HC Deb 08 July 1986 vol 101 cc155-6W
Mr. Alton

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many private tenants who are currently in receipt of housing benefit are unemployed.

Mr. Major

It is estimated that in December 1985, the latest date for which information is available, about 260,000 private tenants who were in receipt of housing benefit were unemployed.

Mr. Raynsford

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services what representations his Department has received from local authority associations about the uprating of housing benefit in the current year.

Mr. Major

Prior to the uprating statement in February, local authority representatives indicated to the Department that they would prefer the July uprating of the needs allowances to be linked to the cash increase in

Date Unemployment Benefit Numbers (thousands) Unemployment Benefit + Supplementary Benefit Supplementary Benefit
All claimants signing at UBOs February 1986 751 206 1,727
Men age 60 or over signing at UBO November 1985 41 2 12
Men age 60 or over but under 65 paid by order book December 1985 — — 124

retirement pensions. They also asked for there to be no taper changes, and for the rules concerning benefit periods to be eased during the transition to annual April upratings. No representations have been received since then.

Mr. Raynsford

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services, pursuant to the answer of 1 July to the hon. Member for Fulham on the question of housing benefit uprating, when in the past the annual uprating of the needs allowance has produced a reduction in entitlement, as stated in the answer of 12 May, Official Report, column 381; and what is his assessment of the amount by which the weekly increase in the needs allowance in the current year falls short of the level at which it would have been set if the traditional uprating formula had been applied.

Mr. Major

The last occasion when some claimants experienced a reduction in housing benefit entitlement when the needs allowances were uprated according to the traditional formula was last November when the cash increase in the needs allowance for a pensioner couple was lower than the cash increase in the retirement pension. As I explained in my reply to the hon. Member on 12 May, at column 381, the traditional formula could not be used for this July's uprating because the measurement period covered only May 1985 to January 1986.

Mr. Meadowcroft

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how much housing benefit is paid each year to tenants of private landlords of property not subject to the fixing of fair rents; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Major

Information is not available centrally on housing benefit paid to tenants of privately rented property according to type of tenure.