§ Mr. MorganTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what recent consultations he has had concerning the operation of the advance warning system available to 373W inform potential recipients of special cold weather payments that the temperature trigger points had been reached; and if he will make a statement.
§ Miss WiddecombeRegular consultations on the cold weather payments scheme take place between the Meteorological Office and the Department. The new elements of the scheme are being monitored particularly closely.
§ Mr. MartlewTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) how many people will receive cold weather payments from the social fund following the recent spell of cold weather;
(2) how many people who would have been eligible for payment will not receive the £6 payment because the area of the country they lived in did not fully meet the temperature criteria of the scheme during the recent spell of cold weather.
§ Miss WiddecombeFollowing the recent spell of cold weather 1,432,044 cold weather payments have been authorised out of an estimated total of 2,600,000 people, who would have been entitled to a payment if every area of the country had met the temperature criteria.
§ Mr. MorganTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list by United Kingdom standard region, and by Benefits Agency administrative division, the numbers of recipients of cold weather payments in the week commencing 9 December.
§ Miss WiddecombeThe following table sets out, by individual weather station, the number of cold weather payments authorised during the recent cold spell. The information is not held by Benefits Agency administrative division, and could be obtained in this form only at disproportionate cost.
Cold Weather Payments Station Period Payments Bedford RAE 5–11 December 46,879 Birmingham AP 5–11 December 192,901 Boscombe Down 6–12 December 6,165 Brize Norton 6–12 December 36,036 Coningsby 6–12 December 8,234 Dumfries/Drungans 5–11 December 3,456 Easthampstead 6–12 December 21,696 Eskdalemuir 3–9 December 3,530 Finningley 5–11 December 68,911 Gatwick AP 6–12 December 21,474 Honington 6–12 December 8,078 Leeming 5–11 December 86,012 Lyneham 6–12 December 13,394 Marham 6–12 December 10,165 Shawbury 5–11 December 68,611 Stansted 6–12 December 70,865 Watnall 6–12 December 113,978 Wyton 6–12 December 18,807 Clifynydd 8–14 December 18,336 Coltishall 7–13 December 25,222 Cwmbargoed 7–13 December 20,838 Heathrow AP 8–14 December 382,487 Leeds WC 7–13 December 93,812 Waddington 7–13 December 55,445 Wattisham 8–14 December 22,161 Yeovilton 8–14 December 14,551 Total 1,432,044
§ Mr. MartlewTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will make it his policy to waive the seven-day qualifying period for cold weather payments to ensure that all those eligible under the scheme receive a £6 payment.
374W
§ Miss WiddecombeSeven days of cold weather is a fair representation of a sustained period which is likely to lead to extra heating costs. We have no plans to reduce the qualifying period.