§ Mr. Corbettasked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) how much of the extra £8.3 million allocated in the Supplementary Estimates for the higher administration costs for the introduction of housing benefit has been spent by which named local authorities, against the original cost estimate, at the latest convenient date;
(2) how many (a) public authority tenants and (b) private tenants by each local authority area, have (i) been assessed for housing benefit payment and (ii) are still to receive full payment in each of the last three months;
(3) how many (a) public authority tenants and (b) private tenants have waited (i) up to six months and (ii) up to nine months for full payments of housing benefit in each local authority area;
(4) whether he will list in the Official Report the increases, by number and percentage, of administrative staff in each local authority needed to implement the housing benefit scheme.
§ Dr. BoysonThe information requested is not available.
§ Mr. Corbettasked the Secretary o f State for Social Services (1) what present estimate he makes of the likelihood of the 20 per cent. of local authorities given an extra three months at an additional cost of £8.3 million to implement housing benefit by 31 December 1983, meeting this target date;
(2) whether, pursuant to his statement on 27 July 1983, Official Report, c. 1294, he will give an update of the progress made by the 20 per cent. of local authorities by name which had not then completed the change to housing benefit and were expected to do so by the end of September; and whether he will report on the local authority by name which he anticipated would need to the end of December to make the change.
§ Dr. BoysonThe Department made further enquiries of the authorities concerned, and none reported that it had failed to complete the reassessment of its existing cases by 30 September 1983.
The city of Birmingham, the authority which requested an extension of the transitional arrangements for supplementary benefit cases, has assured us that it will complete by 31 December.
§ Mr. Terry Davisasked the Secretary of State for Social Services when he expects that the local social security offices in Birmingham will notify the new excess income figures to the city housing department for all the recipients of housing benefit supplement to take account of the new needs allowance which became effective from 14 November in Birmingham.
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§ Dr. BoysonThe information necessary to enable the housing department to review entitlements to housing benefit supplement was provided to them by 21 November, with the exception of about 30 cases which will be dealt with within the next 10 days.