HC Deb 13 May 1996 vol 277 cc368-70W
Mr. Gapes

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many pensioners are currently in receipt of SERPS pensions; what is the average weekly payment; and what was the equivalent figure in(a) 1985 and (b) 1990. [28892]

Mr. Heald

The information is in the table.

Pensioners in receipt of additional pension
Number of pensioners Net average weekly payment
September 1995 4,584,700 £9.33
September 1990 3,066,050 £4.88
September 1985 1,443,650 £1.89

Notes:

1. Figures are for all countries. The sample size for 1985 and 1990 was 10 per cent. The sample size for 1995 was 5 per cent.

2. The net payment is the amount of additional pension paid after the deduction of a contracted out deduction (COD). A COD is deducted when a person has been contracted out of SERPS into a contracted-out pension scheme or an appropriate personal pension used in place of SERPS.

Source:

Retirement Pensions Statistics.

Mr. Gapes

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what estimate he has made of the percentage of pension income of newly retired pensioners, excluding the basic state pension, which was represented by SERPS payments, in the most recent year; and what were the equivalent figures in(a) 1985 and (b) 1990. [28894]

Mr. Heald

The information is not available in the format requested.

The source of data for estimates of pensioners' incomes is the pensioners' income series. This is based on the family expenditure survey, which contains information only on total state retirement pension and cannot differentiate between basic and additional pension.

The table gives an estimate of the percentage of pensioner income of newly retired pensioners which is total state retirement pension.

State retirement pension as a proportion of pension income
Per cent.
Recently retired pensioner units 1981 1987 1990 1993
Pensioner couples 57 50 53 52
Single pensioners 58 59 61 65
All pensioner units 58 53 55 55

Notes:

1. Recently retired pensioner units are defined as being single women aged 60–64, single men aged 65–69 and couples in which the husband is aged 65–69.

2. Pension income has been defined for this purpose as being the sum of total State Retirement Pension receipt and occupational pension payments.

3. Figures are rounded to the nearest whole per cent.

4. No information is available for 1985 as the Pensioners' Income Series was not compiled for this year.

5. Estimates drawn from the PI 1993 are subject to a large degree of statistical variability, particularly in relation to recently retired pensioners because of the limited sample size, and co comparisons of estimates from different years may not give reliable results.

Sources:

Pensioners' Income Series—1981, 1987, 1990, 1993.

Mr. Gapes

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what was the average weekly SERPS pension paid to those who retired in the most recent year; and what was the equivalent figure in(a) 1985 and (b) 1990. [28893]

Mr. Heald

The information is not available in the format requested. Figures are not available for 1990 as the movement tables were not produced due to the change from the existing pensions computer system to the pensions strategy computer system which took place during the period 1989 to 1992.

The number of new retirement pension awards and the average weekly additional pension paid for 1985 and 1995 are given in the table.

Year ending Number of pensioners Net average weekly payment (£)
31 March 1995 322,890 11.92
31 March 1985 251,510 2.35

Notes:

1. Figures are for all countries and the numbers of pensioners relate to the number of awards of retirement pension in the period.

2. The net payment is the amount of additional pension paid after the deduction of a contracted out deduction (COD). A COD is deducted when a person has been contracted out of SERPS into a contracted-out pension scheme or an appropriate personal pension used in place of SERPS.

3. The figures for 1985 were collected on a yearly basis ending March. The movement tables are now issued every six months. To enable a comparison to be made with the earlier figures, the 6 monthly figures of September '94 and March '95 have been added together, with the average payment being recalculated accordingly.

Source:

Retirement Pension Statistics—Movement Tables.