To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security if he will publish figures showing the number of claims for statutory sick pay made (a) since 5 April 1991 and (b) for the comparable period in 1990 giving information on which claims were payable at the higher rate and which at the lower rate in (1) Wales, (2) Scotland and (3) England; and if he will show a breakdown of the figures for male and female employees and for manual and non-manual workers.
Information is not available in the form requested. The table shows the estimated numbers of statutory sick pay recipients at any one time during the 1990–91 and 1991–92 financial years:—
| Financial Year | ||
| 1990–91 | 1991–92 | |
| Estimated numbers | 360,000 | 350,000 |
Source: Departmental Report (Cm 1514—February 1991.
To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what representations he has received from trade unions, employers or employers' organisations in Wales about the likely effects of requiring employers to meet 20 per cent. of the costs of the statutory sick pay scheme.
A few representations on the reimbursement provisions of the Statutory Sick Pay Act 1991 were received from individual employers in Wales, from the Wales area office of the National Federation of the Self Employed and Small Businesses and the Welsh Council of the Confederation of British Industry.