HC Deb 17 June 2002 vol 387 cc85-6W
Mr. Willetts

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department has spent on advertising in 2001–02; which advertising campaigns(a) are running and (b) will begin before the end of the financial year; and what is the estimated final cost of his Department's advertising during 2001–02. [42517]

Mr. Nicholas Brown

The Department for Work and Pensions was formed in June 2001. Since that time a total of some £25 million has been spent on major campaigns either educating people or alerting them to their rights and responsibilities. The following campaigns began before the end of the 2001–02 financial year and have run into 2002–03:

  • Pensions Education
  • State Second Pension
  • Inherited SERPS.

An accurate estimate of the Department's final marketing spend for 2001–02 is not yet available.

Mr. Bercow

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will list the publicity and advertising campaigns run by his Department in each of the last four years, specifying the(a) purpose, (b) cost to public funds, (c) number of staff involved and (d) method of evaluation in each case. [39105]

Mr. Nicholas Brown

The Department for Work and Pensions was formed in June 2001. Since that time the following major campaigns costing over £250,000 have been run:

New Deal for Disabled People—£850,000

A national campaign to launch NDDP, covering press advertising in national and regional titles, supported by a helpline, website and publicity material.

New Deal 50 Plus—£500,000

A regional campaign to encourage more of the over-50s into work and to increase their awareness of the local help available.

New Deal 25 Plus—£500,000

A national campaign to inform the public about changes to the programme through radio advertising, a video and printed materials, supported by research.

Age Positive—£500,000

PR (including direct mail and partnerships with regional newspapers, sponsoring an award, exhibitions, research and promotional material) to raise employers' awareness of the business benefits of employing an age-diverse work force.

Work Incentives—£450,000

Advertising campaign on local radio to raise awareness of the range of financial initiatives available to those moving from benefits into employment if they meet the qualifying criteria.

Pension Education—£7,188,000

A publicity campaign to encourage people to save for their retirement and understand the pension options available to them.

Second State Pension—£463,000

Development and implementation of publicity to inform carers about how new state pension rules could help them—linked to the overall pensions education campaign.

Pensioners' Guide—£729,000

Production and distribution of a guide on cross-Government help and services for pensioners.

Winter Fuel Payments—£718,000

Information for people aged 60 plus and advisers about winter fuel payments and activity reminding them to claim and telling them how to claim for winter 2001 and relevant previous winters.

Changes to rules on inherited SERPS—£459,000

Publicity about change to the rules on inheriting the State Earnings-Related Scheme.

Targeting Fraud—£9,000,000

A national advertising campaign on television, radio, press and posters to deter dishonest behaviour, reinforced by regional press advertising showing that benefit fraudsters are regularly caught and punished.

Disability Discrimination Act Awareness—£3,000,000 A national, regional and trade press advertising campaign to raise the public's awareness of the DDA and specifically to encourage service providers to ensure that disabled people have access to their services.

Staff number information is not held in the format requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Evaluation of all campaigns is routine procedure. Methods of evaluation vary and reflect the objectives of each individual campaign. Programme or product take up and contact data, e.g. telephone calls, e- and white-mail, coupons, website visits are sued to measure shifts in interest and demand. General shifts in awareness, attitude and behaviour are measured through pre- and post-campaign data, as well as tracking research.