§ Mr. Charles Irvingasked the Secretary of State for Social Services, in view of the principle enunciated in October last, Official Report, 22nd October, column 567, that saving should be made by simplifying the system rather than by reducing the service, why he decided to save 291W 500 staff by cutting visits made to supplementary benefit recipients; if he intends to review these proposals in the light of the results of the inquiry into the supplementary benefit scheme; and what arrangements are to be made for public participation and debate on these matters.
§ Mr. Deakins:The system for investigating supplementary benefit claims comprises four methods of obtaining and giving information, namely, interviews at the local offices, interviews at claimants' homes, telephone discussions and correspondence. The most expensive and not necessarily the best of these methods is home visiting, and consideration is being given, in the light of the Government's decision to reduce administrative expenditure in the years ending in April 1978 and 1979, to changes in visiting arrangements and an increased use of the other three methods. The review of the supplementary benefit scheme is a separate and longer term issue, which has as a major aim the simplification of the scheme. It is hoped to publish next year ideas from that review for public debate, before firm proposals are made. We shall of course look again at the need for, and the extent of, home visiting in the light of decisions reached as a result of the review.