HC Deb 27 October 1993 vol 230 cc670-1W
Mr. Ronnie Campbell

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people in Blyth Valley were receiving invalidity benefit in(a) 1991, (b) 1992 and (c) 1993; and if he will break down the figures by sex and standard age range.

Mr. Scott

The 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, a copy will be placed in the Library.

Letter from Mr. Michael Bichard to Mr. Ronnie Campbell, dated 26 October 1993: As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency it is my responsibility to answer questions raised about relevant operational matters. I am therefore replying to your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security, asking how many people in Blyth Valley were receiving Invalidity Benefit (IVB) in (a) 1991, (b) 1992 and (c) 1993; and if he will break down the figures by sex and standard age range. The information you require is not available in the format requested. This is because statistics are not maintained by District/Benefit Offices for recipients of IVB broken down by sex and age range. However, it is possible to state the number of claimants to IVB at the last working day of April 1991, April 1992 and April 1993 in the Blyth Benefit Office, which deals with Blyth Valley. You should note that although I have provided statistics for the Blyth Valley Benefit Office, that office's boundaries do not correspond with county or borough boundaries and the figures provided include some customers living in areas other than Blyth Valley.

  1. (a) At the last working day of April 1991, there were a total of 4,106 people claiming IVB.
  2. (b) At the last working day of April 1992, there were a total of 4,194 people claiming IVB.
  3. (c) At the last working day of April 1993, there were a total of 4,740 people claiming IVB.
I should explain that these figures include a small minority of customers who have claimed but are not receiving IVB. For instance, where customers have an underlying entitlement to IVB which has been extinguished by the payment of a higher overlapping benefit. These figures were obtained from a 100 per cent. clerical count of cases in the Benefit office. I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy will appear in the Official Report and a copy will be placed in the Library.