§ Mr. William RossTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if she will make a statement on the factors underlying delays in issuing child benefit payment books. [49219]
§ Mr. WorthingtonI have been asked to reply.
Responsibility for this matter has been delegated to the Social Security Agency under its Chief Executive, Mr. Chris Thompson, and I have asked him to arrange for a response to be given.
368WLetter from Chris Thompson to Mr. William Ross, dated 16 July 1998
I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about the factors underlying delays in issuing child benefit payment books.A combination of factors gave rise to problems in the Child Benefit Office that caused delays in payment books being issued. There was disruption when the Office had to relocate to new premises at Windsor House in November 1997. Added to this were problems with the introduction of two new computer systems, one of which required a key additional feature which was not initially available. There were also technical problems which caused difficulties for staff accessing the computer system; response times were slower and in many instances live claims were rejected. Furthermore, staff took action in April 1998 in protest against threats by terrorist organisations which also had a serious impact on the provision of services.A recovery plan has been in operation which included the deployment of extra staff from elsewhere in the Agency. Extensive overtime is also being worked in order to clear the backlog which has been significantly reduced over the last six weeks. It is anticipated that normal service, including the telephone service, should resume in early August.I hope this explains the position for you but I would be happy to provide any further information you require.