HC Deb 11 April 1978 vol 947 cc1168-70
9. Mr. Arnold

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is his latest estimate of the number of retirement pensioners entitled to receive supplementary benefit who do not apply for such benefits.

The Under-Secretary of State for Health and Social Security (Mr. Eric Deakins)

At the end of 1975, about 600,000 retirement pensioners were estimated not to be receiving supplementary benefit to which they were entitled.

Mr. Arnold

Will the Minister pay attention to the complexity of many benefits and the great difficulty that many people face in discovering to what benefits they are entitled?

Mr. Deakins

This is a problem of which we and the Supplementary Benefits Commission are fully aware and we are concerned about the situation. I draw the hon. Gentleman's attention to chapter 10 of the last annual report of the Commission, which goes into this issue in some detail.

Mr. Park

In view of the large amount of unclaimed benefit about which we heard earlier, could not the Department deal more sympathetically with retrospective claims from people who learn about their benefit to entitlement too late?

Mr. Deakins

We do what we can within the limits of the discretion allowed by laws laid down by this Parliament to exercise discretion over the retrospective payment of benefits not only for supplementary pensioners but for other recipients of social security benefits who have not claimed them in time. There are reasons which have to be given for not claiming in due time, and also laws laid down by this House to ensure that benefits cannot be claimed more than a certain period in arrears.

Mrs. Chalker

This afternoon the Minister rightly referred, with praise, to Professor Donnison. Will he explain to the House why the Labour Government refuse to research a tax credit system to help those pensioners who should be receiving benefit but who today do not claim supplementary benefit?

Mr. Deakins

The idea of a tax credit system would not help in this connection. The pensioners who are not claiming supplementary benefit by and large are failing to do so not because of ignorance but partly because in some areas they think there is a stigma attached to claiming benefit, and partly because in many instances the amounts to which they would be entitled would be less than £1 a week.

Mr. Ashley

In view of the fact that the Minister a moment ago said that over £300 million in benefits of all kinds are unclaimed, does this not make nonsense of the anti-scrounger campaign so assiduously peddled by Conservative Members? When the Secretary of State launches his campaign to increase the uptake of benefits, will he also make clear that the anti-scrounger campaign is damaging to genuine recipients and people in need?

Mr. Deakins

My hon. Friend makes a most important point. I am certain that the anti-scrounger campaign has had an impact in preventing people who would otherwise have come forward from taking up their entitlement. It ill behoves those who believe that there are vast amounts of unclaimed benefits to attack those who are abusing the system. For pensioners, the total amount that we estimate to be unclaimed is £65 million. There are many other possible recipients of supplementary benefit who are also not claiming.