HC Deb 09 March 1995 vol 256 cc293-4W
Mr. Gordon Prentice

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what arrangements exist to ensure the Benefits Agency treats in a confidential manner the financial information required of claimants appealing against reduced invalidity benefit on grounds of hardship; and what arrangements exist for protecting confidentiality in respect of the agency's use of a private firm to open claimants' letters containing such information.

Mr. Roger Evans

The administration of the Benefits Agency is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive. He will write to the hon. Member with such information as is available.

Letter from Michael Bichard to Mr. Gordon Prentice, dated 8 March 1995: The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question regarding the confidentiality aspect of claims to Invalidity Benefit and the opening of Benefits Agency post by private sector companies. All information received within Benefits Agency offices concerning the financial and other circumstances of customers is held in strict confidence. All Agency staff have an overall duty to protect any information that is held and to ensure it is not disclosed to anyone without the customer's consent. Any post received in connection with appeals on Invalidity Benefit entitlement will be treated in this manner. As you may know, the Government's Competing for Quality initiative subjects public functions to competition from the private sector. As part of this initiative the Benefits Agency has market tested its accommodation and office services, which includes post opening operations. In some areas this has resulted in the Agency's post being opened by private sector contractors. The contract specifications drawn up contain all the necessary safeguards to ensure confidentiality of information is maintained to the high standards required by the Civil Service. All staff directly involved in post opening are bound by the same stringent security and confidentiality rules. This includes each member of staff involved in post-opening being required to sign a declaration acknowledging the provisions of section 123 of the Social Security Administration Act 1992, which makes it a criminal offence to disclose personal information provided for Social Security purposes. I am sure you will appreciate that these arrangements present many opportunities for enhanced customer service, in terms of the Agency's business as a whole. I hope you find this reply helpful.

Mr. Llwyd

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, pursuant to his answer of 13 February,Official Report, column 536, how many of the invalidity benefit recipients are (a) males and (b) females; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Hague

The information is in the table.

Number of invalidity benefit recipients in Great Britain and Wales, at a particular time, by sex
Great Britain Wales
Year Males Females Males Females
1979 504,000 106,000 58,000 11,000
1983 593,000 144,000 70,000 17,000
1987 754,000 213,000 93,000 29,000
1993 1,156,000 424,000 125,000 47,000

Notes:

  1. 1. The number of recipients figure is at June for 1979, and April for 1983, 1987 and 1993.
  2. 2. The Welsh 1979 figure may contain a small number of claimants not in receipt of benefit.
  3. 3. Figures based on a 1 per cent. sample of claimants, rounded to the nearest thousand.