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11 Jun 2007 : Column 805W—continued
John Mann:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many incidents of falling
gravestones and memorials were reported to the Health and Safety Executive in each of the last 20 years. [140535]
Mrs. McGuire: Reliable data for the period requested are not available. However, the available data show that 21 serious accidents, caused by falling gravestones and memorials, were reported to the Health and Safety Executive over the last seven years.
Child Support Agency: Administration
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on the processing of clerical Child Support Agency cases. [138730]
Mr. Plaskitt: The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the Chief Executive. He will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
Letter from Stephen Geraghty, dated 11 June 2007:
In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the Child Support Agency, the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Chief Executive.
You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make a statement on the processing of clerical Child Support Agency cases. [138730]
In September 2006 the Agency transferred all of its clerical cases to the CSA Bolton site managed by Vertex. Cases are processed clerically when, due to technical issues, they cannot be progressed on our computer system. CSA Bolton is currently processing over 28,000 Agency cases, and has delivered more than £14m in maintenance payments since its launch in September 2006.
Moving the clerical caseload to one site released a large number of Agency people to work on other important work outlined in the Operational Improvement Plan, including reducing the number of uncleared applications and strengthening enforcement. Over 400 Agency people have already been redeployed as a result of the contracting out of clerical casework.
This is the first time any of the Department’s agencies have contracted out core work on this scale and as with any significant change, some areas have not progressed as smoothly as we wanted. We have identified those areas where lessons can be learned for the future and are working hard to improve client service.
I hope you find this answer helpful.
Children: Poverty
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what percentage of children were living in households below (a) 60 per cent., (b) 50 per cent., (c) 40 per cent., (d) 30 per cent. and (e) 20 per cent. of median income (i) before and (ii) after housing costs in at least three out of the last four years in each year since 1991. [135401]
Mr. Jim Murphy [holding answer 2 May 2007]: The available information for children in households below 60 per cent. of median income is shown on pages 44-45 of the publication “Low-Income Dynamics 1991-2004 (Great Britain)” released by DWP in July 2006. This is available in the House of Commons Library.
Information for children in households below lower thresholds of median income is not available because the sample sizes for these estimates are too small.
Employment: Lone Parents
Mr. Gauke: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what level of lone parent employment he estimates will be required in order to meet the Government’s child poverty target by 2010-11. [132037]
Mr. Jim Murphy [holding answer 18 April 2007]: The Government’s child poverty target can only be achieved through a combination of increased parental employment, financial support and high quality public services for children and their parents. No estimate has been made of the specific level of each component which would be necessary. The Government are committed to a target of 70 per cent. lone parent employment.
Housing Benefit
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people received (a) housing benefit but not council tax benefit, (b) council tax benefit but not housing benefit and (c) housing benefit and council tax benefit in each region in each year since 1997. [140591]
Mr. Plaskitt: The available information has been placed in the Library.
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people receiving (a) housing benefit but not council tax benefit, (b) council tax benefit but not housing benefit and (c) housing benefit and council tax benefit face benefit withdrawal rates of more than 40 per cent. against marginal income. [140592]
Mr. Plaskitt: The available information is in the following table.
| Numbers of people facing marginal deduction rates in excess of 40 per cent. | |
| Number | |
| Note: Figures are rounded to the nearest 100,000. Source: Family Resources Survey | |
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average duration of a housing benefit claim was in each year since 1997. [140593]
Mr. Plaskitt: The information is not available. Data on durations of housing benefit claims are not collected.
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the claimant (a) on-flow rates and (b) off-flow rates for housing benefit (i) have been since 1997 and (ii) are estimated to be in the period up to 2019-2020. [140595]
Mr. Plaskitt: The information is not available.
Incapacity Benefit
Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people claimed (a) incapacity and (b) another inactive benefit on grounds of rheumatoid arthritis in (i) Jarrow constituency, (ii) South Tyneside, (iii) the north east and (iv) England in each year since 1997. [140825]
Mrs. McGuire: The information is not available.
Incapacity Benefit: Disqualification
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many benefit sanctions were imposed on incapacity benefit claimants in each quarter since 1997. [123578]
Mrs. McGuire [holding answer 26 February 2007]: Other than sanctions in relation to Pathways districts, the information is not available other than at disproportionate cost.
