§ Mr. KirkwoodTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will list by Benefits Agency region the number of pensioners who also claim income support; and if he will make a statement. [14999]
§ Mr. Roger EvansThe administration of income support is a matter for Peter Mathison, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member.
Letter from Peter Mathison to Mr. Archy Kirkwood, dated 12 February 1997:
The Secretary of State for Social Security has asked me to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking if he will list by Benefit Agency region the number of pensioners who also claim income support; and if he will make a statement.The latest information available is shown on the attached table.I hope you find this reply helpful.
Number of pensioners in receipt of Income Support (IS) by Benefits Agency (BA) Area Directorate BA Area Directorate (AD) Number of pensioners in receipt of IS as at the end of November 1996 AD 1 East London and Anglia 146,954 AD 2 Chilterns 129,154 AD 3 London South 201,698 AD 4 West Country 128,811 AD 5 Mercia 135,936 AD 6 West Midlands 145,958 AD 7 Wales 91,729 AD 8 North West Coast 118,553 AD 9 Greater Manchester 111,046 AD 10 Yorkshire 149,507 AD 11 Tyne and Tees 89,541 AD 12 West of Scotland 75,212 AD 13 East of Scotland 88,823 The data have been provided by the Benefits Agency's Central Data Unit and is subject to amendment.
The data relates to customers in receipt of a pensioner premium because the customer or partner is aged not less than 60.