§ 41. Mr. Rookerasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what are the savings in each benefit affected by section 4 of the Social Security (No. 2) Act 1980 in weekly terms of the average benefit payable to a claimant.
§ Mrs. ChalkerSection 4 of the Social Security (No. 2) Act 1980 reduces and then abolishes the earnings-related supplement payable with certain short-term benefits and the earnings related allowance payable with widow's allowance. If these benefits were not abolished from January 1982 and the present rules governing entitlement and amount of weekly benefit payable were to continue, it is estimated that the average amounts that would be paid for new claims* arising during the calendar year 1982 would be as follows:
Benefit Estimated Average amount of ERS that would be paid † £ Sickness benefit 12.50 Unemployment benefit 11.10 Injury benefit 13.70 Maternity allowance 9.10 Widow's allowance 14.30 * CIaims for which the relevant tax year is 1980–81. † These estimates are based on the economic assumptions for 1980–81 used in the Government Actuary's report on the draft of the Social Security Benefits Uprating Order 1980 (Cmnd. 7971).