For the available information on sanctions in relation to Pathways districts, I refer the hon. Member to the written answer given to him on 5 June 2007, Official Report, column 349W.
Income Support: Lone Parents
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many lone parents have made repeat claims for income support in each month since January 1992. [138725]
Mr. Jim Murphy [holding answer 23 May 2007]: The information is not available other than at disproportionate cost.
Industrial Health and Safety: Directors
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the legal responsibility of company directors for health and safety. [139747]
Mrs. McGuire: At the Government’s request, in 2005 the Health and Safety Commission (HSC) undertook an evaluation of the effectiveness of the current arrangements on director leadership for health and safety. Following its evaluation, the HSC chair advised Ministers on how best to strengthen these arrangements. In particular, revised guidance for inspectors has been produced that clearly sets out when it is possible to prosecute a director; and new guidance on director leadership is being developed, under the oversight of a stakeholder steering group led by the Institute of Directors.
Industrial Health and Safety: Noise
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many venues on the Public Entertainment Licence Register were served improvement notices under section 3 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 to reduce the noise exposure of customers in each of the last five years. [139165]
Mrs. McGuire: The HSE does not record the number of improvement notices issued against venues on the Public Entertainment Licence Register and therefore the information requested is not available.
Industrial Health and Safety: Playgrounds
Mr. Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many fatalities there have been resulting from play activities in public playgrounds in the UK in each year since 1997. [136537]
Mrs. McGuire: The Health and Safety Executive is aware of four fatal accidents arising from play activities in playgrounds since 1997. Of these, two involved playground equipment (swings, in 1997 and 1999), one occurred in a school playground during a sports lesson (in 2001), and the last occurred in a skateboard park (in 2003).
Mr. Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many recorded injuries, excluding fatalities, there have been resulting from play activities in public playgrounds in the UK in each year since 1997; and what the nature of these injuries was. [136538]
Mrs. McGuire: This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Jobseeker’s Allowance
Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what proportion of claims for jobseeker’s allowance made by (a) telephone, (b) post and (c) an online claim form have taken (i) up to four weeks and (ii) four or more weeks from receipt of claim to payment of benefit in the last 12 months; [140393]
(2) what proportion of claims for incapacity benefit made by (a) telephone, (b) post and (c) an online claim form have taken (i) up to four weeks and (ii) four or more weeks from receipt of claim to payment of benefit in the last 12 months. [140396]
Mr. Plaskitt [holding answer 4 June 2007]: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus, Lesley Strathie. I have asked her to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
Letter from Lesley Strathie, dated 11 June 2007:
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your questions asking about the proportion of claims to Jobseeker’s Allowance and Incapacity Benefit made by telephone, by post and on-line that are cleared in under four weeks and over four weeks. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
The information is not available in the format requested. The information that is available is contained in the following tables.
| Jobseeker ’s a llowance—cumulative 12 months May 2006 to April 2007 | |
| Time band | Percentage processed |
| Incapacity b enefit—cumulative 12 months May 2006 to April 2007 | |
| Time band | Percentage processed |
We cannot identify the time taken to process claims by method of claim.
Pension Credit: North East Region
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what percentage of pensioners (a) in Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, (b) on Teesside and (c) in the north-east are entitled to claim (i) the savings pension credit and (ii) the guarantee pension credit; and what percentage of those entitled to claim each credit do so; [139738]
(2) what estimate he has made of the amount of unclaimed (a) guarantee pension credit and (b) savings pension credit (i) in Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, (ii) on Teesside and (iii) in the north-east; [139937]
(3) many pensioners (a) in Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, (b) on Teesside and (c) in the north-east are entitled to claim (i) the guarantee pension credit and (ii) the savings pension credit. [139737]
James Purnell: Estimates of eligibility and therefore take-up and amounts of unclaimed benefit are not available below the level of Great Britain. It is not therefore possible to say how many people are eligible to pension credit, what the take-up rate is or what amount of pension credit is unclaimed in the geographical areas specified in the questions.
Latest estimates of the amount of pension credit left unclaimed and the number of pensioners who were eligible for pension credit in Great Britain were published in ‘Pension Credit Estimates of Take-Up in 2005/2006’. A copy of the report is available in the Library.
The following table shows the number of households in the north-east, Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland constituency and Tees Valley district local authorities receiving pension credit.
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