§ Dr. GodmanTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list the information about the transfer to the state retirement pension which is given to women who are in receipt of invalidity benefit, shortly before they attain the age of 60 years; what interviews dealing with these matters are offered to such women; and if he will place copies of the relevant documents in the Library.
§ Mr. ScottThe administration of invalidity benefit is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member with such information as is available and a copy will be placed in the Library.
Letter from Mr. M. Bichard to Dr. Norman Godman, dated 22 March 1993:
As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency it is my responsibility to answer questions about relevant operational matters. I am therefore replying to your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security asking if he will list the information about the transfer to the state Retirement Pension which is given to women who are in receipt of Invalidity Benefit (IVB) shortly before they attain the age of 60 years, and what interviews dealing with these matters are offered to such women.Four months before pension age (age 60 for women, 65 for men) a Retirement Pension claims pack is automatically issued by one of our Area Computer Centres direct to the customers' address.The claims package for women includes a Retirement Pension claim form (BR1), an information sheet (BR33) containing the rate of Retirement Pension the customer is entitled to at pension age and other advisory information, also a leaflet AC1 which gives the details of the option of having their Retirement Pension paid by Automated Credit Transfer (ACT) into their Bank/Building Society account.Form BR1 advises customers requiring further information to get in touch with their local Social Security office, the same advice is given on form BR33. In addition form BR33 gives the Social Security Freeline number.A woman aged 55–59 in receipt of IVB is issued with a letter 16 weeks before she reaches aged 60 advising her that as she is in receipt of IVB she may choose to elect to remain on that benefit rather than claim her Retirement Pension which may be at a lower rate than her IVB. It also explains that her choice may be affected by the fact that Retirement Pension is taxable but IVB is not.The District Office would not as a matter of procedure offer an interview to women approaching age 60 who were in 563W receipt of Invalidity Benefit. However the normal interview facilities offered by all offices would be available to these ladies if they approached their District Office for advice.I hope that you find this reply helpful. I enclose copies of relevant documents and have arranged for copies to be placed in the Library. A copy of this letter will appear in the Official Report and a copy will also be placed in the Library.