§ Miss McIntoshTo ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on means testing of state pensions on(a) 1 October 1997 and (b) 1 October 2003. [133588]
§ Malcolm WicksThis Government is targeting money where it is most needed. And that means targeting more money on the poorest pensioners. In 1997, the rate of income support from age 60 was £68.80 for single persons and £106.80 for couples. In April 2003, the rate of minimum income guarantee from age 60 increased to £102.10 for single persons and £155.80 for couples.
Pension credit, introduced on 6 October 2003, abolishes the old weekly means test, replacing it with a less intrusive form of assessment. From age 65, most pensioners will have their awards fixed for five years at 630W a time. In addition, pension credit is intended to reward rather than penalise those people who have modest amounts of second pension or other savings.
Compared with the 1997 system as a result of the Government's measures including pension credit, on average, from October 2003, pensioner households are £1,250 a year better off in real terms, around £24 extra a week, and the poorest third of pensioner households will have gained £1,600 a year in real terms.