House of Commons Hansard Written Answers for 6 Jun 2005 (pt 41)

6 Jun 2005 : Column 376W—continued

Departmental Expenditure

Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his Department's latest spending plans are for each year from 2005–06 to 2008–09; and if he will make a statement. [919]

Mrs. McGuire: The Departmental Report for 2004 (Cm 6221), which is available in the Library, contains the latest available information on spending plans for 2005–06. The Departmental Report for 2005 to be published in June 2005 will contain details of the

6 Jun 2005 : Column 377W

spending plans for the years 2005–06 to 2007–08. The plans for 2008–09 will be published following the conclusion of the 2006 Spending Review.

Disability Living Allowance (Blind Claimants)

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many blind people are claiming the lower rate mobility component of the disability living allowance. [1547]

Mrs. McGuire: As at 30 November 2004, some 52,800 people whose main disabling condition is recorded as blindness were receiving the lower rate mobility component of disability living allowance.

Source:

DWP Information Directorate, 5 per cent. samples

Early Retirement

Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his estimate is of the proportion of the working age population that has taken early retirement in the latest year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [966]

Margaret Hodge: In 2004 there were an estimated 581,000 people, on average, aged below the State Pension Age who were out of work and described themselves as currently retired. This represented 1.6 per cent. of the population aged 16 to State Pension Age.

Source:

Labour Force Survey, 2004 Spring to Winter quarters average, for Great Britain.

Financial Assistance Scheme

Mr. Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what payments (a) have been made and (b) are proposed to be made out of the Financial Assistance Scheme for members of the FII Group pension fund. [1016]

6 Jun 2005 : Column 378W

Mr. Timms: No payments have yet been made. We set up the body to administer the Financial Assistance Scheme in April and having completed the formal consultation on the draft regulations we will lay these before Parliament within the next few months. Payments will start to be made as soon as practicable thereafter, once the regulations are in place.

Estimates cannot be made on the proposed payment levels for members of individual schemes until we have received more detailed information, including information on what the scheme pension age is for individual members, their distance from scheme pension age as at 14 May 2004, and their individual losses in the schemes.

Mr. Kidney: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what progress his Department has made in attracting contributions to the Financial Assistance Scheme from external sources. [1017]

Mr. Timms: We have made clear to the pensions industry that we are keen for them to support the Financial Assistance Scheme either by voluntary financial contributions or assistance in kind.

We are grateful for the assistance in kind offered by the industry to date, and hope that it will further support the Government's leadership in assisting those facing the most serious losses. We believe that it has a strong interest in doing so. No direct financial contributions have yet been volunteered.

Incapacity Benefit

Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the medical reasons were for claims for incapacity benefit in the last year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [817]

Mrs. McGuire: The information requested is in the table.
Incapacity benefit and severe disability allowance claimants by diagnosis group at the date as shown

29 February 2004 31 May
2004 31 August 2004 30 November 2004

Claimants without any diagnosis code on the system 4,000 4,700 4,600 4,800

Certain infectious and parasitic diseases 20,500 20,100 20,200 20,000

Neoplasms 37,900 37,700 37,500 37,300

Diseases of the blood and blood forming organs and certain diseases involving the immune mechanism 4,400 4,300 4,200 4,300

Endocrine, nutritional and metabolic diseases 38,500 38,300 38,500 38,300

Mental and behavioural disorders 1,020,000 1,028,300 1,035,000 1,038,700

Diseases of the nervous system 164,800 165,500 165,500 164,900

Diseases of the eye and adnexa 19,700 19,500 19,300 19,400

Diseases of the ear and mastoid process 12,300 12,400 12,100 12,300

Diseases of the circulatory system 174,200 171,100 168,300 164,900

Diseases of the respiratory system 68,400 67,400 66,400 65,500

Diseases of the digestive system 41,600 41,600 41,800 41,000

Diseases of the skin and subcutaneous system 16,000 15,800 15,500 15,600

Diseases of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue 529,500 523,200 517,800 513,500

Diseases of the genitourinary system 18,400 18,300 18,600 18,500

Pregnancy, childbirth and the puerperium 4,100 4,200 4,500 4,300

Certain conditions originating in the perinatal period — — — —

Congenital malformations, deformations and chromosomal abnormalities 24,900 24,900 24,800 24,900

Symptoms, signs and abnormal clinical and laboratory findings, not elsewhere classified 326,100 323,600 322,800 322,900

Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes 153,200 152,600 151,800 150,500

Factors influencing Health status and contact with health services 35,000 35,200 35,000 34,800

All 2,713,600 2,708,700 2,704,200 2,696,500

Notes:
1.Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred. Totals may not sum due to rounding.
2.Figures include all incapacity benefit (IB), severe disability allowance and IB Contributions-only cases
3.—" denotes nil or negligible
Source:
Information Directorate 5 per cent. sample.

