§ Sir Sydney ChapmanTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will make a statement on changes in the(a) cash limits and (b) running costs limit of his Department for 1996–97 [14128]
§ Mr. BurtThe cash limit for class XII, vote 2—housing benefit subsidies, council tax benefit subsidies and administration, payments into the national insurance fund and the social fund and other grants—will be increased by £394,000 from £437,479,000 to £437,873,000. The cash limit of class XII, vote 3—Department of Social Security, administration—will be increased by £62,373,000 from £2,263,983,000 to £2,326,356,000.
431WThe revision for vote 2 takes account of funding for the London organised fraud investigation team of £1,000,000, a pilot project to investigate organised housing benefit fraud, an increase in the grant in aid to Motability of £346,000 towards its administrative expenses, offset by a corresponding decrease in Department of Social Security, Administration, class XII, vote 3, and a reduction of £952,000 in challenge funding, offset by a corresponding increase in Department of Social Security, Administration, class XII, vote 3.
Vote 3 revisions take account of increased requirements arising from the re-instatement of withheld administration provision following comparable additional benefit savings of £19,000,000 running costs, an increase of £4,000,000 running costs under the end-year flexibility scheme as announced by the Chief Secretary to the Treasury on 12 July 1996, Official Report, columns 326–31 for the security and control package, the reinstatement of a £5,000,000 running costs shortfall resulting from the untying of the repayment service with the Department for Education and Employment for the administration of the unemployment benefit service and £2,000,000 running costs for the parent plus project. Other changes result from a net increase of £31,423,000 towards the administrative cost of the jobseeker's allowance, offset by a corresponding reduction in Department for Education and Employment, Employment Service class IX, vote 3, an increase of £600,000 running costs offset by a corresponding reduction on the Lord Chancellor's and Law Officers' Departments, Lord Chancellor's Department, class VIII vote 1, a reduction of £45,000 running costs offset by a corresponding increase on Department of Health administration and miscellaneous health services and personal social services, England class XI, vote, a reduction of £8,000 running costs, offset by a corresponding increase on Department of Health and Social Services Northern Ireland, vote 3, an increase of £30,000 running costs for repayment to the Security Facilities Executive, a reduction of £40,000 running costs for fallow period compensation payments, a net increase of £606,000 running costs from a transfer of provision from Department of Social Security, housing benefit subsidies, council tax benefit subsidies and administration, payments into the national insurance fund and the social fund and other grants, class XII, vote 2, and an increase in running cost cover of £960,000 for services provided by and to the Department of Health on a repayment basis. Further running cost changes arise from a transfer of £20,486,000 to a net section of the vote, a re-allocation of £8,429,000 from capital expenditure and a shortfall of £11,008,000 is offset by a corresponding reduction in running costs.
Cash limit changes arise from a transfer of £37,000 from Department of Health, administration and miscellaneous health services and personal social services, England, class XI, vote 2, a transfer of £500,000 to Inland Revenue administration class XVI, vote 4, and a transfer of £690,000 to Department for Education and Employment, employment services, class IX, vote 3.
As a result of these changes, the running cost limit of the Department of Social Security will be increased by £40,461,000 from £3,161,911,000 to £3,202,372,000.
The increases will be charged to the reserve and will not, therefore, add to the planned total of public expenditure.