Pensioners (Hansard, 17 July 2000)

§ 23. Ms Oona King
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will take steps to link pensioners' incomes to average incomes. [129344]

§ Mr. Rooker
In the last 20 years pensioners' incomes have grown on average by 60 per cent. This exceeds the growth in average earnings.

§ 27. Dr. Julian Lewis
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what recent representations he has received from pensioner organisations about the Government's policy on the basic state pension. [129348]

§ Mr. Rooker
Further to my written answer to the hon. Member for Blaby (Mr. Robathan) on 19 June 2000,Official Report, column 79W, we have received about 1,000 more letters about the level of the basic pension, some of them from pensioner organisations. However, we have not kept a separate count of the latter.

§ 31. Mr. Wilkinson
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will estimate the value in percentage terms of state old age pensions as against the projected level of average earnings in financial years 2000–01 and 2001–02. [129352]

§ Mr. Rooker
This information is contained on page 20 of the Government Actuary's Report on the Quinquennial Review for the period ending 5 April 1995, "National Insurance Fund Long Term Financial Estimates", Cm 4406, published July 1999, a copy of which is in the Library.

§ Mr. Hoyle
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what plans he has to eliminate pensioner poverty in Chorley. [129329]

§ Mr. Rooker
During the course of this Parliament, an extra £6.5 billion over and above inflation will be spent on pensioners. Of this, half is going to help the poorest third of pensioners, primarily through increases to the Minimum Income Guarantee and winter fuel payments.

§ Mrs. Lait
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if the minimum income guarantee and winter heating allowance are available to British pensioners living in other EU countries. [129736]

§ Angela Eagle
The minimum income guarantee and the winter fuel allowance are funded from general taxation, not from social security contributions. Payment is only made to qualifying persons who are resident in the UK.