§ Mr. BurnsTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what estimate she has made of the level of take-up of the money being made available to help112W pensioners meet their fuel costs this winter; and for what reasons she has decided to launch a national advertising campaign about this money. [25287]
§ Mr. DenhamThe additional help of £400 million over this winter and next, announced by my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer,Official Report, 25 November 1997, columns 773–98, demonstrates the Government's commitment to help keep the elderly warm in their homes.
The level of take-up of Winter Fuel Payments is not an issue as they will be made automatically without the need to make a claim. Around one and a half million payments of £50 are currently being made to the poorest pensioners, those receiving Income Support or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance.
Other eligible pensioners will receive a payment of £20 or £10. Where there is only one eligible person in the household, or the eligible person is of no fixed abode, they will receive £20; otherwise, each person will receive £10. Almost 10 million payments will be made to over seven million pensioner households this winter. This programme means that the great majority of payments will be sent buy the end of March.
We see it as important that pensioners should know as soon as possible how much they will receive, as well as how and when it will be paid. This will help them to plan, confident in the knowledge that they will receive extra money towards their fuel bills. The simplest and most cost-effective way to let them know that a payment will be made is through publicity. Therefore, a multi-media campaign was swiftly launched in conjunction with Help the Aged, Age Concern and the National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux.
§ Mr. BurnsTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how much money the Government are spending on the advertising campaign about the money being made available to help pensioners with their winter fuel bills this winter. [25286]
§ Mr. DenhamThe costs of the advertising and other publicity to inform pensioners about Winter Fuel Payments will be £1.7 million.
We see it as important that pensioners should know as soon as possible how much they will receive, as well as how and when it will be paid. This will help them to plan confident in the knowledge that they will receive extra money towards their fuel bills. The simplest and most cost-effective way to let them know that a payment will be made is through publicity. Therefore, a multi-media campaign was swiftly launched in conjunction with Help the Aged, Age Concern and the National Association of Citizens Advice Bureau.