§ Mr. Pardoeasked the Minister of Social Security how many old people have an income low enough to entitle them to supplementary benefit but do not claim it, as shown by recent surveys made by her Department; and what was the comparable figure in 1964.
§ Mr. PentlandThere have been no surveys bearing on this problem since the Enquiry into the Financial and Other Circumstances of Retirement Pensioners, which suggested that in May, 1965, there were about three-quarters of a million retirement pensioners who would have been entitled to National Assistance if they had claimed it. The introduction of the supplementary benefits scheme, increased rates of benefit, and the rate rebates scheme must have reduced this number very substantially but it is impossible to estimate with any degree of accuracy by how much.