§ 2. Miss WiddecombeTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what he is doing to help those 20,000 widows caught in an entitlement trap on the basis of the age bands operating before April 1988.
§ The Minister for Social Security (Mr. Nicholas Scott)We intend to restore entitlement to widowed mothers' allowance and widows' pension to all women widowed before 11 April 1988.
§ Miss WiddecombeI congratulate my hon. Friend on that proposed action, which will negate the trap. How is he identifying the widows concerned and how soon will the exercise be completed?
§ Mr. ScottWe estimate that about 20,000 widows are affected. We have checked our records and we have contacted all those whom we have identified. We believe that we have done so accurately but if anyone feels that she might be entitled and has not been contacted by the Department, she should get in touch with us.
§ Mr. ScottApart from anything else, I do not think that that supplementary question arises from the main question.