§ Mr. HealdTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security whether he has recently considered the operation of the social fund review process.
§ Mr. ScottI am pleased to announce that I will be making improvements to the social fund review process from April 1994. These changes will improve the speed and efficiency with which social fund review requests are handled within Benefits Agency district offices.
Improvements will be achieved through the appointment of specially trained social fund review officers. These expert officers will be responsible for ensuring that social fund review requests are considered as speedily and effectively as possible in district offices. In addition there will be some changes designed to streamline procedures.
Applicants will, of course, retain the right of an independent review by a social fund inspector.