HC Deb 27 June 1975 vol 894 cc251-3W
Mr. Michael Spicer

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services when a Minister from her Department will visit

Mr. O'Malley

Fraud investigation is carried out either by local office staff or special investigators according to the complexity of the inquiries needed. Staff time in local offices is allocated as required and no estimate of shortages can be made. Staffing details of special investigators at 1st June 1975 are shown in the table below:

benefit during the last convenient week; and how many of those were under 25 years.

Mr. Meacher

I regret the information is not available in the form requested, in part because claims statistics are not maintained on a weekly basis. I can, however, inform the hon. Member that the Weymouth office dealt with claims during the lunar month ending 17th June 1975 as follows:

St. Wulstan's Hospital, Malvern, in accordance with the undertaking given on 13th March that a visit would be made.

Mr. Meacher

As stated in my predecessor's letter of 13th March, we wait to see if the health authorities propose closure and if the decision falls to my right hon. Friend under the terms of paragraph 23(e) of "Democracy in the NHS".