HC Deb 27 May 1993 vol 225 cc694-7W
Mr. Milburn

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) how many severe hardship claims were made and grants awarded in the South Durham district in each quarter since April 1991;

(2) pursuant to his answer of 13 May, Official Report, columns 540–41, if he will provide a regional breakdown of the figures for severe hardship cases.

Mr. Burt

The administration of income support 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 Michael Richard to Mr. Alan Milburn, dated 26 May 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 Questions to the Secretary of State for Social Security, asking how many severe hardship claims were made and grants awarded in the South Durham district in each quarter since April 1991; and pursuant to his Answer of 13th May, Official Report, columns 540–1, if he will provide a regional breakdown of the figures for severe hardship cases.

The information about severe hardship claims in South Durham is at Annex A. At Annex B I have appended a regional breakdown of successful and unsuccessful claims on a quarterly basis between January 1990 and March 1993.

This information has been obtained from the Severe Hardship Claims Unit. It should be noted that statistics relate to the number of claims made and may not equate to the number of customers.

I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report. A copy will also be placed in the Library.

Severe hardship applications—South Durham District
Period Successful Unsuccessful Total
1991
April to June 39 15 54
July to September 62 14 76
October to December 73 13 76
1992
January to March 102 29 131
April to June 84 26 110
July to September 108 43 151
October to December 84 33 117
1993
January to March 103 37 140
Annex B
Severe Hardship Claims: North East
Period Awarded Refused Total
1990
January to March 982 447 1,429
April to June 956 378 1,334
July to September 1,164 408 1,572
October to December 955 313 1,268
1991
January to March 1,556 539 2,095
April to June 1,684 470 2,154
July to September 2,306 613 2,919
October to December 2,153 536 2,689
1992
January to March 3,197 751 3,948
April to June 3,102 816 3,918
July to September 3,577 819 4,396
October to December 3,033 878 3,911
1993
January to March 4,755 984 5,739
Severe Hardship Claims: Scotland
Period Awarded Refused Total
1990
January to March 1,475 543 2,018
April to June 1,552 547 2,099
July to September 1,640 570 2,210
October to December 1,307 363 1,670
1991
January to March 2,315 644 2,959
April to June 2,826 655 3,481
July to September 3,005 767 3,772
October to December 2,737 592 3,329
1992
January to March 4,086 839 4,925
April to June 4,943 1,107 6,050
July to September 4,919 1,196 6,115
October to December 4,412 1,293 5,705
1993
January to March 6,079 1,410 7,489
Severe hardship claims: North West
Period Awarded Refused Total
1990
January to March 508 303 811
April to June 563 273 836
Period Awarded Refused Total
July to September 732 285 1,017
October to December 588 173 761
1991
January to March 987 345 1,332
April to June 1,180 314 1,494
July to September 1,537 432 1,969
October to December 1,476 371 1,847
1992
January to March 2,642 539 3,181
April to June 2,905 574 3,479
July to September 3,312 666 3,978
October to December 2,835 753 3,588
1993
January to March 4,571 917 5,488
Severe hardship claims: Midlands
Period Awarded Refused Total
1990
January to March 466 270 736
April to June 456 254 710
July to September 559 276 835
October to December 398 164 562
1991
January to March 787 296 1,083
April to June 1,000 293 1,293
July to September 1,637 429 2,066
October to December 1,576 400 1,976
1992
January to March 2,735 547 3,282
April to June 2,693 614 3,307
July to September 3,138 683 3,821
October to December 2,593 680 3,273
1993
January to March 4,126 887 5,013
Severe hardship claims: Wales and South West
Period Awarded Refused Total
1990
January to March 354 194 548
April to June 292 168 460
July to September 435 192 627
October to December 387 113 500
1991
January to March 827 256 1,083
April to June 1,128 245 1,373
July to September 1,655 369 2,024
October to December 1,586 323 1,909
1992
January to March 2,477 424 2,901
April to June 2,542 489 3,031
July to September 2,833 572 3,405
October to December 2,423 539 2,962
1993
January to March 3,960 723 4,683
Severe hardship claims—London (South)
Period Awarded Refuses Total
1990
January to March 359 179 538
April to June 364 125 489
Period Awarded Refuses Total
July to September 481 187 668
October to December 355 145 500
1991
January to March 760 288 1,048
April to June 1,014 228 1,242
July to September 1,499 335 1,834
October to December 1,419 315 1,734
1992
January to March 2,371 433 2,804
April to June 2,247 516 2,763
July to September 2,668 559 3,227
October to December 2,286 542 2,828
1993
January to March 3,687 618 4,305
Severe Hardship Claims—London (North)
Period Award Refused Total
1990
January to March 350 207 557
April to June 345 193 538
July to September 483 238 721
October to December 389 148 537
1991
January to March 818 281 1,099
April to June 964 293 1,257
July to September 1,380 303 1,683
October to December 1,325 254 1,579
1992
January to March 2,136 359 2,459
April to June 2,272 420 2,692
July to September 2,627 525 3,152
October to December 2,329 505 2,834
1993
January to March 3,657 557 4,214