§ Mr. PikeTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the designated staff level for his Department's Burnley office for the current year; how many staff were in post on 1 April; what were the comparable figures for 1987 and 1986; and what is the comparable work load position for the same period.
§ Mr. PortilloThe information requested is as follows:
591W
Complement Staff 1986–87 212 1987–88 236 1988–89 210.5
Staff in Post Staff 1 April 1986 214.5 1 April 1987 211 1 April 1988 226.5
17 December 1985 16 December 1986 17 November 1987 Supplementary benefits live load 16,308 16,772 15,701 Short term benefits live load 6,660 6,851 7,054 Comparable figures are not available for the full range of contributory benefits.
The 1987 work load figures are provisional and subject to amendment.
Direct comparisons between the numbers of staff and the live load are misleading as workloads vary considerably by type and duration of claim and the action that has to be taken. All these factors vary over time as a result of legislative, policy and procedural changes.