§ Mr. BlunkettTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Services how much has been paid to landlords under the Social Security (Claims and Payments) Regulations 1987 (S.I., 1987, No. 1968) over the latest period of 12 months for which figures are available; and if he has been monitoring the operation of the regulations.
§ Mr. PortilloThese regulations did not come into force until 11 April 1988. The provision of the regulations will be monitored and information on amounts paid direct to landlords will be collected, in due course, as part of the annual statistical inquiry.
The figures for direct payments to landlords under the Supplementary Benefit (Claims and Payments) Regulations 1981 (S.I., 1981, No. 1525) which were in force before II April were not collected centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.