§ Mr. Maurice Macmillanasked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he will take steps to improve the information available to him concerning the take-up rate of the benefits administer by his Department, in order to aim his Department's advertising campaigns more effectively, and to make it more likely that those in real need will receive assistance.
§ Mr. OrmeMy Department has recently commissioned a major survey, one of the objects of which is to provide more information about the take-up of means-tested benefits and child benefit. An overall take-up rate for a benefit does not, by itself, provide much guidance for advertising campaigns, and one of the objects of the survey is to identify the groups of potential claimants in which 667W the problem of take-up is most serious. In addition, other, smaller-scale research on various aspects of take-up has either been commissioned or is under active consideration; and the Supplementary Benefits Commission is to publish shortly the results of an analysis of the circumstances of those with an apparent unclaimed entitlement to supplementary benefit. The take-up position of those in the greatest need is likely to be covered by one or other of these studies.
As regards non-means-tested benefits, other than child benefit, there are severe practical difficulties in obtaining information about take-up, and we have at present no proposals for research in this field. There is, however, no evidence to suggest that there is any significant shortfall in the take-up of non-means-tested benefits.