§ Mr. SoleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) whether he will announce the outcome of his Department's review of the procedure for allocating national insurance numbers;
(2) whether his Department intends to consult the Commission for Racial Equality and organisations working with refugees in its review of the procedure for allocating national insurance numbers.
§ Mr. JackFollowing an internal review of procedures, it was decided that when foreign nationals are restricted from seeking work in this country we would no longer inform the Home Office when a national insurance number is issued for benefit purposes only. The Department now accepts a wider range of documents as evidence of identity.
The review took careful account of views expressed by organisations working with refugees.