Mr Major’s Written Parliamentary Answer on Benefits (Costs) – 10 December 1986

Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Benefits (Costs) on 10th December 1986.

Mr. Meacher Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how much of the additional £1.7 billion allocated to social security expenditure for 1987-88 in autumn statement was in respect of the estimated cost of (a) real increases in benefit rates, (b) increase in number of retirement pensioners, (c) increase in number of unemployed people claiming benefit, (d) increase in number of people claiming because of long term sickness disability, (e) increase in the number of single parents claiming benefit, (f) increased cost of administering a larger number of claims specifying how much is due to the expected increase in the number of staff, (g) increased cost of implementing the Social Security Act specifying how much is in respect of (i) replacement staff to enable permanent staff to be trained in the changes and (ii) extra staff costs in respect of conversion to income support and (h) other factors.

Mr. Major A detailed explanation of the changes to the programme will be published in the 1987 Public Expenditure White Paper in the normal way.