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	29 February 2004	31 May 2004	31 August 2004	30 November 2004
Claimants without any diagnosis code on the system	4,000	4,700	4,600	4,800
Certain infectious and parasitic diseases	20,500	20,100	20,200	20,000
Neoplasms	37,900	37,700	37,500	37,300
Diseases of the blood and blood forming organs and certain diseases involving the immune mechanism	4,400	4,300	4,200	4,300
Endocrine, nutritional and metabolic diseases	38,500	38,300	38,500	38,300
Mental and behavioural disorders	1,020,000	1,028,300	1,035,000	1,038,700
Diseases of the nervous system	164,800	165,500	165,500	164,900
Diseases of the eye and adnexa	19,700	19,500	19,300	19,400
Diseases of the ear and mastoid process	12,300	12,400	12,100	12,300
Diseases of the circulatory system	174,200	171,100	168,300	164,900
Diseases of the respiratory system	68,400	67,400	66,400	65,500
Diseases of the digestive system	41,600	41,600	41,800	41,000
Diseases of the skin and subcutaneous system	16,000	15,800	15,500	15,600
Diseases of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue	529,500	523,200	517,800	513,500
Diseases of the genitourinary system	18,400	18,300	18,600	18,500
Pregnancy, childbirth and the puerperium	4,100	4,200	4,500	4,300
Certain conditions originating in the perinatal period	—	—	—	—
Congenital malformations, deformations and chromosomal abnormalities	24,900	24,900	24,800	24,900
Symptoms, signs and abnormal clinical and laboratory findings, not elsewhere classified	326,100	323,600	322,800	322,900
Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes	153,200	152,600	151,800	150,500
Factors influencing Health status and contact with health services	35,000	35,200	35,000	34,800
All	2,713,600	2,708,700	2,704,200	2,696,500

Jobcentre Plus

Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of Jobcentres has been converted to the Jobcentre Plus format in each year since the inception of the programme. [404]

Margaret Hodge: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus, Lesley Strathie. She will write to the hon. Member.

Letter from Lesley Strathie to Mr. Tim Boswell, dated 6 June 2005:

The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question concerning what proportion of Jobcentres has been converted to the Jobcentre Plus format in each year since the inception of the programme. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.

Following the introduction of the Jobcentre Plus in April 2002, the Agency has been introducing the new integrated service and modernising the estate it inherited from the former Benefits Agency and Employment Service.

The number of offices launched each year to support delivery of the new service is as follows:

2001–02 ⁽⁴²⁾56 representing 7 per cent. of completed network

2002–03 157 representing 19 per cent. of completed network

2003–04 223 representing 27 per cent. of completed network

2004–05 115 representing 14 per cent. of completed network

⁽⁴²⁾Pathfinder offices


2001–02	⁽⁴²⁾56	representing 7 per cent. of completed network
2002–03	157	representing 19 per cent. of completed network
2003–04	223	representing 27 per cent. of completed network
2004–05	115	representing 14 per cent. of completed network

The rollout programme continues and will be substantially complete by Summer 2006.

I hope this is helpful.

Local Housing Allowance

Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what evidence his Department has collated of housing benefit recipients moving to different accommodation within the local housing allowance pilot areas. [923]

Mr. Plaskitt: The pathfinders are subject to a comprehensive, independent evaluation. Tenants' responses to the local housing allowance are one of the main streams of the evaluation.

The final evaluation report is due to be published by the end of 2006 and a series of interim evaluation reports and summaries are being published before then. The first publication that relates to the tenants' experience Claiming Housing Benefit in the Private Rented Sector: the baseline experience of claimants in the nine Local Housing Allowance Pathfinder areas" was published in September 2004. A copy is available in the Library. The result of the next phase of the claimant stream is expected to be published in July 2005.

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