§ Mr. WebbTo ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) if he will estimate the number of 2002–03 winter fuel payments that have been delayed because of departmental computer problems; and of that number, how many have yet to be issued; [99731]
(2) what corrective action he is taking to resolve the departmental computer problems that have delayed 2002–03 winter fuel payments; and if he will make a statement. [99732]
§ Mr. McCartneyOver 11.1 million winter fuel payments have been made so far for this winter, and the vast majority of these were paid automatically before Christmas. There will of course be circumstances where, because of a variety of reasons, payment cannot be made without further inquiries. We seek to resolve these as soon as we can.
However, some customers reported not receiving a payment for this winter. This was promptly investigated and it was found that, because of a system fault, some further 936 people should have been considered for an automatic payment. All of these people who were entitled to a payment for this year have now been paid. We are taking steps to ensure that this does not happen for the next winter.