§ Mr. BattleTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) what rules govern entitlement to mortgage interest payments to those on income support who have contractual mortgages where the interest rate is fixed annually and where that rate is greater than the prevailing monthly interest rate for other mortgages;
(2) what guidance is issued to local office staff when determining the level of mortgage interest payments to those on income support where the interest charged on their mortgage is greater than the average mortgage rate of interest;
(3) what figure is used to calculate the level of mortgage interest rates when income support claimants are eligible for assistance with mortgage interest payments;
609W(4) how many people receiving mortgage interest payments from income support are liable to make monthly payments subject to review by the lender at fixed annual intervals.
§ Miss WiddecombeIncome support mortgage interest payments are calculated using the interest rate chargeable on the loan in question, even if that rate is greater than the generally prevailing one. There are no special rules for fixed interest rate mortgages. Guidance for local office staff on the calculation of income support mortgage interest, including details of some of the various schemes on the market, is included in the adjudication officers guide, a copy of which is available in the Library.
No statistics are collected on the numbers of income support recipients with mortgages subject to annual review by the lender.