§ Mr. Alfred MorrisTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will place in the Library the full detailed secondary analysis of the reports of the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys on the prevalence of disability which relate to the number of disabled people who need special diets and their eligibility or ineligibility for the new lower care component of disability laving allowance; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. ScottWhen devising the lower rate care component of the disability living allowance, we looked at the OPCS evidence about people who said that they had care needs in connection with bodily functions or key daily tasks, but who would not be eligible for either of the existing rates of attendance allowance. We then looked more closely at the circumstances of these people to see whether we had identified a sensible target group. In particular we looked at what other disabilities these people suffered from—including whether they needed a special diet. The evidence suggests that, as with the existing rates of benefit, the new lower rates are convenient means of identifying people with a whole range of disabilities.