Category: 1983-1987 Parliament

Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Allowances on 4th February 1987.

Mr. Meacher Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many are in receipt of (a) mobility allowance and (b) attendance allowance; how many mobility allowance and attendance allowance recipients receive supplementary benefit or are dependants of someone receiving supplementary benefit; and what is his estimate as to the proportion of such people who either receive a higher-rate heating addition for themselves or have one paid to the head of the household on their account for the latest available year.

Mr. Major I shall let the hon. Member have a reply as soon as possible.

Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Maternity Pay on 4th February 1987.

Mr. Sims Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services when he will announce the arrangements by which employers will be reimbursed for payments of statutory maternity pay and compensated for their share of the national insurance contributions paid on them, and the rates of such compensation for both statutory maternity pay and statutory sick pay from 6 April 1987.

Mr. Major The arrangements for reimbursing employers for their payments of statutory maternity pay and compensating them for the associated secondary (employers’) national insurance contributions will be the same as those now operating for statutory sick pay. For the year beginning 6 April 1987 the compensation for secondary national insurance contributions will be at a rate of 7 per cent. of the statutory maternity pay paid to employees. This rate will also apply to payments of statutory sick pay. It has been calculated from estimates of aggregate payments of statutory sick pay and statutory maternity pay in 1987-88 and the total secondary national insurance contributions payable on them.

I have today laid the necessary regulations.

Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Mr Donald Cotterill on 3rd February 1987.

Mr. Heddle Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will indicate when the decision of the adjudicating officer at the Department of Social Security mobility allowance unit will announce his decision in the case of Mr. Donald Cotterill of 3 Brownsfield road, Lichfield (Mobility Allowance No. 0316111).

Mr. Major Mr. Cotterill was notified on 28 January that an award of mobility allowance has been made by the adjudication officer.

Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Board and Lodging on 3rd February 1987.

Mr. Weetch Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many claimants were living in ordinary board and lodging in Ipswich on the last convenient date when information was available; and how many of these are having to pay more for their accommodation than the upper ceiling laid down by the current regulations.

Mr. Major Information on the number of people in receipt of supplementary benefit and living in ordinary board and lodging accommodation is not available for specific areas of the country. Information, drawn from special returns by local offices, on the number of claimants whose charge fell outside the ordinary board and lodging limit in the board and lodging area which includes Ipswich during the period April to July 1985 is available in a Department of Health and Social Security document “Supplementary Benefit Board and Lodging Allowances, Results of a Special Statistical Exercise (29 April—29 July 1985)”, a copy of which is in the Library.

Mr. Weetch Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many claimants living in ordinary board and lodging in Ipswich are 25 years of age or younger.

Mr. Major I regret that the information requested is not collected by individual local offices and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Seasonal Workers on 3rd February 1987.

Mr. Hicks Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he has any plans to change the conditions for unemployment benefit entitlement with reference to the position of seasonal workers; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Major The Social Security Advisory Committee is at present reviewing the operation of the additional conditions applying to the receipt of unemployment benefit by seasonal workers, at the request of my right hon. Friend, and the position will be considered in the light of its eventual report and any recommendations that it may make.

Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Severe Weather Payments on 3rd February 1987.

Mr. Meadowcroft Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will publish in the Official Report a list of the percentages of severe weather payment claims dealt with by each benefit office by 24 January.

Mr. Major Information is not available in the form requested. Statistics on the number of exceptionally cold weather payments made and those refused are being maintained and will be published in due course.

Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Disabled People on 3rd February 1987.

Mr. Carter-Jones Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what representation his Department will be sending to the European region expert meeting on the implementation of the world programme of action concerning disabled persons at the mid-point of the United Nations Decade of Disabled Persons which will take place in Ljubljana, Yugoslavia from 10 to 13 March; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Major Information about the meeting has just been received and we are now considering Departmental representation.

Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Consultants (Fees) on 3rd February 1987.

Mr. Tim Smith Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services further to his reply to the hon. Member for Holborn and St. Pancras (Mr. Dobson) on 19 November 1986, Official Report, columns 221-222, whether he will break down the expenditure on consultants’ fees between the National Health Service and social services.

Mr. Major The expenditure by the Department in 1984-85 and 1985-86, and the estimated expenditure for 1986-87, on fees and expenses for outside consultants is as follows:

Year | Health matters | Social security matters (in £ million)
1984-85 | 0.911 | 6.689
1985-86 | 1.7 | 11.946
1986-87 | 4.525 | 12.437

The figures are approximate. In some cases expenditure on health/social security has been apportioned where consultants have been employed on both. The figures for health matters include social services consultancy. The figures for expenditure by individual health authorities have not been given as they are not kept centrally by the department.

Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Artificial Limbs on 2nd February 1987.

Mr. Dobson Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many primary fittings of limbs were carried out at artificial limb and appliance centres in each month since January 1985.

Mr. Major The figures requested are not available.

Mr. Dobson asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many amputees were waiting for primary fittings in each month since 1985; and whether any amputations have been postponed as a result of the industrial dispute at J. E. Hanger.

Mr. Major The figures requested are not available.

A decision on whether an amputation is to be carried out is made by the surgeon concerned. We are not aware of any postponement of an amputation on account of the J. E. Hanger industrial dispute.

Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Severe Weather Payments on 2nd February 1987.

Mr. Gordon Brown Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will instruct all his offices to accept telephone applications for severe weather payments; and if he will instruct each local office to write to pensioners and others on supplementary benefit informing them that they may be eligible for severe weather payments.

Mr. Major The Department’s local offices have already been instructed to accept claims for exceptionally cold weather payments by telephone.

Although there are nearly 5 million supplementary benefit recipients, it is estimated that only about 1.5 million of these will qualify for exceptionally cold weather payments. It is not, therefore, proposed to instruct local offices to write to all supplementary benefit recipients about the scheme. I am, however, satisfied that, in view of the widespread publicity in national and local newspapers and on local radio, all reasonable steps have been taken to ensure that potential claimants are made aware of their entitlement.