Council Tax Benefit

HC Deb 24 June 2003 vol 407 c755W

Mr. Waterson

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of likely changes in claims for council tax benefit during 2003–04 in(a) England and (b) Eastbourne. [118130]

Malcolm Wicks

We forecast that the average number of council tax benefit recipients in England during 2003–04 will be 4,179,000. This compares with an estimated 4,018,000 in 2002–03. The estimated average number of recipients in Eastbourne during 2002–03 was 7,410. Forecasts are not available by local authority.

Notes:

1. Figures underlie the Chancellor's Budget forecasts of expenditure.

2. The figure for 2002–03 is an estimated outturn (based on part year outturn figures, estimated for the most recent quarter).

3. Figures for England are rounded to the nearest thousand. The figure for Eastbourne is rounded to the nearest 10.

Source:

Department for Work and Pensions, Information and Analysis Directorate, Benefit Forecasting and Model Development.