HC Deb 18 January 2000 vol 342 c424W
Mr. Field

To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security how many people he estimates will receive the state second pension(a) when it is introduced and (b) at each five year interval following its introduction over the next 20 years. [104092]

Mr. Rooker

In the first year of introduction, no one will receive payment of State Second Pension, although individuals will begin to accrue entitlement to it.

It is not possible to provide precise estimates of the number of individuals who will receive State Second Pension for specific years following its introduction.

The following table shows very broad brush estimates of the numbers who will benefit from State Second Pension. These are subject to uncertainty and possible subsequent revision.

Numbers benefiting from State Second Pension at the end of the financial year
Year Million
2003–04 0.3
2008–09 2.1
2013–14 4.0
2018–19 5.5
2023–24 7.5

Notes:

  1. 1. The numbers given are the estimated numbers of individuals who will benefit from State Second Pension at the end of each year. For example, with the first year of awards being 2003–04, the entry in the table headed 2003–04 shows the number of beneficiaries after the first full year of awards.
  2. 2. Numbers for 2003–04 and 2008–09 have been rounded to the nearest 0.1 million. Numbers for later years are rounded to the nearest 0.5 million.
  3. 3. Figures include people who would receive State Second Pension payments as well as those receiving contracted-out pensions where they have benefited from higher contracted-out rebates than would have applied under SERPS.
  4. 4. The figures exclude those higher earning individuals who are contracted-out and whose rebates would be the same under State Second Pension as under SERPS, since such individuals would not benefit from awards of State Second Pension, nor would they gain from any increase in contracted-out rebates.