§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Social Services, further to the reply of 26 January, Official Report, c. 333, of the Minister of State for Social Security to the right hon. Member for Stoke on Trent, South, if he will give a breakdown of the estimate that the gross cost of abolishing the household duties test would be £275 million.
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§ Mr. Rossi[pursuant to his reply, 5 July 1982, c. 29–30]: £275 million represents the cost in a full year of additional benefits payable at the rates introduced in November 1981, and is made up as follows:
- (i) Estimated extra cost of an additional 240,000 women becoming eligible for non-contributory invalidity pension of £17.75 a week: £220 million.
- (ii) Estimated extra cost of an additional 140,000 child dependency additions payable at £7.70 a week: £55 million.
As stated in my reply to the hon. Member for Barking (Miss Richardson) on 5 July, estimated savings from national insurance dependency additions would reduce the cost to £250 million.—[Vol. 27, c. 29.]