§ Mr. MeacherTo ask the Secretary of State For Social Security, pursuant to his answer of 11 June,Official Report, columns 52–53 relating to social security benefits, if he will specify the further information that is required by his Department in order to enable it to provide an answer to the question.
§ Mrs. Gillian ShephardEntitlement to income-related benefits can be established only once certain, quite precise, personal details are known.
711WEven if the value of benefit in respect of housing costs were excluded, information would still be required to enable an assessment to be made of what additional requirements each beneficiary may have received under the supplementary benefit scheme, for example, the exact ages of claimant, partner and children, their state of health and whether this meant they had to follow any special diet, needed extra baths or wore out their clothing unusually quickly, what laundry facilities were available and the size and condition of the accommodation. This list is by no means exhaustive but serves to illustrate the complexities of the old scheme and the intrusive questioning necessary to determine entitlement.
Further information would also be required to determine whether each individual satisfied the conditions for the receipt of other social security benefits such as attendance allowance, mobility allowance, retirement pension, and unemployment benefit and, if so, at what level.