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3 Jun 2009 : Column 546W—continued
Mortgages: Government Assistance
Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether the changes to the support offered under the income support for mortgage interest scheme which came into effect in January 2009 are applicable to people who were claiming before that date; and if he will make a statement. [277690]
Kitty Ussher: The changes introduced to support for mortgage interest from 5 January 2009 apply to working age people who make new claims on or after that date.
People who claimed income support, employment and support allowance and jobseeker's allowance before 5 January, but who were still in a waiting period for support for mortgage interest on 4 January also benefit from these changes.
People who were already receiving support for mortgage interest before 5 January were unaffected.
All customers, existing and new, including those on pension credit, are helped by the freeze to the standard interest rate used to calculate support for mortgage interest at 6.08 per cent. until December 2009.
Pensioners: Carers’ Benefits
Mr. Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for what reason women over 60 years old are not eligible to receive adult dependency increase in respect of a husband or civil partner under 65 years old. [277106]
Ms Rosie Winterton [holding answer 1 June 2009]: Differences have existed in relation to dependency increases of benefit since the inception of the Social Security scheme in 1948, mainly because women were not regarded in general as having to support their husbands who would tend to have their own personal access to national insurance benefits.
The Pensions Act 2007 abolished these outdated dependency rules for state pensions and from April 2010 no further increases will be awarded with the state pension. By April 2020 any remaining adult dependency payments paid with a state pension will cease completely.
Poverty: Children
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what projection his Department has made of the level of (a) absolute and (b) relative child poverty in (i) 2009-10, (ii) 2010-11 and (iii) 2011-12; and what information his Department holds on the geographical distribution of the increase since 2006-07 in the number of (A) children and (B) adults of working age living in relative poverty after housing costs announced on 7 May 2009. [276514]
Kitty Ussher: The information requested is as follows:
The Government do not publish official projections of child poverty into the future due to the uncertainty surrounding the assumptions made around future demography, employment and average earnings, as well as the uprating of tax credits and benefits.
The geogr aphical distribution of poverty
This information can be found in the latest release of Households Below Average Income which is available on the DWP website and in the Library. In this, disaggregation by geographical regions is presented as three-year averages. This presentation has been used as single-year regional estimates are considered too volatile. The most recent available data available since 2006/07 are in the following tables.
| Risk of living in relative (60 per cent. of median) low income poverty (AHC) for children by region and country (per cent.) three-year average | ||
| Region/country | 2004-05 to 2006-07 | 2005-06 to 2007-08 |
Social Security Benefits
Mr. Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of benefit claimants receiving each type of benefit are aged between 18 and 30 years. [276259]
Kitty Ussher: The most recent available information is in the following tables.
| Proportion of benefit recipients aged 18-30 in Great Britain as at November 2008 | |
| Percentage | |
| Note: Proportions are rounded to the nearest 1 decimal place. Source: DWP Information Directorate 100 percent WPLS | |
| Proportion of benefit recipients aged 18-30 in Great Britain as at May 2004 | |
| Percentage | |
| Note: Proportions are rounded to the nearest whole per cent. Source: Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit Management information System Annual 1 per cent. sample taken in May 2008 | |
Welfare Reform Bill
Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families on the provision of child care to enable single parents to carry out work-related activity under the provisions of the Welfare Reform Bill 2008-09; and if he will make a statement. [275404]
Kitty Ussher: The Department works closely with the Department for Children, Schools and Families to ensure the successful delivery of the National Childcare Strategy for England, which aims to ensure that there is sufficient child care available to meet the needs of working families and to support parents who are undertaking work related activities. Key to this are the provisions in the Childcare Act 2006, which includes a duty on local authorities to secure sufficient child care to ensure they meet the need of their local communities, in particular for those on low incomes and who have disabled children.
Women and Equality
Equality and Human Rights Commission: Pay
John McDonnell: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many bonuses have been awarded to senior civil servants working in the Equality and Human Rights Commission in each year since its inception; and what expenditure was incurred on such bonuses in each year. [277878]
Maria Eagle: No bonuses have been awarded to senior civil servants working in the Equality and Human Rights Commission during the period 1 October 2007 to 31 May 2009.
Equality and Human Rights Commission: Telephone Services
John McDonnell: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what the cost of (a) recruiting and (b) training helpline staff in the Equality and Human Rights Commission has been in each year since its creation. [277875]
Maria Eagle: The information is as follows:
(a) £326,228 was spent on recruitment of helpline staff;
(b) £211,070 was spent on training of helpline staff.
(a) No further recruitment took place;
(b) £20,000 was spent on training of helpline staff.
John McDonnell: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality whether an equality impact assessment on the removal of the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s helpline from the Manchester office has been undertaken. [277877]
Maria Eagle: Following the announcement of the proposed changes to the helpline in February 2009, the EHRC has been completing an equality impact assessment which will continue to be updated as part of the on-going consultation and decision making process. A full analysis of the equality impact assessments and mitigations will be made available to the senior management team ahead of any decision being taken.
John McDonnell: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what discussions the Equality and Human Rights Commission had with recognised trades unions on the future of its helpline team in Manchester before deciding to close the team. [277879]
Maria Eagle: Since February 2009 the EHRC have been consulting with the trade unions regarding the proposed reorganisation of the helpline. There have been five formal meetings with the recognised trade unions to discuss the proposal. In addition the trade unions have been actively involved in a series of action groups looking at specific elements of the proposal.
The senior management team are currently considering the points raised during the consultation period by the trade unions and no decision has been made to go ahead with the proposed changes.
John McDonnell: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality how many calls have been received by the Equality and Human Rights Commission's helpline in each quarter since its inception. [277900]
Maria Eagle: The Equality and Human Rights Commission’s helpline has been operational since 1 October 2007. Robust reporting systems were not in place until February 2008. The available call statistics from that date are as follows:
| Number of calls received | |
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