25. Mr. R. C. Mitchellasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the cost of advertising the family income supplement scheme to the latest available date; how many families now 44W benefit from the scheme; and what is the total amount so far paid out in benefits.
§ Sir K. Joseph£310,000 has been spent on advertising the family income supplement scheme. About 90,000 families are benefiting under it, including about 65,000 families with head in full-time work receiving the family income supplement and about 25,000 families receiving additional supplementary benefit under Section 13 of the Act. On the best estimate I can make, expenditure on both kinds of benefit to date amounts to nearly £2 million.
§ 47. Mr. Dalyellasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will make a statement on the proportion of people, entitled to family income supplement, actually claiming their entitlement.
§ Sir K. JosephThe proportion at 26th November was 41 per cent. on the basis of estimates which, as I explained in my answer to the hon. Member for Cornwall, North (Mr. Pardoe) on 18th November, are subject to wide margins of error. The figure of 41 per cent. does not include either claims awaiting determination or families receiving additional supplementary benefit under the Family Income Supplements Act.—[Vol. 826, c.203–4.]