The Rt. Hon. Sir John Major KG CH

Category: 1983-1987 Parliament

  • Mr Major’s Written Parliamentary Answer on Supplementary Benefit – 20 March 1986

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Supplementary Benefit on 20th March 1986.

    Mr. Sean Hughes Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many single payments were made from the Huyton office of his Department during each of the last five years and in 1986 to date.

    Mr. Major [pursuant to his reply, 13 March 1986, c. 570]: The number of single payments made from the Huyton local office in the years since April 1982 are:

    Year | Number

    1982-83 – 7,882

    1983-84 – 12,634

    1984-85 – 16,910

    1985-86* – 14,566

    * up to 11 February 1986

    Information is not available for a complete year prior to 1982-83.

  • Mr Major’s Written Parliamentary Answer on New Earnings Survey – 20 March 1986

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on New Earnings Survey on 20th March 1986.

    Mr. Frank Field Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will publish the data for the “New Earnings Survey” for 1983 on the numbers of poor persons and households.

    Mr. Major I understand that the hon. Member is referring to this Department’s publication “Low Income Families”. I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my hon. Friend the Minister for Social Security to my hon. Friend the Member for Kensington (Sir B. Rhys Williams) on 4 March at column 122.

  • Mr Major’s Written Parliamentary Answer on Housing Benefit – 20 March 1986

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Housing Benefit on 20th March 1986.

    Mr. Corbyn Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will list the amount of housing benefit owed by his Department on 31 December 1985 to the local authorities of Islington, Camden, Hackney, Sheffield and Bristol; and if he will give comparable figures for the same dates in 1983 and 1984.

    Mr. Major The Department pays subsidy to local authorities on their benefit and administration costs under the housing benefits scheme on the basis of final audited claims for each financial year. Payments on account of subsidy are made each month during the year on the basis of authorities’ estimates of expenditure. No payments of subsidy were owed by the Department to any of the authorities mentioned on 31 December 1983, 1984 or 1985. Payments on account had also been made in the normal way.

  • Mr Major’s Written Parliamentary Answer on Local Office Staff – 20 March 1986

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Local Office Staff on 20th March 1986.

    Dr. Godman Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if, pursuant to his answer of 7 March, Official Report, column 322, he will published in the Official Report the number of additional social security local office staff to be allocated to (i) Greenock, (ii) Port Glasgow, (iii) Strathclyde and (iv) Scotland as a whole.

    Mr. Major The method of distributing the extra local office staff has still to be decided, so it is not possible at this stage to say how many extra staff Scotland and individual local offices will receive.

  • Mr Major’s Written Parliamentary Answer on Housing Benefit – 19 March 1986

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Housing Benefit on 19th March 1986.

    Mr. Park Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what proportion of the domestic ratepayers in Coventry receive housing benefit.

    Mr. Major We estimate that the number of rate rebate recipients, based on the local authority’s subsidy claims as a proportion of the number of domestic ratepayers in Coventry is about 40 per cent.

    Mr. Frank Field Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) if he will list (a) the number of claimants eligible for housing benefit and (b) the number and percentage claiming benefit for each year since the scheme’s initiation; and if he will also present data on the number of dependants covered by these payments.

    (2) if he will detail changes in the housing benefit scheme since its inception, together with planned future changes giving the numbers of claimants subject to changes to all or part of their entitlement, the average value of each of the changes and the net savings to public expenditure; and if he will express each of these changes to public expenditure as a percentage of the total cost of the scheme.

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

  • Mr Major’s Written Parliamentary Answer on Board and Lodging – 19 March 1986

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Board and Lodging on 19th March 1986.

    Mr. Kirkwood Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services when he expects the Chief Adjudication Officer to inform him of the date of a tribunal of commissioners to hear all the outstanding appeals involving the elderly and disabled in receipt of board and lodging assistance.

    Mr. Major I understand that an oral hearing of a tribunal of commissioners has been arranged for Friday 11 April 1986 to consider a case relating to this issue.

  • Mr Major’s Written Parliamentary Answer on National Insurance Contributions – 19 March 1986

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on National Insurance Contributions on 19th March 1986.

    Mr. Frank Field Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will list for each year since 1978–79 changes in the contribution rates for both employee and employer of class one national insurance contributions; and if he will state for each year the additional revenue raised by these charges from (i) employees and (ii) employers for each of these years.

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

  • Mr Major’s Written Parliamentary Answer on Supplementary Benefit – 19 March 1986

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Supplementary Benefit on 19th March 1986.

    Mr. Frank Field Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will detail for the latest available date the number of (a) claimants and (b) dependants on supplementary benefit; and if this total could be broken down into the main claimant groups.

    Mr. Major The latest date for which this information is available is December 1983, and I refer the hon. Member to table 3.1 of the “Annual Statistical Enquiry, 1983”, a copy of which is in the Library.

  • Mr Major’s Written Parliamentary Answer on Housing Benefit – 17 March 1986

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Housing Benefit on 17th March 1986.

    Mr. Corbyn Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will list, by each office of his Department, and housing authority, the total amounts of housing benefit owing by way of arrears as of 1 January.

    Mr. Major This information is not available centrally. Local authorities are responsible for administering the housing benefits scheme and where possible should determine a claim for benefit within 14 days of receiving the information required to calculate entitlement. If the hon. Member would like to know the position in any particular authority he should contact that authority direct.

  • Mr Major’s Written Parliamentary Answer on Rent Arrears – 17 March 1986

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Rent Arrears on 17th March 1986.

    Mr. Corbyn Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many recipients of housing benefit, by housing authority area, were in rent arrears on 1 January as a result of non-payment by his Department of moneys due to the housing authority.

    Mr. Major The Department makes monthly payments on account to local authorities to enable them to award benefit under the housing benefits scheme. The authorities estimate the sums they will need to spend at the start of each financial year and can submit a revised claim for subsidy if necessary during the year. There is no reason therefore why authorities should not have adequate funds to award rent rebates to those tenants entitled to benefit.