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26 Mar 2007 : Column 1238W—continued


Non-housing revenue account expenditure on homeless households in temporary accommodation (real terms 2006-07 prices)
£ million
2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06

Estimated GB temporary Housing expenditure

339

402

524

615

Subsidised

271

331

477

566

Unsubsidised

69

71

47

49

Notes:
1. Expenditure data is taken from local authorities’ subsidy returns.
2. All figures are final audited data with the exception of 2005-06 which is provisional (pre-audited) data.
3. GDP deflator is the latest available as at 5 pm on 12 March 2007, last updated 21 December 2006, and is taken from www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/economic_data_and_tools/gdp_deflators/data_gdp_fig_cfm
4. Due to historical differences in the treatment of Scottish rent rebate expenditure, it is not possible from local authority subsidy returns to identify all expenditure on temporary accommodation in Scotland. These figures may therefore slightly understate temporary accommodation expenditure. From an assessment of the England and Wales data, we estimate that this understatement would be of the order of £1-2 million.

Income Support

Mr. Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of children lived in households in receipt of income support in each of the last 10 years; and if he will make a statement. [129600]

Mr. Plaskitt: The information is not available in the format requested. The available information is in the following table.

Numbers of children living in households in receipt of income support (IS) in Great Britain; as at April each year
Number of dependent children in IS households Percentage of dependent children

2004

1,978,650

17.6

2005

1,865,720

16.7

2006

1,828,275

16.4

Notes:
1. Figures have been rounded the nearest five.
2. Figures exclude a very small number of cases that are held clerically.
3. Figures are for children dependent on a parent/guardian claiming income support.
4. Due to the introduction of child tax credits in April 2003, information on child dependents held on the benefit computer system is not reliable; therefore children data have been merged onto income support claims from child benefit records with permission of HMRC.
Source:
DWP and HMRC data

IT Projects

Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many information technology projects within the responsibility of his Department, its agencies and their predecessors have been cancelled since 1997; what the total cost was of each project at cancellation; and if he will make a statement. [105474]


26 Mar 2007 : Column 1239W

Mrs. McGuire: The Department for Work and Pensions was created in June 2001.

The Department undertakes a large number of projects which deliver business change and policy initiatives. IT changes are an enabling component of many projects. The number of projects in train at any one time will vary and the duration of the project lifecycle is often more than one calendar year. The following table includes only those projects that have been formally closed where the IT element is such that non-delivery of the IT would significantly damage the project’s ability to deliver its intended results and the investment in the project has exceeded £1 million.

Project name Investment expenditure (£ million)

Document Management (closed 2006-07)

1.4

Retirement Planner (closed 2004-05)

11.2

E-enabled Retirement Pension (closed 2006-07)

1.8

Benefits Processing Replacement Programme (BPRP) (closed 2006-07)

(1)135

Customer Accounting and Payment Strategy (closed 1999-2000)

127

Debt Accounting and Management System (closed 1999-2000)

13

(1 )Including future commitments

A significant amount of the investment in BPRP is of future value to the Department. We estimate that at least half of the sum invested (around £73 million) is of future value to the Department. Similarly the benefits realised by the Debt Accounting and Management System project exceeded the costs incurred of £13 million and thus no actual loss occurred.

The costs of the Customer Accounting and Payment System are the estimated costs for that project at the time of closure.

Means-Tested Benefits

Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people were in receipt of each means-tested benefit administered by his Department in each year since 1990-91. [121840]

Mr. Plaskitt: The available information is in the following tables.


26 Mar 2007 : Column 1240W
Income support (IS) and minimum income guarantee (MIG) recipients in Great Britain each year, 1990 to 2006
AIMS MIG Non-MIG IS for the unemployed

