§ Mrs. Bainasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what is the most 597W recent estimate of the number of people in receipt of full mobility allowance; what percentage of these are paid by Giro cheque; and what is the administrative cost of the payment of mobility allowance, showing the Giro cheque system as a percentage of the total.
§ Mr. Alfred MorrisOn 13th February, mobility allowance was being paid to 65,397 beneficiaries.
In general, the payment of mobility allowance is made by means of order books containing twelve four-weekly orders. Giro cheques are used for several special purposes, including the payment of any arrears due before order books can be prepared and also where the beneficiary has difficulty in obtaining payment by order book.
The cost of administering mobility allowance in 1977–78 is estimated to be about £1½ million. It is not possible, without disproportionate cost, to identify the proportion of this sum which relates to all the purposes for which Giro cheques are used.