§ Mr. Nigel JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what estimate he has made of the administration cost of processing applications for(a) winter fuel allowance and (b) concessionary television licences in the (i) last and (ii) current financial year. [130434]
§ Angela EagleIn the last financial year (1999–2000), Winter Fuel Payments accounted for around 0.35 per cent. of the total departmental running costs. There were no costs paid in respect of concessionary TV licences for people over 75.
In the current financial year, administering these two important initiatives to improve the income of older people will account for around 1.7 per cent. of the total departmental running costs (0.93 per cent. in respect of the Winter Fuel Payment scheme and 0.75 per cent. for the concessionary television licence scheme).
Notes:
Winter Fuel Payments
For 1999–2000 (as well as the first two years of the scheme) two of the main conditions of entitlement to Winter Fuel Payments were both age and receipt of a qualifying benefit; those who were entitled were identified through the relevant computer benefit systems and paid automatically. Following a ruling by the European Court of Justice in December 1999, the Winter Fuel Payment scheme was extended to men as well as women from age 60 from the beginning of the scheme (1997–98). The majority of people who are now eligible for a Winter Fuel Payment because of the changes to the scheme are not receiving a Social Security benefit and will have to make a claim.The current year's estimates include the one-off costs of developing a claims process and IT systems to enable the correct amount of payment made to the right person for both future and past winters, as well as the continuation of the automatic payment process.Concessionary TV licences
The concessionary television licence scheme for over 75s was announced in this year's Budget and will take effect from 1 November 2000. Estimated set-up costs are included in the costs for this financial year.