§ Mrs. Chalkerasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what was the total amount of Giro cheques and the average amount of money per Giro cheque for welfare benefits reported in 1976 as not received, lost, stolen or destroyed after receipt and then replaced, but which have been found subsequently to have been encashed.
§ Mr. OrmeIt is provisionally estimated that during 1976, of the 111 million Giro cheques issued in respect of all benefits, about 77,000–0.07 per cent. of all issues—reported as lost or not received were replaced and subsequently found to have been cashed; on the basis of the value of all Giro cheques issued, these had an average value of about £19.