§ Mr. TrickettTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) what estimate he has made of the administrative costs of(a) the War Pensions Agency and (b) the war pensions appeals tribunals in 1996–97;[14021]
(2) how many staff are employed by the War Pensions Agency, and how many mere were in (a) 1979 and (b) 1990. [14019]
§ Mr. HealdThese are matters for Mr. Kevin Caldwell, chief executive of the War Pensions Agency. He will write to the hon. Member.
713WLetter from K. C. Caldwell to Mr. Jon Trickett, dated 5 February 1997:
The Secretary of State for Social Security has asked me to reply to your recent Parliamentary Questions about the administrative costs of the War Pensions Agenda (WPA) and Ware Pensions Appeal Tribunals in 1996–97 and the number of people now employed in the Agency and employed in 1979 and 1990.The budget for the WPA's administrative costs for 1996/97 is £36.991m. The estimated spend is forecast to be within this budget.War Pensions Appeal Tribunals do not come under the jurisdiction of the WPA. However, we have contacted the Pension Appeal Tribunals (PAT) for England/Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland and their estimated administrative costs for 1996/97 are as follows:
- England/Wales: £2,450,284.00
- Scotland: £274,561.00
- Northern Ireland: £50,300.00.
The average number of staff employed by the WPA in the current financial year is 1346. Comparable staffing figures for the years 1979 and 1990 are not available. The WPA began operating in April 1994. Before that date, staff numbers were included in the Benefits Agency's complement and, before 1991, in the Department of Social Security figures. Relevant comparisons with WPA's current staff levels cannot therefore be made for years before 1994/95.I hope you find my reply helpful.