The Rt. Hon. Sir John Major KG CH

Tag: Benefits

  • 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 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 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 Unemployment Benefit and Pensions – 17 March 1986

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

    Mr. Gordon Brown Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will list the latest information available on the percentage of gross average earnings, unemployment benefit and the basic state pension each represents in the United Kingdom; and how this compares to each of the other members of the European Economic Community and the Scandinavian countries.

    Mr. Major The basic rates of retirement pension and unemployment benefit for a married couple introduced in November 1985 were at that date 36 per cent. and 29 per cent. respectively of the average weekly gross earnings of adult male manual workers in Great Britain. Information on the level of benefit in other countries is given in the Department’s publications “Tables of Social Benefit Systems in the Member States of the European Communities” and “Comparative Tables of the Social Security Systems in Council of Europe member states not belonging to the European Communities”, available in the Library. Information is not available for reliable comparisons with gross average earnings in the relevant countries.

  • Mr Major’s Written Parliamentary Answer on Supplementary Benefit – 13 March 1986

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Supplementary Benefit on 13th March 1986.

    Ms. Harman Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many people are in receipt of supplementary benefit in the area of Oxted, Surrey.

    Mr. Major Separate figures showing the number of people receiving supplementary benefit in Oxted, Surrey, are not available. Oxted forms a small part of the area covered for supplementary benefit purposes by the Department’s office at Redhill. On 11 February 1986, the latest date for which information is available, there were 7,945 people receiving supplementary benefit from Redhill office.

    Mr. Sean Hughes Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many people are presently awaiting single payments in the north-west region of his Department and nationally; and how many have been waiting for more than four weeks, eight weeks and 12 weeks, respectively.

    Mr. Major I regret that this information is not available.

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

  • Mr Major’s Written Parliamentary Answer on Sickness Benefit – 11 March 1986

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Sickness Benefit on 11th March 1986.

    Mr. Alfred Morris Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many people received reduced rate sickness benefit in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and how many of these subsequently obtained invalidity benefit.

    Mr. Major [pursuant to his reply, 5 March 1986, c.161]: The number of claims giving rise to entitlement to sickness benefit at the reduced rate is provisionally estimated at 41,000 in 1983-84 and 28,000 in 1984-85. The number of these going on to obtain invalidity benefit was 4,000 and 5,000, respectively. I regret that the information is not available for earlier years.

    Mr. Alfred Morris Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what would be the annual cost of paying sickness benefit to anyone who had paid or been credited with contributions on earnings of 25 times the lower earnings limit in the relevant tax year.

    Mr. Major [pursuant to his reply, 5 March 1986, c. 161]: On the evidence available, an estimated £120 million in 1986-87, of which approximately £2 million is attributable to people with contributions paid or credited on earnings between 25 and 49 times the lower earnings limit.

    Mr. Alfred Morris Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is his estimate of the number of people each year who will fail to qualify for invalidity benefit as a result of the proposal in the Social Security Bill to abolish reduced rate sickness benefit.

    Mr. Major [pursuant to his reply, 5 March 1986, c.161]: 6,500 in 1987-88.

  • Mr Major’s Written Parliamentary Answer on Housing Benefit – 11 March 1986

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Housing Benefit on 11th March 1986.

    Mr. Andrew Bowden Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many pensioner households lost all housing benefit as a result of the changes which came into effect in November 1985; and, of these, how many were tenants and how many owner-occupiers.

    Mr. Major I shall let my hon. Friend have a reply as soon as possible.

    Mr. Kirkwood Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what has been the average delay between claiming, and receiving the first payment of, housing benefit for each year since the system was introduced.

    Mr. Major Responsibility for the administration of the housing benefit scheme rests with the individual local authorities. Information about the speed with which claims are processed is not collected centrally.

  • Mr Major’s Written Parliamentary Answer on Housing Benefit – 7 March 1986

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Housing Benefit on 7th March 1986.

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

    Mr. Major [pursuant to his reply, 28 February 1986, c. 715]: We estimate that the number of rate rebate recipients, based on the local authority’s subsidy returns, as a proportion of the number of domestic ratepayers in Portsmouth is about 38 per cent.

  • Mr Major’s Written Parliamentary Answer on Housing Benefit – 6 March 1986

    Below is the text of Mr Major’s written Parliamentary Answer on Housing Benefit on 6th March 1986.

    Mr. Wainwright Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many pensioner households in the area served by the Huddersfield benefit office lost housing benefit as a result of the changes which came into effect in November 1985; and how many of these lost (a) up to £1 a week, (b) between £1 and £2 a week, (c) between £3 and £4 a week and (d) more than £3 a week.

    Mr. Major I regret this information is not available.

    Dr. Godman Asked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) what information he has as to the proportion of council house tenants in (a) Inverclyde, (b) Strathclyde and (c) Scotland who receive housing benefit;

    (2) what information he has as to the proportion of domestic ratepayers in (a) Inverclyde, (b) Strathclyde and (c) Scotland who receive housing benefit.

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