§ Ms Julie MorganTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what would be the current value of lone parent benefit and lone parent premium if they had been uprated in line with other benefits since April 1995; and how much lone parents benefit would currently be worth if it had been uprated in line with earnings since its introduction. [29979]
§ Mr. Keith BradleyOne Parent Benefit would be worth £6.70 and the lone parent premium would be worth £5.50, if they had been uprated in line with other benefits since April 1995.
One parent Benefit would be worth £2.65 if it had been uprated in line with earnings since its introduction.
Sources:
The Retail Price Index (all items) (PRI index), the Retail Prices Index (all items) less rent, local taxes and mortgage interest payment (ROSSI index) and the Average Earnings Index (Whole Economy), produced by the Office for National Statistics were used in these calculations.
§ Mr. BurnsTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how much money has been spent so far on the New Deal for lone parents; and what has been the506W expenditure per person on the 1,015 people who have gained full or part-time work since the inception of the New Deal for lone parents. [32039]
§ Mr. Keith BradleyThe costs of the Adviser Teams working on the New Deal for Lone Parents is £2.5 million to date. In addition, £0.2 million has been allocated to cover the cost of Employment Service programmes for Lone Parents.
The other costs of the project include project management, the development and provision of IT support, publicity and the cost of the evaluation of the project. In addition to that, there have been costs relating to the involvement of the voluntary sector. The total cost to date of setting up the project and offering the service to over 40,000 lone parents in the first eight areas is £6.1 million.
We do not collect routinely the cost of Adviser time, training courses and administration associated with individual participants in the New Deal for Lone Parents.
§ Mr. LilleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if she will make a statement on the net cost to public funds over the next four years of(a) the welfare to work programme and (b) the measures to help lone parents with child-care and to obtain jobs. [32068]
§ Mr. Keith BradleyThe Government have not made an assessment of the effect of the Welfare to Work programme on Social Security spending, tax and national insurance receipts. To do so would require information on the full effect of the programme on unemployment, wages and the broader economy. The Welfare to Work programme will be carefully evaluated to help, where possible, to determine these. Information on funding for the New Deal, including the New Deal for Lone Parents, is contained in the 1997 Budget and Pre-Budget Report.
The costs of the measures announced in the Pre-Budget Statement to boost child-care are being met from the Windfall Fund, the Out Of School Child Care Initiative and the Lottery's New Opportunities Fund.
§ Mr. PondTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what proportion of lone parents who have had an interview have agreed to participate in the New Deal for lone parents; what proportion of those participating have found jobs; and how many lone parents participating in the New Deal for lone parents have found jobs. [32814]
§ Mr. BurnsTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, pursuant to her answer of 5 February 1998,Official Report, columns 793–94, on lone parents and the New Deal, if she will update her earlier answer to include the first six months of the New Deal. [32107]
§ Ms HarmanThe New Deal for Lone Parents has been running in eight areas of the country since July 1997. A national service will be available to all new lone parents claiming Income Support in April 1998, and to all lone parents receiving Income Support in October.
Using the latest information for the period from July 1997 to 31 January 1998 for the New Deal for Lone Parents, the percentage of lone parents attending an initial interview who agreed to participate in the New Deal for Lone Parents is 90 per cent; the proportion of those 507W participating who have found jobs is 33 per cent; and a total of 1,113 lone parents participating in the New Deal for Lone Parents have found jobs.
A full independent evaluation is under way, which will report in due course. The evaluation will compare outcomes for lone parents in the New Deal areas with outcomes for those not in New Deal areas.