§ 27. Mr. McQuarrieasked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many persons have been in receipt of social security payments in the areas covered by the constituency of East Aberdeenshire in the years 1980, 1981 and in January 1982; and if he will break down these numbers by type of benefit.
§ Mr. NewtonInformation is not available in the form requested. It covers only supplementary benefit and unemployment benefit, and relates to claimants receiving these benefits from offices situated within the constituency rather than to those living within the constituency. The latest available figure on this basis for supplementary benefits is about 9,600 claimants in December 1981, compared with about 8,600 in December 1980. For unemployment benefit recipients, excluding those also getting supplementary benefit, the latest figure available, owing to the effects of industrial action, is for February 1981, when the number was about 1,200 compared with about 750 in February 1980.