§ Mr. CryerTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security when he expects to respond to the application by Mr. Stanley Vauvert for mobility allowance, sent on 13 July 1992.
§ Mr. ScottThe administration of disability living allowance is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member and a copy will be placed in the Library.
Letter from Michael Bichard to Mr. Bob Cryer, dated 12 February 1993.
As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency, it is my responsibility to answer questions about relevant operational matters. I am therefore replying to the points raised in your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security, about Mr. Stanley Vauvert's application for review made on 13 July 1992 of the decision to disallow his Mobility Allowance claim.I am pleased to tell you that a decision was made on Mr. Vauvert's application on the 10 February 1993 and the Disability Living Allowance Unit have already replied to you separately and in greater detail about this.I am concerned about the delay in the handling of Mr. Vauvert's review application. You will be aware from my letter of 19 October 1992 to all MPs of the problems the Benefits Agency (BA) has faced since the launch of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) and the positive steps I have taken to improve the situation. Since then further steps have been 102W taken to recruit additional, of and redeploy existing staff to clear the backlog of reviews by, amongst other things, the setting up of four additional processing units.Mr. Vauvert has clearly not received the standard of service which he has every right to expect from the Agency and I offer my sincere apologies to him for any distress and inconvenience caused by the delays.I hope that you find this reply helpful and I thank you for the opportunity to explain this matter. A copy will appear in the Official Report and a copy will also be placed in the Library.