§ Mr. BattleTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the unit cost of administering(a) contributory national insurance benefits, (b) noncontributory national insurance benefits, (c) means-tested benefits and (d) the social fund.
§ Mrs. Gillian ShephardThe latest information available is for the 1987–88 financial year. The unit cost of administering the following benefits in that year were:
£ (a) Contributory national insurance benefits 66 (b) Non-contributory non-income-related benefits 14 (c) Income-related benefits 111 The social fund was introduced in a limited way in 1987–88 for funeral and maternity payments only, but no separate figures are available—the costs for 1987–88 are included in the overall income related benefits figure.
The unit costs are calculated by dividing the estimated administrative costs of the benefits involved by the average number of beneficiaries.