18. Mr. Robert AinsworthTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people he estimates will have to draw means-tested benefits as a result of the introduction of the jobseeker's allowance and incapacity benefit. [32782]
§ Mr. Roger EvansWe estimate that, at any one time, 75,000 claimants of income-based jobseeker's allowance would have been receiving unemployment benefit but not income support. A further 10,000 people would be entitled to council tax benefit because of the jobseeker's allowance changes.
For incapacity benefit, we estimate that throughout its first year 240,000 people on average will receive both IB and income support; and that IS will be paid 998W on average to 35,000 people excluded from IB as a result of the new medical test.