§ Ms. Harmanasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what was the average hourly pay for home helps in each of the years 1974 to 1984 in Northern Ireland.
§ Mr. Chris Patten[pursuant to his reply, 17 May 1985, c. 241–242]: The figures are as follows:
Year Hourly rate (at November) Pence 1974 75.93 1975 95.88 1976 102.12 1977 112.38 1978 121.13 1979 145.83 1980 165.63 1981 177.13 1982 190.77 1983 199.48 1984 209.74
§ Ms. Harmanasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how the average hourly pay for home helps in Northern Ireland relates to the average hourly pay for (a) full-time female manual workers and (b) full-time male manual workers in each of the years 1974 to 1984.
§ Mr. Chris Patten[pursuant to his reply, 17 May 1985, c. 241–242]: The figures are as follows:
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Average hourly earnings Home helps pay Full-time women manual workers on adult pay rates Full-time men manual workers on adult pay rates Pence Pence Pence 1974 75.93 52.4 80.7 1975 95.88 75.7 107.7 1976 102.12 97.8 130.8 1977 112.38 105.9 142.7 1978 121.13 120.1 159.3 1979 145.83 129.6 179.9 1980 165.63 159.7 220.8 1981 177.13 184.3 246.7 1982 190.77 195.3 264.0 1983 199.48 206.3 280.9 1984 209.74 221.4 294.6
§ Ms. Harmanasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what has been the real percentage change in the average hourly rate of pay for home helps in Northern Ireland in each of the years 1974 to 1984 measured against the retail pay index.
§ Mr. Chris Patten[pursuant to his reply, 17 May 1985, c. 241–242]: On the assumption that the hon. Member is referring to the retail price index, the figures are as follows:
Per cent. 1974 — 1975 +0.86 1976 -7.38 1977 -2.61 1978 -0.29 1979 +2.55 1980 -1.49 1981 -4.51 1982 + 1.31 1983 -0.22 1984 +0.23
§ Ms. Harmanasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on the recent report of the joint working group on the home help service in Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the future of the service.
§ Mr. Chris Patten[pursuant to his reply, 17 May 1985, c. 242]: The joint working group on the home help service in Northern Ireland recently presented its report to the Department of Health and Social Services. The group has identified the difficulties which have arisen in administering the service within the resources available and have considered alternative methods of providing help.
Their main recommendation is that a grant-based scheme should be introduced for new clients and that it should operate alongside the current model scheme for existing clients. In view of the importance of the service to so many people it was considered essential to consult a wide range of interested bodies before reaching any conclusion on the analysis contained in the report or on its recommendations.
In initiating this consultative process on 12 March 1985, the Department indicated that it was anxious to widen the debate and apart from listing a number of options, not all of which were drawn from the report, also invited interested organisations to suggest their own possible alternatives.
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§ Ms. Harmanasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what has been the total number of recipients of the home help service in Northern Ireland for each of the years 1974 to 1984.
§ Mr. Chris Patten[pursuant to his reply, 17 May 1985, c. 242]: The information requested is as follows:
Year Number of recipients 1974 * 10,897 1975 * 13,104 1976 18,865 1977 19,982 1978 *20,827 1979 23,308 1980 22,476 1981 26,184 1982 28,234 1983 28,023 1984 N/A * The figures for these years are incomplete.
§ Ms. Harmanasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what has been the total expenditure, in real terms, on the home help service in Northern Ireland for each of the years 1974 to 1984.
§ Mr. Chris Patten[pursuant to his reply, 17 May 1985, c. 242]: Information covering all the costs of the home help service is not available. The information following represents expenditure on home help salaries and incidental expenses and does not include similar information on professional and clerical staff involved in the provision of the service.
Year ending 31 March Expenditure on the home help service £ million 1975 4.63 1976 5.52 1977 4.50 1978 4.89 1979 4.85 1980 5.10 1981 5.32 1982 5.74 1983 5.88 1984 5.88 Notes:
- 1. Information for 1974 is not available.
- 2. Expenditure on the service is expressed in constant terms by reference to the retail price index (1975=100).
§ Ms. Harmanasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what has been the real cost of the home help service, in Northern Ireland, per recipient for each of the years 1974 to 1984.
§ Mr. Chris Patten[pursuant to his reply, 17 May 1985, c. 242]: As figures for the total number of recipients of the home help service in 1974 and 1975 are incomplete, it is not possible to give this information for these years. However, between 1976 and 1983 (the last year for which figures are available), the information is as follows:
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Year Cost per recipient £ 1976 292.36 1977 225.24
year Cost per recipient £ 1978 234.59 1979 207.93 1980 226.94 1981 203.24 1982 203.51 1983 209.78 Note:
The cost per recipient is expressed in constant terms by reference to the retail price index (1975=100).
§ Ms. Harmanasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what percentage increase there has been in (a) the total number of recipients and (b) the total real expenditure on the home help service in Northern Ireland between 1974 and 1984.
§ Mr. Chris Patten[pursuant to his reply, 17 May 1985, c. 242]:
- (a) As the figures for the total number of recipients of the home help service in 1974 and 1975 are incomplete, it is not possible to state an accurate percentage increase for the years requested. However, between 1976 and 1983 (the last year for which figures are available) there has been a 49 per cent, increase in the number of recipients of the service.
- (b) Information on expenditure in 1974 is not available. Between 1975 and 1984 there has been a 27 per cent. increase in expenditure expressed in constant terms by reference to the retail price index (1975=100).