§ Mr. Ovendenasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what are the latest available figures for the number and proportion of unemployed people who are in receipt of supplementary bene-
(1) (2) (3) (4) All unemployed persons in receipt of Supplementary Benefit (Thousantds) Column (1) as per cent. of total registered unemployed Unemployed in receipt of Supplementary Benefit plus flat-rate benefit and earnings related supplement (Thousands) Unemployed persons in receipt of Supplementary benefit plus flat-rate benefit only (Thousands) 659 48.9 23 98 Notes:
(1) The figures given are as at 7th November 1977.
(2) They may exclude a few cases where the responsibility for payment of supplementary benefit had not yet been assumed by the unemployment benefit office.
§ Mr. Ovendenasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what are the latest available figures for the number and proportion of unemployed people disqualified from unemployment benefit by reason of contribution deficiencies; and what proportion of these have such deficiencies due to (a) full-time education and (b) self-employment.
§ Mr. OrmeAt 7th November 1977 there were 272,000 persons registered as unemployed who were ineligible for unemployment benefit because of contribution deficiency. This number represented 20 per cent. of the total registered unemployed at that date. Information for the second part of the question is not available in the form requested. However, of those ineligible for benefit at 7th November 1977, 54,000 were school-leavers whose ineligibility was not due either to their having exhausted their benefit or because their entitlement had still to be calculated. It is not known how many of these had a deficient contribution record.
As regards deficiencies due to self-employment, I would refer my hon. Friend to my replies to my hon. Friend the Member for Barking (Miss Richardson) and to the hon. Member for Wallasey (Mrs. Chalker) on 13th January 1978.—[Vol. 942, c. 385–7.]
§ Mr. Ovendenasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what are the latest available figures for the number and proportion of unemployed people who are ineligible for unemployment benefit.
198Wfit; how many of these also receive flat rate unemployment benefit and earnings related supplement; and how many receive flat rate unemployment benefit only.
§ Mr. OrmeAt 7th November 1977, 669,000 people, representing 50 per cent. of the total registered unemployed at that date, were ineligible for unemployment benefit. This figure includes 7,000 people who were serving waiting days, but does not include 117,000 whose entitlement to flat-rate benefit had not yet been determined.
§ Mr. Ovendenasked the Secretary o; State for Social Services what are the latest available figures for the number and proportion of unemployed people receiving unemployment benefit who are affected by the 85 per cent. earnings ceiling.
§ Mr. OrmeThe latest available figures, which are still provisional, show that, at 7th November 1977, there were 61,000 unemployed people whose earnings related supplement was affected by the 85 per cent. earnings ceiling. This represented 11 per cent. of the total number of claimants in receipt of unemployment benefit.