War Pensions (Hansard, 27 April 1995)

§ Ms Rachel Squire
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what was the number of war pension appeals in(a) 1979 and (b) 1993 and the average length of time which elapsed between the lodging of an appeal and the appeal being heard. [20734]

§ Mr. Arbuthnot
During 1979, 1,816 war pension appeals were lodged against decisions on entitlement and 1,872 appeals on the assessment of the degree of disablement. During 1993, 11,079 entitlement and 9,147 assessment appeals were lodged. The average length of time in 1993 between the lodging of an entitlement appeal and the appeal being heard was 349 days. The time scale in 1993 for an assessment appeal was 288 days. Comparable information for 1979 is not available.

§ Ms Rachel Squire
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) if he will make a statement on claims for war disablement pensions in respect of bilateral noise-induced sensorineural hearing loss. [20731]
(2) if he will make a statement on the restriction on claims for war disablement pensions due to bilateral noise-induced sensorineural hearing loss arising from (a) the absence of any award where the assessment of disability is less than 20 per cent. and (b) the non-inclusion of the condition of tinnitus where assessed disablement is less than 20 per cent. [20732]

§ Mr. Arbuthnot
The war pensions scheme provides compensation for disablement arising from injury or disease which is due to service in the armed forces.
Where the degree of disablement in respect of bilateral noise-induced sensorineural hearing loss is assessed at 20 per cent. or more, a war pension may be paid. Below this level, no award is made in respect of such hearing loss or any condition or symptom, such as tinnitus, which is attributable to the same basic injurious process.
I remain satisfied that bilateral noise-induced sensorineural hearing loss of less than 20 per cent. is not the sort of disablement which should be compensated under a war pensions scheme.
The provisions on this type of hearing loss, which came into effect on 7 January 1993, brought war pensions rules more into line with the rules covering occupational deafness under the industrial injuries scheme. They formed part of a package which increased considerably, from April 1993, the war pensions of the most severely disabled.