§ Lord Marlesfordasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether there is a single register for all persons with national insurance numbers whether they be in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland; and, if not, what linkages exist between the registers of the different countries. [HL2075]
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Work and Pensions (Baroness Hollis of Heigham)The Department for Work and Pensions has responsibility for managing the Departmental Central Index computer system. All persons allocated with a national insurance number in the United Kingdom are recorded on this computer system.
§ Lord Marlesfordasked Her Majesty's Government:
How many valid national insurance numbers exist in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland; and whether these numbers are confined to citizens of the United Kingdom. [HL2076]
§ Baroness Hollis of HeighamThere are approximately 83 million national insurance numbers (NINOs) currently held on the Departmental Central Index computer system, which holds records of all NINOs allocated.
This figure can be broken down into the following categories: 47 million NINOs are used by UK residents aged over 16; 12.5 million child reference numbers for all children included in claims to child benefit; 13.5 million NINOs relating to deceased persons are retained to allow surviving spouses to claim contributory benefits; 2 million are in receipt of benefit abroad. The remaining 8 million will include UK citizens who have migrated to other countries, short-term immigrants/holiday workers and deceased persons where notification of death has not been received.