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7 Nov 2006 : Column 1130W—continued

Number of severe disability allowance claims that have been terminated in the UK excluding Pathways to Work pilot areas
Quarter ending	All terminations	Terminations outside Pathways to Work areas	Percentage of terminations outside Pathways to Work areas
November 2003	3,500	3,400	97.7
February 2004	2,800	2,700	93.7
May 2004	2,400	2,200	91.7
August 2004	2,900	2,800	97.9
November 2004	2,600	2,400	93.0
February 2005	3,000	2,800	92.1
May 2005	2,500	2,300	92.9
August 2005	3,200	2,800	87.6
November 2005	2,800	2,600	91.4
February 2006	1,200	1,100	88.5
Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred. Percentages are shown to one decimal place. 2. Figures for the latest quarter do not include any late notifications and are subject to major changes in future quarters. 3. Earlier quarters have been updated to include late notified terminations, including terminations for state pension. 4. Pathways to work pilot areas were introduced in October 2003 and updated in April 2004. The areas relevant to each quarter have been used ie Bridgend, Renfrewshire and Derbyshire for all quarters, plus Gateshead and South Tyneside, Somerset, Essex and East Lancashire from quarter ending May 2004. Source: DWP Information Directorate, 5 per cent. samples.

Pension Age Addition

Mr. Skinner: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in each constituency in the East Midlands receive the retirement pension age addition for those aged 80 years or over. [96951]

James Purnell: The information requested is in the following table:

7 Nov 2006 : Column 1131W

State pension age addition recipients
Parliamentary constituency	Number
Amber Valley	4,300
Ashfield	4,400
Bassetlaw	3,700
Blaby	3,900
Bolsover	4,300
Boston and Skegness	5,200
Bosworth	4,600
Broxtowe	4,600
Charnwood	4,300
Chesterfield	4,900
Corby	3,900
Daventry	4,200
Derby North	4,400
Derby South	4,100
Erewash	4,700
Gainsborough	4,400
Gedling	4,400
Grantham and Stamford	4,200
Harborough	4,400
High Peak	4,500
Kettering	4,900
Leicester East	3,200
Leicester South	3,100
Leicester West	3,100
Lincoln	4,000
Loughborough	3,800
Louth and Horncastle	5,400
Mansfield	4,200
Newark	4,600
North East Derbyshire	4,100
North West Leicestershire	4,400
Northampton North	3,900
Northampton South	4,400
Nottingham East	3,000
Nottingham North	4,000
Nottingham South	3,300
Rushcliffe	5,600
Rutland and Melton	5,000
Sherwood	4,400
Sleaford and North Hykeham	5,300
South Derbyshire	4,800
South Holland and the Deepings	5,200
Wellingborough	4,500
West Derbyshire	5,700
Notes: 1. Data are taken from the five per cent. extract of the Pension Service Computer System as at September 2005, and the figures are subject to a degree of sampling variation. They are also adjusted to be consistent with the overall case load from the Work and Pension Longitudinal Study. 2. The figures are rounded to the nearest 100. 3. The boundaries of parliamentary constituencies do not correspond exactly to Government office regions (GOR). As a result, small areas of some parliamentary constituencies listed lie outside the geographical boundaries of East Midlands GOR. Source: Department for Work and Pensions, Information Directorate.

Pension Credit

Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his latest estimate is of the number of UK pensioners (a) entitled to pension credit and (b) receiving pension credit, broken down by region; and if he will make a statement. [90469]

7 Nov 2006 : Column 1132W

James Purnell: The information requested is not available in the format requested. Estimates of eligibility are not available below the level of Great Britain.

The latest estimates of the number of pensioners in Great Britain entitled to pension credit were published in “Pension Credit Estimates of Take-Up in 2004/2005”. A copy of the report is available in the Library.

The latest estimates of the number of recipients of pension credit by Government Office Region are in the table.

In Northern Ireland pension credit administration is a matter for the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.

Number of pensioners receiving pension credit by Government Office Region, May 2006
Region	Household recipients
All Great Britain	2,718,080
North East	157,360
North West	357,710
Yorkshire and the Humber	261,710
East Midlands	196,150
West Midlands	279,490
East of England	224,050
London	290,380
South East	282,440
South West	224,860
Wales	161,310
Scotland	282,620
Notes: 1. These figures are early estimates. The preferred data source for figures supplied by DWP is the Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study (WPLS). However, the figures provided are the latest available figures which are taken from the GMS scan at 26 May 2006. These are adjusted using the historical relationship between WPLS and GMS data to give an estimate of the final WPLS figure. 2. Caseloads are rounded to the nearest 10. Totals may not sum due to rounding. 3. Government Office Regions are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant postcode directory. 4. Household recipients are those people who claim pension credit either for themselves only or on behalf of a household. Source: DWP 100 per cent. data from the Generalised Matching Service (GMS) Pension Credit scan taken as at 26 May 2006.

Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the cost was of administering pension credit in each year since its introduction. [100127]

James Purnell: The information requested is not available.

I refer the hon. Gentleman to the response I gave on 18 April 2006, Official Report, column 431W.

Pension Protection Fund

Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pension schemes have entered the Pension Protection Fund. [96323]

James Purnell: No pension schemes are yet being paid compensation by the Pension Protection Fund. At 29 September 2006 however, there were 111 individual Pension schemes in a PPF assessment period.

7 Nov 2006 : Column 1133W

Pensioner Benefit Checks

Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of carrying out home visits to pensioners to offer a full benefit check in 2006-07. [96319]

James Purnell: The information requested is not available.

Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much has been spent on home visits to pensioners for benefit checks in each year since 1997-98; how many such home visits have taken place over that period; and if he will make a statement. [96320]

James Purnell: The information requested is not available.

Pensioner Incomes

Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what level of income a UK single pensioner needed in (a) 2005-06 and (b) 2006-07 to avoid being in relative poverty. [96182]

James Purnell: The figures are not available for 2005-06 or 2006-07. The first year’s information for the UK will be available in the Households Below Average Income 2005-06 publication, which is due for release in spring 2007.

Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many pensioners in the UK were living in relative poverty in each year from 1976 to 2006; and if he will make a statement. [96184]

James Purnell: Information that is available can be found in the publication “Households Below Average Income 1994-95-2004-05.”

Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his latest estimate is of the proportion of pensioners who will be in relative poverty, assuming no change in the take-up of pension credit, in (a) 2005-06, (b) 2010-11, (c) 2020-21 and (d) 2030-31; and if he will make a statement. [96314]

James Purnell: The information requested is not available. Figures for 2005-06 will be published in the Households Below Average Income 2005-06 report, which is due for release in spring 2007. The Government do not publish forward projections of relative poverty rates because of the number of modelling uncertainties involved.

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