§ Mr. ClaphamTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many employees of his Department retired through work-related ill-health in the last year for which records are available; and what the cost was to the Department. [56088]
§ Ruth Kelly[holding answer 20 May 2002]: HM Treasury does not maintain records, which enable ill-health retirements to be separately identified as work related. For HM Treasury one member of staff retired with a medical certificate issued by the civil service pension scheme medical adviser in the period 1 April 2001 to 31 March 2002.
Benefits provided on medical retirement are as set out in the rules of the principal civil service pension scheme and laid before Parliament, and provide for an immediate payment of an enhanced pension and lump sum. Ill health retirement expenditure is met centrally from the civil superannuation vote. For the year ending March 2002, provisional expenditure met from the vote was £310 million in respect of all civil service cases for which an ill health pension has been awarded. These cases number approximately 67,000 and include those who have formerly been ill health retired but who have now reached and exceeded the normal retirement age.