§ Mr. WebbTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, pursuant to his oral statement of 28 October 1998,Official Report, columns 339–42, if he will list the estimated public expenditure effects of each of his proposed reforms to disability benefits in each of the next five years, and for each the eventual effect once the measures are fully implemented. [58597]
§ Mr. TimmsThe information is set out in the table.
Living Allowance which puts greater emphasis on getting claims right first time and which allows for regular reviews of claims in payment. He also emphasised that there would be no return to the situation that existed before April 1997, when nothing was being done to check that people were getting the right benefit.
The Benefit Integrity Project will be replaced by a new system which we will ensure is fair as well as sensitive. The characteristics of the new system and when and how it will be introduced will be the subject of future 93W discussions with the Disability Benefit Forum. We are keen to introduce this change as soon as possible but it is most important that we get it right.