
Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit Management Information System—Quarterly 100 per cent. caseload stock-count and Information Directorate, 5 per cent. samples.
Annabelle Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate his Department made of the anticipated take-up levels via (a) bank accounts and (b) Post Office card accounts prior to the introduction of direct payment. [211994]
Mr. Pond: Around 90 per cent. of DWP customers have a bank account.
During the 2000 Spending Review a target of paying 85 per cent. of benefit and pensions customers into an account by 2005 was set. This target has now been achieved, almost a year early, and the Department is on course to comfortably exceed it by April 2005.
Our definition of "account" also includes the Post Office card account. In 2001 we announced we had a working assumption that 3 million card accounts would
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be opened. (This was not a target or a forecast of numbers.) More than 4 million card accounts have now been opened.
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