§ Mr. BlairTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Services how much his Department is spending on(a) advertising as a whole and (b) television advertising to publicise the changes in the social security benefit system; and if he will give a breakdown on the spending in relation to each main such change.
§ Mr. PortilloA breakdown of the costs incurred so far on advertising is as follows:
Spent July 1986–May 1988 (a) Total £ (b) Television £ General reform advertising 270,650 — Pensions 205,800 64,000 Maternity benefits 344,600 — Housing benefits 55,400 — Family credit 322,100 322,100 Income support 126,300 — Widows' benefits 49,400 — Funeral benefits 59,100 — In 1988–89 we plan to spend a further £4 million, mainly on pensions and family credit advertising. Approximately half of this will be spent on television.