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26 Jun 2006 : Column 62W—continued
| Pension credit household recipients and average weekly amount of benefit for wards in Kensington and Chelsea, November 2005 | ||
| Ward name | Household recipients | Average weekly benefit (£) |
| (1) Only part of Holland ward falls within Kensington and Chelsea parliamentary constituency. Notes: 1. The number of claimants is rounded to a multiple of five and average amounts to the nearest penny therefore ward totals do not always sum to area totals. 2. Some figures in Westminster Constituency have been suppressed due to there being less than 10 claimants within those wards. Suppressed figures are marked as “—“. 3. Wards are based on 2003 ward boundaries. 4. Household recipients are those people who claim pension credit either on behalf of themselves only or on behalf of a household. This number is equal to the number of households in receipt of pension credit. Source: DWP Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study (WPLS) 100 per cent. data. | ||
Pensions
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in what circumstances a credit will be awarded towards a qualifying year for (a) the basic state pension and state second pension, (b) the basic state pension only and (c) the state second pension only, if the proposals in the May 2006 White Paper ‘Security in retirement: towards a new pensions system’ are implemented in full; and which credits will apply on a weekly basis. [76607]
James Purnell: The White Paper ‘Security in retirement: towards a new pensions system’ (Cm 6841) sets out a package of proposed reforms. It includes a number of measures which would help to make the system more flexible, and make national insurance credits more valuable and more generous.
The proposed reduction of the number of qualifying years needed for a full basic state pension to 30 is a very significant change that makes the system more flexible;
it allows people to undertake a variety of activities during their working lives, and still be able to build a full basic state pension. This would be particularly beneficial to women.
Credits would be made more valuable by removing the first contribution condition, so that credits count towards pension entitlements in exactly the same way as paid contributions for the first time. This clearly signals that social contributions are rewarded and recognised by society in the same way as paid work. The credits would be awarded on a weekly basis only to the extent needed for the year to become a qualifying year.
In addition to making credits more valuable, the credits system would be made more comprehensive and generous, by reforming home responsibilities protection into a weekly credit and introducing new weekly credits for parents and carers—aligned in BSP and S2P and these would count towards satisfying the qualifying years in the same way as paid contributions.
Assuming the White Paper proposals are implemented in full, the new credits to be introduced are shown in the following table:
| BSP | S2P | |
All the credits will be awarded on a weekly basis.
There will be no specific circumstances in which state second pension will accrue without there being entitlement to basic state pension.
Circumstances in which credits are currently awarded towards basic state pension are listed in the following table. Whether there is also eligibility for state second pension, if credits are awarded throughout the tax year, is also noted.
| BSP | S2P | |
| (1) lf the White Paper proposals are implemented in full, these will be phased out in line with the increase in women’s state pension age. (2) This is currently subject to satisfying the labour market test. | ||
Private Members' Bills
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which Private Members' Bills were drafted by his Department in each session since 1997; and which subsequently received Royal Assent. [78856]
Mrs. McGuire: Members will consider a range of possible subjects before introducing their Private Members' Bills.
Government draftsmen do draft some Bills in advance which are available as one of the options for Members to consider before they make their selection.
However, Members may make subsequent amendments or revisions to a Government drafted Bill, or use it as the basis for a Private Member’s Bill in the future.
The information requested is therefore not collected.
Remploy Review
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he expects the review of Remploy to be completed; and if he will make a statement. [77480]
Mrs. McGuire: I refer the hon. Member to the written statement I made on 6 June 2006, Official Report, column 26WS.
Mr. Iain Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether hon. Members are able to make submissions to the review of Remploy being undertaken by PricewaterhouseCoopers; and if he will make a statement. [79023]
Mrs. McGuire: The purpose of the independent strategic review is to explore future business options for Remploy that are consistent with the Government's strategy for supporting the employment of greater numbers of disabled people.
In delivering the review the PricewaterhouseCoopers team has met with a range of stakeholders including: the management and staff of Remploy, at a variety of sites; trade unions; disabled people and employers using Remploy's Interwork services; other providers of services supporting disabled people into and in work; and a number of disability organisations.
PricewaterhouseCoopers has reviewed carefully all the information it has gathered and is considering all the options to determine the advice it will put forward in the written report. Since the team has now reached the stage where it is writing the report it will not be possible for it to consider further submissions.
As indicated in my written statement of 6 June 2006, Official Report, column 26WS, we will make a further statement before the summer recess.
Rubber and Plastics Research Association Technology
Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what requirements in relation to pension funds were imposed on Rubber and Plastics Research Association Technology in Shawbury, Shropshire before it went into administration. [79754]
James Purnell: None, over and above the standard legislative framework that applies to all such occupational defined benefit schemes.
Staff Reductions
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what reductions in staff numbers have been made in his Department and in each agency and non-departmental public body for which he is responsible since (a) 2003 and (b) 2004; what staff reductions are planned over the next 12 months in each business area; and if he will make a statement. [35724]
Mrs. McGuire [holding answer 12 December 2006]: Information on the reductions in staff numbers in each business area in the Department for Work and Pensions from the date specified to 31 March 2006 is in the following table.
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