§ Mr. AllenTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the amount spent on the social fund relative to the amount paid in single payments for the last year in which the single payment scheme operated, expressed in comparable prices and as a percentage reduction.
§ Mr. ScottDirect comparisons between single payments expenditure in 1987–88 and social fund expenditure in 1990–91 are misleading because of the differing scope of the two schemes. Funeral and maternity payments were not part of the single payments scheme in 1987–88 but have been included in the table in order to make the comparison with social fund expenditure in 1990–91 more meaningful.
Cash £ million At 1990–91 prices £ million Single payments 1987–88 1243 2299 Social fund 1990–913 — 282 5½ per cent. reduction 1 Includes £29 million spent on maternity and funeral payments. 2 Calculated using the estimated gross domestic product deflator. 3 Provisional.