§ 16. Mr. WrayTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what estimate he has made of the number of people who will receive invalidity benefit two years after the introduction of the proposed incapacity benefit.
§ Mr. ScottInvalidity benefit and sickness benefit will, subject to parliamentary approval, be replaced by a single new benefit—incapacity benefit—from April 1995. The estimated average number of people who will receive incapacity benefit in 1996–97 is 1,814,000.
§ Mr. FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what changes have been made in entitlement to and the method of calculating invalidity benefit since 1979.
§ Mr. ScottThe information is in the table:
578W
Changes affecting entitlement to invalidity benefit since 1979 Date of change Change April 1979 Additional pension introduced April 1979 Change to invalidity allowance age bands 579W
Date of change Change November 1980 Uprating linked to retail price index November 1980 5 per cent. abatement of invalidity pension and invalidity allowance November 1981 5 per cent. abatement of invalidity allowance restored November 1983 Extension of provision of dependency increase for dependent husbands November 1984 Men and women able to claim an increase for a child and for person looking after children on the same basis as each other November 1984 Occupational pension treated as earnings for adult and child dependency increases November 1984 Earnings rule for child dependency increases introduced November 1984 Child dependency increase no longer payable for non-resident children September 1985 Introduction of a common earnings rule for men and women claiming an increase for their spouse September 1985 Abolition of dependency increases for other adult relatives September 1985 Invalidity allowance reduced by entitlement to additional pension and/or guaranteed minimum pension November 1985 5 per cent, abatement of invalidity pension restored October 1986 Reduced rates of sickness benefit abolished1 February 1987 Married women no longer subject to a second downrating of benefit after 104 weeks in hospital April 1988 Benefit became payable in certain circumstances with statutory maternity pay April 1988 Hospital downrating changed to take place at six weeks and 52 weeks instead of eight weeks and 104 weeks October 1988 Two-year national insurance contribution test introduced for sickness benefit1 October 1989 Local authority councillor's allowances disregarded when considering incapacity for work; benefit offset against allowances in excess of therapeutic earnings limit October 1989 Personal pensions treated as earnings for adult and child dependency increases April 1990 Therapeutic earnings limit increased by 23 per cent. —1990 benefit uprating 7.6 per cent. April 1990 People on employment rehabilitation courses allowed to keep invalidity benefit, or receive the rehabilitation allowance April 1992 People allowed to sit as members of disability appeal tribunals one day a week without losing benefit April 1992 Entitlement to additional pension curtailed for earnings after the 1990–91 tax year; accrued rights preserved April 1994 Benefit uprating to include extra increase to provide help towards VAT on fuel 1 Changes to the entitlement conditions for sickness benefit which affected the numbers subsequently qualifying for invalidity benefit.
§ Mr. BradleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people receiving invalidity benefit on 1 December 1993 were at that time aged (i) between 45 and 49 years, (ii) between 50 and 54 years, (iii) between 55 and 57 years and (iv) 58 years or over.
§ Mr. ScottInformation for 1 December 1993 is not readily available, and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. The latest available information relates to 4 April 1992, and is in the table.
Invalidity benefit recipients by age1 Invalidity benefit recipients Number2 Aged 45–49 127,000 Aged 50–54 187,000 Aged 55–57 154,000 Aged 58 and over 674,000 1 Age as at 31 March 1992. 2 Based on a 1 per cent. sample of claimants in Great Britain at 4 April 1992, rounded to the nearest thousand.