HC Deb 13 April 1994 vol 241 cc218-20W
Mr. Kevin Hughes

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many invalidity benefit awards for people in the Doncaster district of the Benefits Agency have been(a) reviewed, (b) disallowed and (c) reinstated on appeal in each of the last 12 months.

Mr. Hague

This 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.

Letter from Tony Laurance to Mr. Kevin Hughes, dated 12 April 1994: As Michael Bichard is on sick leave at the moment, the Secretary of State for Social Security has asked me to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking about Invalidity Benefit (IVB) awards in Doncaster District. The information is not available in the exact format requested. However, I have provided such information as is available in appendix 1. The information provided, with regard to IVB awards disallowed, represents only those disallowed on review and does not include those disallowed at the start of the claim. To obtain those figures would incur disproportionate cost. The statistics provided are taken from clerical records maintained in the Doncaster District offices. I hope you find this reply helpful.

Appendix 1
Month IVB awards reviewed IVB awards disallowed IVB awards reinstated on appeal
March 1993 82 78 Nil
April 1993 88 82 Nil
May 1993 81 79 1
June 1993 115 106 2
July 1993 90 78 1
August 1993 84 78 3
September 1993 79 75 5
October 1993 78 75 4
November 1993 68 67 10
December 1993 47 46 5
January 1994 76 73 22
February 1994 90 84 15
March 1994 140 130 24

Mr. Kevin Hughes

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many applications there have been for invalidity benefit in the last 12 months in the Doncaster district of the Benefits Agency.

Mr. Hague

This 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.

Letter from Tony Laurance to Mr. Kevin Hughes, dated 12 April 1994: As Michael Bichard is on sick leave at the moment, the Secretary of State for Social Security has asked me to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about applications for Invalidity Benefit in Doncaster. The information is not available in the format requested. This is because, although Benefits Agency Districts record overall claims to incapacity benefits, claims to Sickness Benefit (SB) and Invalidity Benefit (IVB) are not recorded separately. Separate figures for SB and IVB could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. Statistics are maintained however, to provide information regarding the total numbers of applications for SB/IVB received in each Benefits Agency District. Between 1 March 1993 and 28 February 1994 there were 8,508 such applications received in the Doncaster District. I hope you find this reply helpful.

Mr. Kevin Hughes

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what number of people in the Doncaster district have been in receipt of invalidity benefit in each month over the last two years.

Mr. Hague

This 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.

Letter from Tony Laurance to Mr. Kevin Hughes, dated 12 April 1994: As Michael Bichard is on sick leave at the moment, the Secretary of State for Social Security has asked me to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking about Invalidity Benefit recipients in Doncaster. I have provided the information you requested at appendix 1. The figures will include a small number of people who have claimed but are not receiving Invalidity Benefit because they are in receipt of a higher overlapping benefit. The statistics provided were obtained from a clerical count of cases within the Benefits Agency offices of the Doncaster District.

Doncaster district invalidity benefit recipients
Number
March 1992 13,973
April 1992 11,662
May 1992 11,933
June 1992 12,054
July 1992 11,941
August 1992 12,083
September 1992 13,307
October 1992 12,576
November 1992 12,935
December 1992 12,682
January 1993 12,694
February 1993 12,788
March 1993 13,091
April 1993 12,953
May 1993 13,026
June 1993 13,666
July 1993 13,729
August 1993 13,857
September 1993 14,177
October 1993 14,370
November 1993 13,966
December 1993 14,666
January 1994 14,728
February 1994 14,690