Severe Disablement Allowance (Hansard, 11 July 1988)

§ Mrs. Beckett
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Services if he has any plans to revise or update the guidance given to medical practitioners with respect to the assessment of disablement for severe disablement allowance.

§ Mr. Portillo
We have no immediate plans to do so.

§ Mrs. Beckett
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Services if he has any plans to reduce the length of time taken to process claims for severe disablement allowance.

§ Mr. Portillo
The Department is constantly seeking ways of improving the delivery of its various benefits, including severe disablement allowance. If the hon. Member has a particular case in mind, perhaps she would write to me about it.

§ Mrs. Beckett
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Services if he has any plans to improve the standard of(a) medical and (b) non-medical adjudication of claims for severe disablement allowance.

§ Mr. Portillo
The standards of both lay and medical adjudication are kept under continuing review. I am not aware of any specific difficulties, but if the hon. Member has any particular problem in mind I will look into it.