May 1990

4,180,000

1,675,000

1,442,000

1,063,000

May 1991

4,487,000

1,575,000

1,577,000

1,335,000

May 1992

5,088,000

1,643,000

1,783,000

1,662,000

May 1993

5,643,000

1,736,000

1,987,000

1,920,000

August 1994

5,702,000

1,785,000

2,109,000

1,887,000

August 1995

3,931,000

1,737,000

2,193,000

1,681,000

August 1996

4,007,000

1,727,000

2,278,000

1,502,000

August 1997

3,991,000

1,687,000

2,305,000

n/a

August 1998

3,863,000

1,624,000

2,239,000

n/a

August 1999

3,849,000

1,598,000

2,251,000

n/a

August 2000

3,892,000

1,637,000

2,254,000

n/a

August 2001

3,998,000

1,724,000

2,275,000

n/a

August 2002

3,998,000

1,740,000

2,259,000

n/a

August 2003

4,041,000

1,800,000

2,241,000

n/a

August 2004

2,202,000

11,000

2,191,000

n/a

August 2005

2,148,000

10,000

2,138,000

n/a

August 2006

2,138,000

10,000

2,129,000

n/a


Pension credit recipients in Great Britain as at August each year, 2004 to 2006
Number

August 2004

2,593,000

August 2005

2,697,000

August 2006

2,728,000


Income-based jobseeker’s allowance recipients in Great Britain as at August each year, 1997 to 2006
Number

1997

1,182,000

1998

1,031,000

1999

928,000

2000

800,000

2001

695,000

2002

664,000

2003

635,000

2004

588,000

2005

634,000

2006

708,000

n/a = Not applicable
Notes:
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 1,000.
2. Pension credit was introduced on 6 October 2003 and replaced minimum income guarantee (income support for people aged 60 or over). The vast majority of people who were previously in receipt of the minimum income guarantee transferred to pension credit in October 2003 however some residual cases remain on the income support statistics.
3. income support for the unemployed was replaced by income-based jobseeker’s allowance in October 1996.
4. IS figures for August 1994 to August 1998 and all JSA (IB) figures have been derived by applying 5per cent. proportions to 100 per cent. WPLS totals.
5. Some income-based JSA claimants may also be entitled to benefit via the contributory route.
Source:
DWP 100 per cent. Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study (WPLS), DWP Information Directorate 5 per cent. samples and IS ASE 5 per cent. data

National Insurance Numbers

Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on how many occasions his Department
26 Mar 2007 : Column 1241W
checked the immigration status of applicants for national insurance numbers in each year since 1997; and how many applications were refused as a result. [116599]

Mr. Plaskitt: The information is not available in the format requested.

Prior to July 2006, individuals entering the UK from abroad who required a National Insurance number (NINO) had to attend Jobcentre Plus for an evidence of identity interview. The interviewing process was primarily designed to guard against identity fraud. If Jobcentre Plus became aware of immigration or right to work irregularities it advised the Home Office Immigration and Nationality Directorate of this so that appropriate action could be taken.

From July 2006 a “right to work” pre-condition for all employment-related NINO applications was introduced. This prevents anyone who does not have the right to work from being allocated a NINO for employment purposes. From July 2006 to 30 November 2006 a total of 1,529 NINO applications were refused on the basis of not satisfying the right to work test.

New Deal

Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the total cost to his Department of each new deal programme has been in each year since 2001. [105899]

Mr. Jim Murphy: The information is in the following table.

New deal costs since 2001
£ million
2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06

New deal for young people

308

314

264

254

198

New deal 25 plus

213

238

189

179

125

New deal 50 plus

87

87

41

3

1

New deal for lone parents

46

62

20

24

26

New deal for disabled people

10

31

28

65

68

New deal for partners

8

6

0

1

1

Admin

n/a

n/a

111

113

121

Notes:
1. Figures include all new deal costs including administrative expenditure up to 2002-03. Information on administrative expenditure by individual new deal is not available for 2003-04 and later years.
2. Spend data also includes allowances paid to participants apart from the 50 plus element of the working tax credit which is the responsibility of HMRC. As this is not included, new deal 50 plus costs reduce after 2002-03.
3. Spend on new deal for partners in 2003-04 was less than £0.5 million and is thus not recorded as figures are rounded to the nearest £ million.
4. Start dates for each programme are: new deal for young people: January 1998; new deal 25 plus: July 1998; new deal for lone parents: October 1998; new deal 50 plus: April 2000; new deal for disabled people: July 2001; new deal for partners: April 1999.
Source:
Department for Work and Pensions Financial Control Division

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