Family Credit (Hansard, 19 October 1988)

§ Mr. Wigley
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he has any plans to seek to improve the workings of the family credit system with regard to the requirement to submit audited accounts; what representations he has received concerning the need to modify current regulations; and if he will make a statement.

§ Mr. Peter Lloyd
There is no requirement for self-employed persons to submit any accounts in support of a claim for family credit The relevant information
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(3) what was the number of applications for single payments from persons in the Fife North-East area over the six months period from April 1987; and what was the proportion of these for which a payment was granted.

§ Mr. Peter Lloyd
Fife North-East constituency is covered by the Department's offices at Dundee East, Leven and Perth, but their boundaries are not conterminous. Information about social fund applications and awards from the social fund since 11 April 1988 is held in the Library.
Information about single payment expenditure is not available monthly. However, the available information for the 24-week period ending on 22 September 1987 is shown in the table.
about business receipts and expenses may be provided by completing a form supplied by my Department or by submitting accounts, as the person wishes. The legislation provides that, for accounts to be acceptable for this purpose, they have to be maintained and audited by a qualified auditor. Representations have been received from claimants and their financial advisers that this latter condition is unduly restrictive.
We intend, shortly, to lay amending regulations to relax the rules on the acceptability of accounts, though without changing the present basis of assessing earnings from the business by reference to gross receipts and expenses allowable under family credit legislation.

§ Mr. Wigley
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many families were in receipt of family credit payments during the period April to June, inclusive; and how many of thesed were paid on the basis of submitted audited accounts.

§ Mr. Peter Lloyd
The number of families in receipt of family credit was:
194,000 at the end of April

215,000 at the end of May

236,000 at the end of June
None of these was being paid on the basis of submitted audited accounts.

§ Mr. Wigley
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many families were in receipt of family income supplement in March; and how many families were in receipt of family credit in September.

§ Mr. Peter Lloyd
Around 205,000 families were receiving family income supplement in March. Around 242,000 families were receiving family credit at the end of September, but at that stage the situation was distorted by the effects of the postal dispute which had held up the receipt and clearance of claims. Otherwise, on the basis of claims subsequently received, the figure could have been expected to be higher than at the end of August when over 255,000 families were receiving family credit.