§ Mr. Humeasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what were the total numbers of single payments under supplementary benefit regulations made by each social security office in Northern Ireland in 1985; and what information is available to indicate the categories of these payments.
§ Mr. NeedhamThe total numbers of single payments under supplementary benefit regulations made by each social security office in Northern Ireland in 1985 are as set out. The additional information requested regarding the categories of these payments is not readily available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Social Security Office Number of Single Payments in 1985 Andersonstown *14,788 Antrim 11,701 Armagh 6,983 Ballymena 5,970 Ballymoney 5,608 Ballynahinch 907 Banbridge 3,470 Bangor 2,972 Carrickfergus 4,919 Coleraine 7,586 Cookstown 5,463 Corporation Street *15,083 Downpatrick *3,220 Dungannon 9,388 Enniskillen 7,553 Falls Road 21,003 Holywood Road 11,473 Kilkeel *1,147 Knockbreda 5,062 Larne 4,264 Limavady 4,896 Lisburn 13,214 Londonderry *16,683 Lurgan *9,748 Magherafelt 4,739 Newcastle 2,244 Newry *12,262 Newtownabbey *10,428 Newtownards 2,804 Omagh 9,313 Portadown 5,392 Shaftesbury Square 6,089 Shankill 7,163 Strabane 11,558 Totals: 265,093 * Returns incomplete due to industrial action.
§ Mr. Humeasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what was the total value of the single payments made by each social security office in Northern Ireland in 1985; and what information is available to indicate the amount of money spent on each category of single payment.
§ Mr. NeedhamThe total value of the single payments under supplementary benefit regulations made by each social security office in Northern Ireland in 1985 is as set out. The additional information requested regarding the amount of money spent on each category of single payment is not readly available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
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Social Security Office Total amount paid in single payments* £ Andersonstown †1,613,161 Antrim 1,384,461 Armagh 740,244 Ballymena 479,616 Ballymoney 512,021 Ballynahinch 86,334 Banbridge 299,745 Bangor 320,203 Carrichfergus 441,089 Cookstown 829,128 Coleraine 786,222 Corporation St. †1,987,082 Downpatrick †335,097 Dungannon 1,413,531 Enniskillen 685,700 Falls Road 1,945,540 Holywood Road 1,299,068 Kilkeel †100,104 Knockbreda 522,886 Larne 337,899 Limavady 471,643 Lisburn 1,613,574 Londonderry †2,261,626 Lurgan †1,329,162 Magherafelt 732,800 Newcastle 226,683 Newry †1,468,584 Newtownards 325,422 Newtownabbey †915,364 Omagh 1,088,637 Portadown 563,699 Shaftesbury Sq. 984,419 Shankill 706,069 Strabane 1,710,029 Totals 30,516,842 * Rounded to nearest pound. † Returns incomplete due to industrial action.
§ Mr. Humeasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what was the total number of appeals in 1985 relating to single payments under supplementary benefit regulations in each social security office in Northern Ireland; and what information is available to indicate how many appeals succeeded at review stage, at tribunal or at the commissioner.
§ Mr. NeedhamSocial security benefit appeals are heard at 21 centres throughout Northern Ireland, not at each social security office. The total number of appeals in 1985 relating to single payments under supplementary benefit regulations and the numbers of these which were successful at review stage and at tribunal are as set out:
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Social Security Appeal Tribunal Area Number of Appeals received regarding single payments Number of such Appeals allowed on review Number of such appeals allowed by the Tribunal Armagh 72 1 29 Ballymena 209 52 27 Ballymoney 45 13 5 Banbridge 39 — 16 Belfast 1,959 528 305 Coleraine 192 56 44 Cookstown 108 33 17 Downpatrick 65 4 25 Dungannon 318 63 76 Enniskillen 75 28 8
Social Security Appeal Tribunal Area Number of Appeals received regarding single payments Number of such Appeals allowed on review Number of such appeals allowed by the Tribunal Limavady 55 12 8 Lisburn 22 — 5 Londonderry 430 58 120 Lurgan 142 35 26 Magherafelt 48 3 3 Newcastle 96 15 25 Newry 309 38 116 Newtownards 55 3 14 Omagh 161 51 58 Portadown 43 11 6 Strabane 374 47 53 Appeals to the Social Security Commissioner are normally heard in Belfast and various other towns in the Province. The number of Appeals in 1985 relating to single payments under supplementary benefit regulations which were successful at such hearings was 6.