§ Mr. Gordon Brownasked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether the members as well as the chairman of the proposed housing benefit review team will be independent.
§ Dr. BoysonIt is intended that there will be independent members.
§ Mr. Gordon Brownasked the Secretary of State for Social Services why the Social Security Advisory Committee has not been asked to undertake the housing benefit review.
§ Dr. BoysonWe want the housing benefit review to be a quick but detailed examination of the scheme. This will require a significant commitment in time from the members. It would not be reasonable to expect the Social Security Advisory Committee to undertake this kind of review in the time scale required, when they have other substantial duties, across the range of social security benefits. We have therefore decided to appoint a small separate team to undertake this work.