Housing Benefit

HC Deb 18 November 1998 vol 319 cc621-2W

Mr. Kidney

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when he will announce the result of his Department's review of housing benefit. [59059]

Angela Eagle

We have announced a project to simplify the Housing Benefit rules and regulations and to improve delivery of the benefit. We are working in conjunction with Local Authority Associations and further

Cumulative figures for phase 1 and 2 to 25 September 1998
Data item	Regional totals Laser1	Scotland2	Northern	South West	Wales3	North West4	Yorks and Humberside5	West Midlands6	East Midlands7	National totals
a. Number of initial letters issued8	11,994	4,044	1,275	1,470	5,071	5,815	5,474	6,154	7,097	48,394
b. Number of initial interviews booked	7,759	2,485	852	1,468	2,567	3,374	2,223	3,624	2,582	26,934
c. Number of initial interviews carried out	5,691	1,768	594	1,059	2,069	2,558	1,740	2,897	2,037	20,413
d. Number agreeing to participate in NDLP	4,973	1,512	494	884	1,949	2,252	1,472	2,506	1,616	17,658
e. Referrals to Employment Service9 programme or other training	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
f. Total number of jobs obtained	912	353	76	122	687	701	419	934	541	4,745
g. Number of lone parents who have increased their hours	142	44	8	52	82	92	65	127	82	694
i) Jobs obtained/hours increased, number of lone parents who10:
(a) work less than 16 hours per week	54	95	46	8	18	11	28	76	30	366
(b) work 16-29 hours per week (phase 2 only)	122	288	161	54	99	122	175	122	106	1,249
(c) work 30 hours or more per week (phase 2 only)	62	296	111	20	70	40	82	72	51	804
ii) have left Income Support as a result11	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a
iii) obtained jobs/increased hours have a child under five years and three months of age	129	370	272	40	123	87	318	359	149	1,847

announcements will be made in due course. In addition, we have also announced a small-scale pilot which will examine the issues surrounding the underoccupation of social housing.