§ Mr. Jim CunninghamTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment how many council tenants in the United Kingdom currently claim housing benefit. [10504]
§ Mr. ClappisonWhen claiming housing revenue account subsidy, local authorities in England supply my Department with information about the number of council tenants in receipt of rent rebate. Based on these returns, there are an estimated 2,394,000 council tenants in England in receipt of housing benefit in 1995–96. My Department does not receive any information about the number of claimants in the other parts of the United Kingdom.