§ Mr. WebbTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will estimate the savings from extending the waiting period for income support mortgage interest payments from nine to 14 months. [125297]
§ Mr. BayleyIf the waiting period for mortgage interest payments was extended from 9 to 14 months, the estimated annual savings would be around £25 million per year, based on 1999 levels of mortgage interest payments. This estimate takes account of pensioners but not other special groups who do not have to serve the current waiting period.
§ Mr. WebbTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what assessment he has made of the effect of the nine months income support mortgage interest payments waiting period on the level of arrears and repossessions. [125299]
§ Mr. BayleyNo information is collected by the Department about the accrual of arrears or repossession activity in mortgages taken out by Income Support and income based Jobseeker's Allowance recipients. Benefit help for homeowners with housing costs is intended to provide reasonable protection to help secure the home. The mortgage lenders have agreed, under the Mortgage Code, to consider all cases of financial difficulty and mortgage arrears sympathetically and positively.
Mr. Michael Jabez FosterTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what estimate he has made of the number of single pensioners receiving income support who have income resources being taken into account of £73.45 or more per week. [125793]
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§ Mr. BayleyAs at February 2000, there were 344,000 single pensioners receiving the Minimum Income Guarantee paid through Income Support who had income resources of £73.45 or more per week being taken into account.
Notes:1. Figure is based on a 5 per cent. sample and is therefore subject to a degree of sampling error.2. Figure is rounded to the nearest hundred cases.Source:Income Support Statistics Quarterly Inquiry, February 2000.
Mr. Michael Jabez FosterTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what estimate he has made of the number of pensioner couples receiving Income Support who have income resources being taken into account of £114.95 or more per week. [125794]
§ Mr. BayleyAs at February 2000, there were 69,500 pensioner couples receiving the Minimum Income Guarantee paid through Income Support who had income resources of £114.95 or more per week being taken into account.
Notes:1. Pensioners are defined as where the claimant is aged over 60 or over.2. Figure is based on a 5 per cent. sample and is therefore subject to a degree of sampling error.3. Figure is rounded to the nearest hundred cases.Source:Income Support Statistics Quarterly Enquiry, February 2000